WITEZ BLACK
ARABIANS
2002 Farm Update
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WITEZ BLACK
ARABIANS |
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GENERAL EVENTS:
Last Winter 2001-2002 was very mild.
We had a very dry Spring and Summer, so there was a grass shortage and we continued to hope for rain, that didn't seem to want to come. We bought a thousand bales of hay in January and February thinking that it maybe a drought. That hay continued to look better and better. So we had about 2/3 the hay we needed to get through the coming Winter. In July we purchased an additional seven hundred bales of 2001 hay from fifty miles away. We hope we will never have to spend that much money on hay again in one year. We generally make most of our own hay. In 2002 we had none in our area to make. The pastures were very short too.
Angel Lange from Buffalo Gap, ND along with her mom, Patti Holly who co-signed for her, since she was only 17 years old began purchasing Fabian Witez BA in April. FABIAN is a blue black 1998 3/4 Arabian gelding, he is very friendly and easy to handle. His sire was our late blue black Niga son, EL NIGADIN and his dam is BHR HOSANS FANCY FACE, our beautiful IAHA Arabian black tobiano mare and trusted riding companion. Fabian left the beginning of June for his new home in Medora, ND. (The Badlands of ND, what a wonderful home he has.) They are very happy with Fabian and I know he is very happy with them and his new home. They managed the Buffalo Gap Guest Ranch for people wanting to come and ride the ND Badlands.
We had bred a couple of mares in 2001 and were disappointed to find out that they were open. There was more disappointment to find out that SERYA DJ WITEZ, our young promising *Witez II Preservation black roan herd sire, was near sterile, which was not a problem that was going to go away. Upon gelding DJ we found his problem was that his epididymides had never developed. The vet said this could have only happened, when he was developing inside his dam. We did the right thing in gelding him. For there was nothing that could have been done for him. The vet figured it was a miracle we got the one filly we have by him. On the bright side, DJ should make an excellent trail horse.
We delivered TBA SKIPPER, a 1999 partbred Arabian palomino filly by EL NIGADIN on May 15TH to her new home. Included in SKIPPER'S purchase agreement: SKIPPER'S first three foals by NICKOHLI WITEZ BA. NICKOHLI WITEZ BA is EL NIGADIN and GENESIS KOHLI's last foal, a 1999 liver colt with flaxen mane, tail, three socks and strip. Nikki bought NICKOHLI as a foal from Witez Black Arabians. She has the perfect stallion for such a mating. Breeding a partbred Arabian palomino mare to a flaxen liver purebred Arabian stallion, what foals they should produce together! Nikki bred TBA SKIPPER to NICKOHLI WITEZ BA. SKIPPER is due to foal April 24, 2003. SKIPPER is doing wonderfully for them, they just love her.
For the 2002 breeding season we bred our oldest black broodmare, DAMA WITEZ to this young Witez II bred stallion, NICKOHLI WITEZ BA. We are excited to see the results in the Spring of 2003. Possibly keeping a filly from NICKOHLI for future breeding. DAMA is due to foal May 28, 2003.
It's always great to get good news from those who have acquired horses bred by Witez Black Arabians. Following are reports we received.
LEELANI WITEZ BA:
Barbara from Las Cruces, NM, wrote about Lady's daughter and Dama's son, two 1996 Black El Nigadin offspring. She is having a wonderful time with her young black mare she acquired from us, Leelani Witez BA, (full sister to our two young black fillies, Latte Witez BA and Layla Witez BA) she is riding her every weekend. She says that Leelani is a very high-powered, bold moving horse, but she hasn't given her any trouble at all. She believes Leelani is just perfect for her. Barbara says Leelani really seems to be getting into enjoying being her personal horse. She loves her treats and is so cute when she asks for her carrots. Leelani is now 15.2 hands. Barbara says Leelani has a very nice extended trot and fast walk. She can really cover ground and loves to go for rides in the Desert.
We decided to offer LATTE for sale (Leelani's full sister) due to the drought. Lyle had wanted to keep LATTE and train her for his future riding horse.
Latte Witez BA has been sold to a lady in MA contract for purchase, she will be leaving for her new home in April 2003. Nancy bought Latte to become her Sport horse, endurance horse and broodmare in the future.
DAMASCUS WITEZ BA:
We helped find Barbara a new home for her young black gelding, Damascus Witez BA, (El Nigadin x Dama Witez) she had purchased Damascus as a foal from Witez Black Arabians. She got a message from his new owner, Margaret in Northern CA. Margaret is totally happy with how smart and kind Damascus is. She says he knows all his voice commands. She sees him five days a week. She promises to send pictures.
DAMON WITEZ BA:
Just received good news from Ronnie Lane in GA about his progress with an El Nigadin and Dama Witez 1999 Black son, Damon Witez BA. Ronnie purchased Damon from us as a foal: "Last spring, as a 3 year old, Damon began his training under saddle. My methods were a continuation of our early training together. Things like trying to understand the horse and think like one, instead of asking him to do the impossible and think like a person. Establishing dominance by making him change speed, direction and teaching him to give to pressure. My goal was to be able to ride him with just a halter."
