The Iberian Warmblood
"The Ultimate Dressage Horse"
It is well known that the Byerly's Turk, Darley's Arabian, and Godolphin Barb were crossed with the King's English mares to produce the modern Thoroughbred. What few realize is that at the time the King's English mares were mostly of Spanish descent: Andalusians. Similarly, Warmbloods started out as draft horses, which were put to Iberian blood to refine them into more elegant coach horses. Since, they have been further refined by additions of Arabian and Thoroughbred blood. Isn't it something that today's dressage competitors were pulling heavy wagons, coaches, and the army's artillery while the Andalusian was the High School Dressage Horse bar none!
The Andalusian is often criticized for having too much animation and not being able to lengthen its strides. While this may be the case in some bloodlines, it hardly represents the breed as a whole. In Europe and the United States breeders are careful to promote the strong conformation and versatility of the Andalusian horse, producing a mount that is capable to compete against the best Warmbloods in the world. In the 2004 Summer Olympics held in Athens, Greece, Spain's dressage team consisting of one Warmblood and three purebred Andalusians won the Silver in the team dressage.
Today breeders are infusing more Iberian blood back into the Thoroughbreds and Warmbloods to create a lighter, more sensitive, more rideable dressage mount. Warmbloods are often difficult to ride, especially for the aging rider. Today's Warmbloods have big gaits and often need to be lunged before their owners are comfortable to get on and ride. By adding the kind temperment, sensitivity and tremendous rideability of the Andalusian to the Warmblood you create the perfect partner: the Iberian Warmblood. The Iberian Warmblood is fluid and forward to ride with uphill movement and good bones. They are sensitive to the rider's aids and submissive to the rider's requests.
So far the Iberian Warmblood is becoming more and more successful in competition. Tierra's Luna, an Andalusian x Thoroughbred cross, competed as an Olympic hopeful and in July of 2002 was awarded the USDF Gold Medal (Gold Medals are awarded to riders with consistently high scores in the Intermediate I and II and Grand Prix levels). In 2004, one of the high-end eventing horses in the country was an Iberian Warmblood ridden by a junior rider. At Old Stonehouse Farm we produce a few select Iberian Warmblood foals every year. Our three, four and five year olds are competeing in halter, dressage, and eventing and brining home ribbons. We often work with the owners to help them train their own mounts when the horses reach three years of age. They are such a kind gentle animal, so people oriented, that they do not require years of professional training to compete successfully. We encourage our customers to take an active role in the training of their horses, to help develop a bond and a sense of security that will last a lifetime.
Learn more about the Iberian Warmblood at the
Iberian Warmblood Registry International
