Selle Francais

S

seche

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- Tell me all about them please!!!
Ive only ever really known and owned TBs in my time!
on the hunt to aquire a new one and one has caught my eye though shock horror its a SF and not a TB
 
The horse in my pic is 50% selle francais, he is the most gentle kind horse to handle and is quite loving in his own way, he is very rarely spooky and most of the time you could put your granny on him. BUT he can be a bit of a sensitive petal, he took a long time to mature and went through a very nappy stage which took a long time to get under control. Because of the problems I had at the time I spent a lot of time looking in to the breed and it does appear that they have a tendency to mature late and can be stubborn/nappy. My vet events one that was given to him as he was such a git (horse not vet!).

It is well worth finding out what the bloodlines are through something like allbreedpedigree.com my boy is half selle francais half anglo arab which makes him the equivalent of a full SF as these are typical bloodlines. I would expect you to see a lot of arab and a lot of thoroughbred with some draft (and I mean pull a cart draft) further back in the lines.

Despite all this I think they are a brilliant breed which is reflected in their popularity with the pros.
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My SF apparently did not look like a "typical" SF but he was gorgeous
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Lovely to look at, easy in every way to do (apart from clipping), a real gentleman, far too big for me really but never ever took advantage of me either when being ridden or on the ground
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Couldn't recommend them highly enough
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My boy is part SF and personally I think they are ( or he certainly is ) only suitable for the patient and experienced. Very loving horse but too sensitive by far. He is 8 and still very tricky. Wouldn't have another tbh but each to their own and all horses are different.
 
SF is a bit of a hotch potch ie can mean anything! THere are lots which are nearly pure TB, others with a lot of WB - it's basically the French breeding programme, a little bit like ISH can cover a multitude of characteristics I think. I have a Dutch WB which is 1/4 SF, in his case it's very close to TB so has made him a lot finer than a lot of Dutch horses. Also very sharp, which I have heard is another characteristic - not nasty just sharp!!
 
My SF was smart & intelligent but very much a one person horse. He was quite sharp (but then so is my WBxISH). On the plus he was athletic, brave & nimble which made him fantastic XC. He wasn't too fussed with dressage but was capable when he was in the mood. Def worth a look in my opinion.
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I have one - he is lovely with a great jump. It is like Table Dancer says though - it a french warmblood - so like with for example dutch warmbloods they can differ hugely. The french system is very good in producing young horses. Here are some pics of my 6-year old SF (you don't have to ask me twice, I think he is so pretty!):

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Well from my small breeding program they are a lot nicer than hanoverians.

I have two full brothers both 50% SF. One is a total super star and is unfortunate to be lumbered with me. The other is very nice horse, but not so talented SJ'ing. Both have fab attitudes and most people would kill for them (especially the dude).

The only thing I would say is that I have to pump them with food and red cell to give them pep as they are very laid back!
 
Well I have been to look at 2 over the last couple of years and they seem very thoroughbredy (sorry I don't do thoroughbreds) and very upity dropped its owner in menage 1st one. 2nd one owner terrified of it so no good reports on them from here I'm afraid but everyone to their own.
 
The bay in my sig is Selle Francais. The ridden picture was her as a 3 year old just bakced and the non ridden as a 4 year old this year. She is adorable with a temp to die for. She has a few quirks but nothing bad was easy to back and is a very quick learner. How is this one bred?
 
I have a two year old mare, her father is a SF and her mother is an Anglo Arab x Appaloosa, after reading some of the comments i can totally see traits others have mentioned in her. She's seems to be maturing mentally late and can be stubborn and nappy when doing things she dosen't want to do! She's can also be a very sweet mare who is one person horse, she's quite good for me but dosen't seem to like other people that she dosen't know well! She is very pretty and has a huge jump, has jumped over a 3'6ft fence in the field to get to some friends lol!!
 
