First Edition: Volume 2 / June 1, 2009
                  When horses were first domesticated under the hand of man, they were used for draft work much like the ox. Upon the discovery of its potential, the horse, much like any great invention, became the ultimate war weapon. With chariots and in cavalry units, they gave kings and empires the upper hand in battle. The Budenny stands as a contemporary acknowledgement of that ancient past, bred to be the ultimate cavalry ‘machine’. In this issue, however, we step back to acknowledge two types of gentle giants that continue to fill that first niche as top-notch draft animals: the Suffolk Punch and the American Cream Draft.

                  The Suffolk Punch horse originated in England with the Foundation stallion, Crisp’s Horse of Ufford. It was bred specifically for farm use and has stayed very true to type due to the geography of the United Kingdom. Individuals of the breed are alluded to as medium-sized draft animals with very willing attitudes. There are an estimated 3,000 Suffolks worldwide. The transition from largely rural and agricultural lifestyles to urbanized city life was a hard hit to draft breeds as they fell out of use, and consequently the Suffolk, (along with others of its brethren, most notably the Shire), has been placed on the endangered species list. The work of dedicated supporters of the breed has helped to keep it going, however.

                  Even rarer than the Suffolk is its younger cousin, the American Cream Draft, with an estimated 350 individuals. Despite the tender age of the United States itself, there are quite a number of ‘native’ breeds bred for use on U.S. soil. They include the American Quarter Horse, American Paint, Appaloosa, Missouri Foxtrotter, and Morgan, among others. However, the American Cream is the only official American draft breed. Like the Suffolk, it is also referred to as a medium-sized draft. The foundation mare was a Belgian, but enough unique characteristics and DNA differences allowed it to be typed as a separate breed. The American Cream Draft Horse Association places much emphasis on both the preservation of the Cream Draft gene pool and the pink skin and amber eyes that is the ideal of the breed.

First Edition: Volume 1 / March 1, 2009

      EuroHorse is a small Budenny breeding farm located in the lush mountain valleys of southwestern Idaho. Susan Ericson began the operation in 1995 when she imported the stallion Kaled 10 (barn name “Koled”) from Russia. It was a life altering experience for her. Susan’s original plans for Koled were to show him with a hired rider and to stand him for stud. Those plans fell through after some false starts hiring riders, and she moved to a remote area of Idaho. Koled was sadly left out of the professional circuit because of this.

       When asked to describe any striking traits that separate the Budenny from other breeds of horse, Susan cited Koled’s extreme level of intelligence. “A horse in a million”, she is disappointed that he was never competed seriously, but knows for a fact that he would have been superb. Thinking back to the early days, she notes: “Several extremely talented riders have ridden him, albeit briefly, and every one has made the same comment—once you sit on a horse that special, you never forget it.”

      Management practices of horses in Russia are quite different from in the U.S. In Russia, many of the farms specializing in the Budenny horse were begun with support from the government. The breed was founded by General Semyon Budenny (sometimes spelled Budjonny or Budyonny) and was meant to improve and replace the decimated populations of cavalry mounts after World War I. In order to raise hardy stock, horses are left in a semi-wild state for the first two years of their lives. In Susan’s opinion, this feature accounts for the intelligence and hardiness of the breed.

     Susan’s story about how she acquired Koled is quite fascinating. Undertaking a daring enterprise, she and a few others invested in a project to bring to the U.S. several stallions from Russia:

      “I made the decision to import a horse from Russia, but did not specify the breed Budyonny up front.  I hired a Russian who had recently immigrated here, to handle the details, and select the horse.  He ended up bringing five other stallions at the time Koled came.  There were three Akhal-tekes, one Orlov-Hanovarian Trotter, one Trakhener and one Budyonny.  I had first choice of the horses upon arrival, because I had been the preliminary investor in the project - Koled was an easy choice.  

