Lately, Bruce has been driving Naen.  He said that now he wants to develop his hind end.  I really like the methodical way he prepares this horse for his upcoming debut.   I also like the fact that when I get this horse home, he will be trained and I can take over and feel confident. 

I have booked my flights to Raleigh, NC September 1 (for his next show) and also to Leesburg, VA for the keuring!I am on pins and needles hoping he stays healthy, strong and that we can 'wow' everyone during the fall events.

I haven't ridden him yet, but plan to in Raleigh.  I better get in shape NOW.

Well, Naen is doing real great.  Staci told me she drove him off another horse in tandem!  I would have loved to have seen that sight!   We anxiously await the September 1st show.  It will be his first 'official' judging.  He will go in under saddle and in-hand classes.  He needs that 'in-hand' experience for the keuring September 26.

As our heads hit the pillow, the alarm rang. 

Up at 8:30 and off to breakfast and the farm.  Again, our trusty (or rusty) GPS and directions from Stacy got us there.  I was trembling with anticipation to see my boy!  The countryside during the day was just as I expected it:  green, rolling terrain; quaint houses and farms; tobacco sheds and rustic fences.  A Virginia license plate on a car I saw said it all "Virginia - 1607 to 2007: 400 years of history."  Wow.  The land of the founding fathers, Jefferson, the Civil War.  We imagined people in carriages 'driving' over to the neighbors and up and down these roads.  Truly it was like going back in time.   

We finally met Bruce and Stacy and a couple of their darling kids.  We went to Naen's stall, opened the door and I gave Sue my camera.  "I want a picture of me first meeting him"!   She took some great shots.  He walked up to the open stall door, sniffed me and put his head in my outstretched arm.   Love at first sight, feel and smell for me.   I don't know about him, but he was pretty friendly.  It was awesome.  I just had to hug him and pet him.  He was so calm and kind and curious.  And, of course, gorgeous!

Bruce got him out of the stall and we took him to the training arena.   It was a blast to see him walk and play around.  He got lunged a little and that was it.  Bruce never said, but later he confided that he did not want to do much until his own blacksmith worked on Naen and Oene's feet.  They needed work.   No one rode Naen or Oene that day.  But it was a glorious Virginia day nonetheless.  My lifelong dream of having my very own "Black Stallion" was finally in progress.... 

Sue Zoltner and I decided to take a quick trip to Virginia to see our stallions.  She has Oene (pronounced Oona) there, as well.  We met at the Raleigh/Durham Airport, in North Carolina.  It was during the American Airlines grounding recently and sure enough, our planes were late.  It took all day just to get to the airport.  Finally, we got the car and headed up to Gretna, VA.  It was 1:00 a.m.!  The weather was warm and sticky.  So strange to me after coming from DRY central California.

The roads through North Carolina and Virginia are sparsely populated and dark.  We talked to pass the time.  The GPS and our internet map were some comfort. We wound our way through small towns and back woods.  Finally, we got to Altavista, where we were staying and the GPS said, "turn left arriving at your destination".   It was an Ace Hardware! Oh well, at least it got us to the right town.  After a few more wrong turns, we got to the place and crashed:  3:30 a.m. 

Bruce and Stacy are great.  They got in touch and let me know Naen arrived and was settling into his new stall.  He is beautiful, handsome and all that jazz...

We decided that we would communicate once a week or so so they could let me know how the kid was doing.  I don't like to nag my horse trainers.  They are busy enough, god knows. After going through the quarantine experience, I was leery of being taken advantage of again by the new trainers.  But they were gracious and understanding and put my mind at ease.  One day early on, I got a call from Bruce saying they called the vet.  Oh great, here we go again.  Naen was down in his stall and had low gut sounds.  Sure enough, he had an impaction.  Their quick response was crucial.  It seems that Friesians will not show serious signs of pain and if you wait till they do, it can be too late.  I began thinking:  I thought I was done with sensitive horses (having had thoroughbreds.)  Oh well..this one is different.  And he had been though so much.

At the Griffins, Bruce trains the horses and Stacy, well, Stacy takes care of everything else:  kids, trains horses also, deals with owners, finances, schedule.  What a girl she is.  I had no idea what an amazing team they are until I decided to cross the country, check out their facility and meet them - and Naen for the first time.....  

Naen was to be in quarantine for 30+ days.  During this time, he was subjected to vaccinations (too many in my opinion), shoeing, teeth floating, blood taking and breeding.  Whew!  If I had to do it again, I would  notify the quarantine people not to do some things.  I would have taken my trainer Bruce's advice and not walked/jogged him on the Exerciser daily.  He was vaccinated and shod before he left Holland.  He could have lived without having his teeth done.  They took a little too much liberty there, but I won't bad mouth the facility.  I already dealt with them.  My advice:  Find out what your horse had done before he gets there.   Be CAREFUL about what you authorize, and get second opinions. 

It is no wonder that the day before he was to leave there, he spiked a fever of 106 and had to wait.  More vet trips, shots, antibiotics, and finally he was ok to travel.  Another problem I had:  they shipped him when he was not done yet with his antibiotic treatment!  Not good.   God, it's stressful having a horse in quarantine.

However, the good thing is that the people handling him did really what they thought they should to takecare of him.  He finally made it to Virginia and settled in, almost.....

I called the owner of the quarantine station in nervous anticipation of when Naen would get there.  It was nerve-wracking to wait for his arrival safely at the quarantine!  As we were on the phone she said his trailer had just gone by her window at that moment!  He was safe!

I felt so relieved to know that finally Naen was in good hands and could relax in a stall.  Just think:  On a trailer for 2 hours to Amsterdam;  six hours on a plane to JFK; trailer to 3-day quarantine, then 5 hours on the trailer to Maryland. Whew!..  The shipping agent at the 3 day quarantine told me Naen had gotten out of his halter 2 times on the flight!  A real Houdini.   I saw that characteristic in his eyes in the first picture I saw of him.  Such a personality.  He is turning four years old in April.  Just a big kid...



 

The process began and there was no turning back!  I sent the money and realized, Oh, god, I own a Friesian stallion!  I suddenly had this overwhelming feeling of great responsibility to this great creature.  I decided I would try to get him approved by the Dutch in 2008.  I had to get him insured, shipped, trained, presented.  What first?

I feverishly prepared my own property for the arrrival of a grand horse.  Then I heard that Bruce Griffin in Virginia is so good at presenting at keurings.  A keuring is a show presentation of Friesians to the Dutch judges.  They have to be judged and approved as worthy of passing on the genes.  Amazing.  I wish more horse breeds would have such requirements.

Naen flew to JFK in January from Amsterdam.  For three days he was in a quarantine near there.  All the shipping people handled everything.  I was clueless about how to get him from point A to point B.  From there, since I had decided to send him to Bruce, he had to go to Maryland for his 30-day quarantine.  Thirty days!  Why?

When you import a stallion, he has to be tested for the disease CEM.  The only way to test for that is to see if it gets passed to a mare.  What?  My baby has to breed two mares?! ... 

In August of 2007 I was surfing around the web and made my customary look at the legacyfriesians.com website for any interesting horses.  I had a dream since childhood to own a Friesian.  I finally had come into the position of fulfilling that dream.  His picture captured me instantly and I made the call to Sue Zoltner (the most wonderful agent on the planet):  "I want that one!"  The journey began.....