My old boy looked just like yours does in the first photo. Real sense of deja vu! He was bright bay with 4 whites but a bit stockier. Did similar prancing in the field too! Yours is lovely
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I have 8 selle francais and think they are awesome. They have beautiful temperaments. As with all horses if they have not been handled well then they can be tricky.
I find them very honest and laid back. For example, I have left all my colts entire because they are so easy to do.
As a breed they jump like stags and have a brilliant canter. Their walk and trot is not the most impressive and they can look at little bit common, which is why they are often crossed with more elegant breeds.

All that said, I think they are the DB's and love my herd to bits!
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I have met a couple of SF and they seem to be extremely nice horses, not uppity or bad tempered, quiet easy to deal with.
 
My girl is an SF - see siggie for pictures
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I dont think I would ever search by breed, but having had Elz, I would certainly feel happy about having another SF - I think they're lovely. As elegant as a Thoroughbred, with just a tad more substance
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I have a full SF and a SF x Han. They are both big horses. My full SF mare is a huge powerful horse, she is bred for her jump and her jump alone, she is frightenly awsome, I have never sat on a horse with such a jump. She is also the sweetest horse to have around the yard, everyone falls in love with her. I bought her as a 5 year old to produce and sell and I could have sold her at every show I went to but 3 and a half years later I can't let her go!!

Downsides - she is mean to all the other horses, what a bully! She is also extremely sensitive (but I suspect she has been beaten in the past). She is also the most difficult horse to ride I have ever seen! Head strong, stubborn. If she doesn't want to stop there is nothing you can do about it but she is also sensitive in her mouth.

She is beautiful though. And when I get her working she gives me the most amazing feeling.

My 3 year old SF x Hann is also a big boy, but with a lot more blood. He is quite lazy gernerally but shows off in public. For a stallion he just has the best temprament. My non horsey husband even managed to take him for a trip out in the lorry on his own last week!

As a breed they are wonderful, they can have a lot of the same quirks that TBs have, as they have a high TB percentage but I am hooked on them.
 
I worked on a small SF stud that had a stallion, 1 mare, 1 filly by their mare + stallion and a colt by their stallion out of a DWB mare. I worked for them at weekends when I was at school, then lost contact for a while, but I went back and worked for them full-time 3 years later.

The stallion was my baby. He genuinely was my horse of a lifetime. I've never "clicked" with a horse the way I did with him. He was a lazy bugger. Everyone else rode him with spurs and often two schooling whips, but I'd jump on him without spurs and no whip and have him doing canter pirouettes and two time changes
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I could have ridden that horse all day, I just had to think and he'd do it for me. He was truly special. He was a sod to handle on the ground in and out of the field but a complete lamb in the stable.
Unfortunately the owners seperated and he moved away and I haven't seen him or heard much about him since
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He was a real warmblood type, about 16.1 and drop dead gorgeous.

The mare was absolutely huuuge, 17hh and built like a brick s**t house, she was lovely, really laid back and easy to handle.

The filly has ended up enormous, she's easily 17.2 and also pretty chunky. She's quite hot headed but is a lovely horse and really nice to ride.

The colt grew into an absolutely stunning animal. He ended up being gelded as his behaviour was somewhat difficult which he never really grew out of. He reached 16.3, moved like a dream and had a fantastic jump on him, but was a complete arse to handle. He was another that I got on really well with. I watched him being born, and knew him til he was about 8 months old, then went back and broke him in as a four year old. He was a sod, I've never known a horse with a sense of humour quite like him. I think he took genuine amusement and pride in humiliating and flattening anyone handling him lol he was great, I look back on leading him in from the field everday and smile
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Unfortunately after an illness resulting in heart problems he gradually lost weight and fitness and he was put to sleep in the last year.

I've got photos somewhere of them, i'll have to scan them in the computer.


Anyway, the gist of all that rambling is that I am firm fan of SFs and would not hesitate to own one!!
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