Oriana and me.

Jerezano in Lisboa

Your contact person are Eva Ørndrup, regarding buying and contacting the Lusitano breeders Rex & Lee Henry.

Me
I lived in Denmark in my small flat in the center of Copenhagen. I hope to be breeding both Lusitano as well as Pura Raza Española (Andalusians),  in the future here in Denmark on The Iberian Farm (our stud farm yet to come). But things have changed.

I still live in Denmark, but now I live in a house just outside Copenhagen, with my husband and children. I don't have any horses right know, but I still hope on getting one in the future.

How
I’ve learned about the Portuguese horse, through the Internet. I was surfing after Andalusians, whom I recently had discovered exsisted. When I came a cross the International Andalusian and Lusitano Horse Association (IALHA, USA), I wrote them an E-mail, asking about the breeds and where I could get some more information. The reply was nice and direct, if you want to know more about the breeds: then you have to see them your self.
And so I did.

Portugal
I went to Portugal, to the International Puro Sang Lusitano Festival 96’ and met with the President, of the International Andalusian and Lusitano Association, Bill Killingsworth (he is no longer the president). He showed me around and told me “all" there was to know, about the different breeders and the different lines/types of Lusitano horses.
He also told me that he owned both P.R.E. (Andalusians) and Lusitanos.

The P.R.E. is the most known horse breed of those two and is very popular in the USA. But in his opinion the Lusitano was  more useful, because they usually is breed for a particularly working purposes.

The 2 colts: Que-Zano and Rozaro

Alteza leading the herd.

When I was in Portugal I feel in love with the Lusitano (as I did with the P.R.E.), I think that you can not separate those two horse breeds completely, they are basically the same. All though I would not breed the P.R.E. with the Lusitano (or vise versa), mainly because the offspring’s could not be in either the Portuguese or the Spanish studbook register, and why should I, they are both magnificent horse breeds.

But I really want to promote both breeds, because they equally have beauty and skills that are very different from any other horse breed I have known. I would have to say, that they are more “original” (the Iberian horse, expression for both breeds) they are not altered that much through time, as many of the man made breeds.

History
It is one of the first saddle horses in the world, and the classical way of riding is very  well preserved, in Portugal and Spain. That is also why I find the Iberian horse so interesting, it is ridden in balance and harmony, in for example a very high level dressage or just ridding.
Young horses learn the highest dressage level exercises in a very calm way and with out much force.

It is only stallions that are being ridden and that make the exercises look even more spectacular. And the stallions seem to know that.

But the breeder Rex & Lee Henry like to brake in their mares as well, so that they can prove themselves. I like that. If you breed horses I think it is not enough that only the stallion should prove him self, in riding competitions.
I think that the mares have that lovely temperament and beautiful neckline as well as the stallions, it is a pity not to use them for ridding.

The tradition in Portugal (and Spain) is only to ride the stallions and let the mares live all their life in the wild – breeding,some all ready as (2-) 3 year olds.

After seeing all these magnificent Lusitano for 3 days, I especially feel in love with a 4 year old stallion – Jerezano. At a dinner party I meet his breeder Lee & Rex Henry, we talked about prizes, finding and buying Lusitano’s. Rex said that he could help me with that, he often heard of horses that were for sale. At the moment they didn’t have any stallions (at my prize level – that was very low) them self, but he would have his eyes and ears open for me.

Over the past years we have been writing each other, about Lusitano events and horses for sale. But this can be very hard to pick out a horse without seeing him and then the cost of vet, buying, transporting and maybe the travel back and forth to see and try the horse.

2. visit
Then the summer of 1998, my boyfriend and me went to Portugal for our holidays and meet with Rex & Lee Henry again. This was a very informative trip and Rex & Lee was so helpful and introduced us to riders, breeders and their own horses. Of cause they wanted to sell some of their horses to me, and believe me their are not other I rather would buy horses from, but……

Nador at Morgado

Rex riding Omar.