"The Summer was spent repeating lessons over and over. Control was important, as he is a breeding stallion and he will be ridden around other horses. By the end of the Summer he was backing beautifully, leg yielding, sidepassing and stopping on a dime with just leg and seat cues, actually using the reins very little. He also was beginning to learn to flex at the poll when asked. During a couple of weeks of his mares in heat just over the fence and calling to him constantly, this was asking a lot of him."
"I did not ride him for 3 months during the Fall. Now again, I really did not know what to expect. The best that could happen, I thought was that I would have to reteach him. The worst was that I would get bucked off. What a surprise! Not only was he a perfect gentleman, he also remembered EVERYTHING!!!!! And he had no problem demonstrating it. I rode again three days later and noticed a couple of things. His transitions to speed are much smoother now and his balance is much improved. He has also gained self confidence and is showing more spirit under saddle, yet he remains very much controlled. He has excellent flexion and can bend in a circle around the inside leg at a walk on a loose rein." "I think the most remarkable thing about all this, is he does it all for me without having a bit in his mouth. Since June, all I have ridden him with is a sidepull. I must be speaking horse talk pretty good. I think he is an exceptional horse. He carries on the El Nigadin legacy very well. The potential I saw in Sheba (Ramahra Sheba is Damon's 1983 chestnut half sister from our previous Double R breeding program.), has come to fruition in Damon and I look for good things from him in the years to come."
For the first time, there will be two El Nigadin daughters foaling by two El Nigadin sons. Skipper by Nickohli and Sheba by Damon, both due in April 2003.
MAGNUM WITEZ BA:
More good news from a buyer of a horse raised by Witez Black Arabians. David & Linda Deutscher writes from Medina, ND, they bought MAGNUM WITEZ BA by EL NIGADIN out of MY HAL-AMIGA, as a 1999 weanling. They really enjoy Magnum, he is very friendly and good natured. They had him to a trainer this Summer who trains with the newer gentler / Horse Whisperer like methods and he did very well. They think he will turn out to be a good trail horse, drill team horse and hoping he'll be a good cow horse too.
Mychaela Witez BA is Magnum's full 1996 sister. Mychaela is offered for sale on the For Sale page of our website. Mychaela seems to be turning into a very reliable trained trail horse, as you will read below.
OUR TRAIL RIDING EXPERIENCES:
We went to the ND BADLANDS with MYCHAELA and FANCY the last weekend of June. All went well, but it was way too hot, it was 120 degrees on Saturday, back here in Mandan, it had been 111.
The last Saturday in July, we took FANCY and MYCHAELA on the twelve mile Chimney Butte Ride. They both did great, but it was mostly for the fun and training of MYCHAELA.
Our four days out in the ND BADLANDS the first weekend in August was great, there were only five of us this time. Lyle took MYCHAELA through a water hole twice that went right over her head, the rest of us did not go through, that is why he had to come back with her. She had her ears out sideways, I don't think she was very happy with Lyle.
Within a hour later we had to go through a bad mud hole up to the horses' bellies. FANCY leaped so badly through it, I fell off on the bank, but wasn't hurt, more or less just rolled off. This time, MYCHAELA did not trust Lyle and would not go through, so he had to meet us on the top of a hill a few miles later in opposite directions. That was a good training lesson for MYCHAELA, to go off from the group by herself.
We took a trip to Killdeer State Park over the Labor Day weekend with Mychaela and Fancy. Mychaela did wonderful climbing up and down the very steep hills. They aren't only steep going up, but many are also very steep coming down. You walk along some ledges that are very narrow in places on the sides of the hills and along some of the tops of the hills, there are places it is only a few inches wide.
OUR NEW STALLION:
Introducing AN OPUS ECLIPSE 565723, pure Polish black stallion by OPUS ONE+ and out of SATURNIA.
September 12th we visited Arabian Nights owned by Stephanie Spedding in Mason, IA. We found a 1999 pure Polish black stallion, AN OPUS ECLIPSE 565723. ECLIPSE's sire is OPUS ONE+ by AAF KASET out of a *BASK daughter out of a *SAMBOR daughter. ECLIPSE's dam is SATURNIA by STRIKE out of a *BASK daughter out of a DOKTRYNER daughter. ECLIPSE came home September 20th to be our new herd sire.
WE WILL BE LINEBREEDING TO OFIR, SINCE *WITEZ II WAS BY OFIR, PLUS ALSO INCREASING THE DEGREE OF POLISH BLOOD IN OUR FOALS. ECLIPSE HAS 18 LINES TO OFIR. ECLIPSE's PURE POLISH BLOOD AND OUR MARES' PART POLISH BLOOD, THE POLISH DEGREE OF BLOOD IN OUR FOALS WILL BE INCREASED.
OUR CURRENT SALES OFFERING REDUCED DUE TO DROUGHT:
The last black El Nigadin daughter being offered. 1995 black mare out of black Hal Gibby daughter, ridden on many trail rides; $4,000.
1997 black roan *Witez II Preservation gelding, well started under saddle; $3,000.
Visitors Welcome by Appointment
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WITEZ BLACK ARABIANS
LYLE OR REVA
ORSO
3790 HWY 1806
Mandan, ND 58554 USA