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All our foals are purebred,
from English and Irish bloodlines, are registered with
the Gypsy Vanner Horse Society
and are DNA tested.
2008 foal due
May
Tansy x Lenny's Horse!

Tansy |
X |

Lenny's Horse |
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Breedings planned for 2009 foals
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Tansy |
X |

Lenny's Horse |
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Tansy |
X |

Silky Boy |
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Teasel |
X |

Taliesin |
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Previous Harkaway Vanner babies
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Tonka
Tansy's colt |
Daisy
Teasel's filly |
Flurry
Tansy's colt |
Click on an image to visit our
babies!
We are a very small farm where
quality is our watchword. Our
priorities, when selecting future
breedings for our Gypsy Vanner
mares, are excellence of temperament
and conformation along with breed
type and powerful movement. (There
are few things I adore more than a
horse with truly excellent
movement).
And we never
lose sight of the importance of
excellent feather, mane and tail. Of
course, hair is not vital to a
healthy, happy Gypsy Vanner, but it
is
vital to breed type. Hair is not
everything, but you can't have
everything if you don't have hair!
Poor temperament is the first
disqualifier though, in both the
stallion and the mare. What good is a
beautiful Vanner if he or she
doesn't have the sunny, sweet
disposition for which the breed is
famous? Our own mares were selected
for their lovely temperaments and it
would be such a pity to lose that in
their foals.
One other trait we value enormously
in our program is the height of the
older style Vanner. The current
fashion in the UK is for the Romany
to breed ever more tiny horses.
Heights are getting down below
12.2hh. They are as cute as a button
but our preference is for the older
style Vanner that can be a versatile
driving and riding horse. As
much as genetics and good fortune
will allow, we aim to breed a Vanner
between 15hh and 15.3hh. Though if
we fall in love with a smaller
stallion, we'll use him too!
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If you are looking for a
Gypsy Vanner it may be
useful to bear in mind
that really good
examples of the breed
change hands among the
gypsies of England and
Ireland for staggering
sums of money (A
beautiful yearling filly
sold at Appleby for
nearly $160,000 in '07!) This,
combined with the cost
of importation of
breeding stock and the
fact that the breed is
still quite rare here in
the States, means that,
unfortunately, quality
Gypsy Vanners are not
cheap.
But if you search the
internet you may well
find all sorts of hairy
(and not-so-hairy)
lesser quality gypsy
horses (or even cross-breds
with no gypsy blood at
all!) that are being
sold under the guise of
being a true Vanner. It
pays to do your homework
and talk to as many
people as you can.
Confusingly, price is
not always a good guide
though. A very expensive
Vanner is not
necessarily top
quality either! Be your
own judge when it comes
to buying.
Keep in mind that as
well as breeding their
highly-prized "blood",
quality horses, some
gypsies also breed
"trade" horses. These
are much lesser
specimens. These "trade"
horses are not quality
breeding stock and a
wise purchaser will not
buy them as such and
certainly won't pay more
than a few thousand for
them. |
Conformation aside, one
of the first clues that
you are looking at a
poorer specimen is a
lack of feather. This is
why you will see so many
reputable breeders
harping on about
feather. Not because we
like it (though we do!)
but because it's
presence is of vital
importance and its lack
may indicate
clean-legged blood close
up in the pedigree.
In the eyes of a good
gypsy breeder, a horse
without excellent
feather is worthless as
a breeding animal. A
heavily feathered Vanner
is not necessarily a
great individual...but
one lacking feather can
never be considered to
be top quality.
Another sign is a horse
that lacks bone and
great substance. These
are often first or
second crosses with
either local ponies or
light horses. The
gypsies call these
cross-bred horses "half-leggers"
but will cheerfully sell
you one if you want!!
Please, by all means, do
your homework before
your new purchase. It is
always a great idea to
check with the registry
to ensure that
your exciting prospect
is, indeed, what the
seller claims. Never
were the words Caveat
Emptor (buyer beware)
more true! A quick phone
call or e-mail to the
registrar will set your
mind at rest that you
are buying the true
breed and not a cheap
(or, worse yet,
expensive!) wanna-be. |
If there is anything at all
that we can do to assist you in your
search then please don't hesitate to
contact us. We can put you in touch
with trustworthy and reputable
breeders here in the US and also in
England.

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