We saw their stallions Xiwara, Leon, Nador and Jerezano at The Morgado Lusitano Training Center (in Póvoa de Santa Iria). Leon was shown under rider training: gallops-changing, passage and starting movement in piaff.  Nador has just started his training and we saw Xiwara (age 20) performing in the Morgado Lusitano show. He is a professional, he doesn’t need to warm up that much and he shows exercises at the highest dressage level.

Then we saw some of their mares, on another farm (Casal Branco, in Almeirim) where they have used Xiwara as breeding stallion. Here Rex & Lee had another young stallion trained, and he is for sale.

The farm
The last stop was on their own farm (in Aldeia de João Pires) to see their 2 colts and mares with their foals. Rex & Lee’s 2 brood mares and their fillies from the last 3 years and this year’s colt, share a huge pen along with 4 bay mares.
This was a very unique experience, standing in the middle of the herd of mares and foals. They were curious and were examine us from the hair to our feet.
We especially noticed the 3 year old filly Oriana, from Alteza, they are planning to train her for riding and show her under saddle next year - she shows promise for dressage.

And almost all their horses are for sale.

On this my second visit to the land of Lusitanos, I went back without any doubt that I will get a Lusitano for breeding and classical dressage, some day. This horse breed is for me.

When I was in Évora I bought a traditional Portuguese saddle. If you are interested in buying Portuguese Equstrian equiptment and Spanish - then e-mail me.

I hope to promote the Lusitano, with this homepage and with helping eventual Lusitano buyers to my contact, Rex & Lee Henry in Portugal.

I really believe that the Iberian horse is the horse of the future. They have the beauty and harmony, that is a delight to look at and these horses love to move and perform their best for their riders.

Riding traditions
Beside that, they have another quality – their education in Portugal with the traditional classical dressage, bringing the horse in balance and collection, really brings out the best in these horses.

Xiwara at The Morgado Lusitano, with the Henry's.

Rex riding the stallion: Ezano.

Rex & Lee Henry
Rex & Lee Henry is originally from the USA, they lived in Spain for a few years and bred horses. They fell in love with the Lusitano and Portugal and they have now being breeding top class Lusitano horses for about 20 years, in Portugal.

The young colts have there own area and the mare and fillies theirs, on the farm near the small village Aldeia de João Pires,
near Penamacor. At the moment they only have 2 colts on the farm, Que-Zano and Rozaro.

And the older colt Nador, he's the full brother of the winning dressage stallion Jerezano, was trained at Morgado Lusitano Training Center.

The brood mares are Alteza (white) and her daughter Hazarra (black) they are both approved for breeding and registered in
the APSL - Associacäo Portuguesa de Criadores do Cavalo Puro Sangue Lusitano studbook registry.
Alteza is the dam of Hazarra and a 3-year-old filly Oriana (Xiwara & Alteza) and the 2 years filly Panda (Xiwara & Alteza) &the 1-year filly Qaduna (Xiwara & Alteza). The mare Hazzara daughter of Alteza is black she is the dam of 2 years Pazzara.

With the dam Hazarra and the future sire Leon (after approvel) they’ll try to bred black foals in the future.

Rex likes to ride the mares as well, which is not that common in Portugal. His been known to transport horses him self, to
their new owners, in other countries as well.
Edo, Bonita, Leon, Omar and others, has Rex’s brand. Rex likes his horses to be of good temperament and ability to jumping as well as dressage. Horses with his brand tend to be larger and more powerful ("Andrade/Veiga-blood"), then horses with
Lee’s brand.

Both Xiwara, Jerezano, Nador Oriana and others, with Lee’s brand, have shown promise in dressage competitions. Horses with her brand tend to be finer and more elegant (“d’Andrade and other well known bloodlines).
This is of course both hard work and experience with the young horse, as well as lots of breeding knowledge and luck – that makes these horses so interesting and for me – worth promoting.