      At the time, Nona Garson was riding Rythmical with great success.  Rythmical was a huge crowd pleaser.  It was uncanny how much the two horses, mine and Nona's, resembled one another in action.  Koled was only four years old, but had impeccable manners and talent.  He was nicknamed "the helicopter" because he seemed to float over the jumps.

     It took many months to collect the horses and arrange the stages of transport.  Once they were "on the move" we were all holding our breath, because it seemed they were stopped virtually in their tracks over and over. The explanation I received was that Russians have a "black market" mentality about everything and anything, including horses. If there was money to be made by handing it under the table at a particular checkpoint, well, then, that opportunity would not be overlooked.  It happened over and over - became quite the standard, in fact, and each time it was nerve-wracking because it seemed the demands kept coming.

      All the stallions were quarantined in New York for three days.  That was of course, the final suspense, and I remember it being nerve-wracking because of red tape.  And it was, or so it seemed, a thorough case of the right hand not knowing what the left hand was doing.  Everything was up in the air, even though the horses had successfully arrived in New York after a grueling trip.  

     Then, the impossible or at least, the improbable, happened! They were released and they set out in a six horse van across the country.  Each of us who had purchased a horse basically camped out at the barn that night - the trailer pulled up in the wee hours of the morning and some of the most beautiful horseflesh I have ever seen came prancing and leaping off into the barn.  It was something I will never forget!”

      The unusual nature of the horses’ transportation in Russia had some interesting side effects.

     “Although I received "papers" with my stallion's name written on them, they turned out to be bogus.  The stallion was real and identifiable thanks to the Russian habit of branding each horse on the withers and rump, thereby making them traceable throughout their lives.  I called my stallion Koled for years, prior to learning that his real name was Kaled 10.  

      I still call him Koled.  He actually turned out to be even more valuable, bloodline wise, than I was originally told and for that I am grateful because mix-ups like that rarely turn out well for the buyer as you can imagine.  His accompanying papers are good for a laugh, because the Russian names were very inventive.  Someone, at least, had a good time making up a completely mythical heritage for my stallion!”

      VNIIK is the All-Russian Institute of Horse Breeding located in Russia. It maintains the studbooks, records and registration for Budennys, Akhal-Tekes and other distinctive Russian breeds of horse. It is currently the only known official organization for the Budenny. In dealing with VNIIK for the registration of her mares and the offspring of her stallion, Susan found the Institute to be extremely helpful and courteous to deal with even despite the language barriers. To help with the smoothness of such correspondences between Americans and Russians in dealing with future sales, questions and registration, NABS offers a directory of English-Russian translators.

      While Susan notes that she has never come across a book that has had more than a brief profile of the breed, the Internet is a good source for information. According to Susan, notable people in the horse world with experience with the breed have spoken highly of it:

      “There are two people here in the United States besides myself with first-hand experience, namely Nona Garson, Olympic contender and Sidley Payne, former FEI dressage judge.  They, especially Sidley, are vocal in their praise of the breed and would like to see public knowledge increased.”

Susan offers these last words of advice to those considering purchasing a horse:

      “The main thing I would say is to factor the maintenance cost of owning a horse over the expected duration of that horses life, and invest in quality in the beginning because it will pay off over the years. Quality horses like Koled are beautiful without any [alteration]; their feet stay beautiful with a minimum of care, they move with innate grace and presence and they are just plain healthy overall. My advice would be buy the best you can buy because long story short, a less than stellar horse will cost you more money day in and day out than a quality one and that is where the real money is spent. Would you rather spend it on a fine animal with an incredible heritage or something you got a "good deal" on?  I know I would pick the former, hands down every time which is what I did when I bought Koled all those years ago.”

EuroHorse can be contacted at: (208) 340 - 8829 / euro.horse@mac.com Vist their website at: www.eurohorse.com _____________________________________________________________________ Article by Karina Rapp Special thanks to Susan Ericson for providing valuable information for this piece.