Iberians

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showqa

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Hi there,

Just wondered if anyone had experience of Iberians - Andalucians and Lusitanos. I'm really quite interested in buying ne, although I've only ever ridden them overseas. Where's the best place to start the hunt? Thanks!
 
I have no experience of owning one - though some neighbours of the yard where I keep my horses have an absolutely gorgeous white Andalusian stallion who is a complete gentleman.
Also my friend was interested in buying one recently and we went to see several.
She had two vetted - both failed because of sarcoids & apparently they are prone to them.
Try www.bapsh.co.uk which is the UK Andalusian society web site. There are also loads of web sites for people who import them from Spain - just do a search on Google.
We went to North Farm Andalusians in Wiltshire. Lovely place with some super horses but the ones we wanted were out of our budget.
They do seem to be quite expensive generally just because of their breed - £5k for an unbroken 3yo for example! £12 - £14k for something working at about Novice level dressage. In the end my friend decided not to buy one & bought a lovely coloured ISH instead.
However I do think they are beautiful horses & they seem to have very good temperaments.
 
Thanks for that folks. They do seem pricey, but you know, it's kind of a dream fulfilled if I can find the right one. I know they're famed for their flatwork, and not known as jumpers, but although I'm not a serious jumper (3t 6 track keeps me happy), I wonder if they're happy to pop a few jumps at home and local shows.
 
Yes they are...

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That is my Cercano, he happily jumped 1.30m tracks
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You can buy a nice Andy for under £5k no probs if you know where to look - unfortunately once they come over here people stick a HUGE premium on them. I sold mine last year for around £4k though as I don't do fleecing....he was not a novice ride tho, hating schooling but an angel to hack and handle

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There's one on project horses for significantly less money than you'd otherwise find over here.

I'm more of a luso fan but andys are great too.
 
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Thanks for that folks. They do seem pricey, but you know, it's kind of a dream fulfilled if I can find the right one. I know they're famed for their flatwork, and not known as jumpers, but although I'm not a serious jumper (3t 6 track keeps me happy), I wonder if they're happy to pop a few jumps at home and local shows.

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I'm pretty sure a horse John Whittaker rode was an Iberian breed. I forget which horse/breed it was tho'!
 
We've got 5 andies on our yard now!

All came from here http://www.spanishhorsesuk.com/

Just remeber to keep your eyes and senses as pealed as you would with english sellers etc.

Love my chap got him quite cheep as he's unpapered and part bred but he's fab and good enough to be registered with BAPSH anyway. He also had some teeth problems to sort out.

Also don't be fooled into thinking ever Andy is a dressage machine I know a few people who have bought them for that but turned out to have out and out jumpers instead!
 
my YO has 3 lustos.all lovely.trained in the bull ring and brought over.
they are very sensitive to weight aids and not everyone cup of tea to ride-you have to really concentrate every step.you ride weight aids,hardly any rein.(at least the ones trained in the bull ring anyway!)
they have quite collected paces so can feel quite stuffy to ride until you get used to them.
lovely natures though.
vega blood tends to produce very hot horses-may be best to steer clear unless you are used to riding one!
 
My friend's just bought a lovely black Andalucian from Spain, cost about £900 to have it brought back on a lorry, but I think they cost a lot less in Spain. She goes to an English owned riding place (Los Alamos) and the owners there help people find the right horse (for a fee no doubt!)
 
Iberians trained in Iberia are extremely weight sensitive; drop a hip and they'll half pass, weight back and they'll stop dead from a gallop, weight forwards and they rein back, get the weight in the right place and you have a pirohuette (sp!). That's a simplified statement, but you get the idea. Reins are purely for back up. Iberian riders only ride with one hand. When I first got my Luso from Spain our straight lines were very wiggly! He has taught me so much and made me so much more aware of what my body is doing and the effect it has. They are very bold & intelligent creatures too. I bought mine for dressage and started jumping him to keep his mind occuped with new challenges - turns out he loves it!
In Iberia, they only tend to paper them, if it's a good bloodline or they intend to breed from them. If they're not papered then the price is a lot less. My boy is unpapered and I got him for a good price but I definitely paid more for him as a Brit. The Iberians are getting wise to us Brits and have hiked up the prices over the last few years!
I can't really comment on horses bought / bred in the UK. I am aware though of a number of very reputable studs. PM me if you want more info.
I can't enthuse enough about the breed and wouldn't consider anything else now. I only wish I'd discovered them sooner.
 
I have a Luso x and love him to bits! I LOVE the breed, even though mine is only a part bred he has the attitude / temperament that they are famous for. They are so genuine, hard working and clever. He's never ONCE argued or questioned me.

Id love a pure bred one day, not too solid a one though as I want one to jump. But the prices here are way too high just now. They're still rather novel in this country. If I was going to buy one, Id go to Spain or Portugal and find one there, way cheaper even with transport back.
 
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