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Our Breed Heritage
P.R.E. ~ Pura Raza Española ~ Pure Spanish Horse ~ Andalusian
Our Breeding Philosophy. Our Passion. Our Commitment to Preserving the Breed Type.
The Legacy of Kings Awaits You!
At Andalusians de Mythos we produce exceptional horses with beautiful breed type, correct conformation and brilliant movement. A sound mind, a kind and willing heart and excellent disposition is also a fundamental requirement.
Our mares and stallions descend from several generations of champions of Spain from the most coveted bloodlines of the past century. We are dedicated to continue the tradition of excellence.
The Pure Spanish horse or Andalusian existed before Greek and Roman times see breed history. Over time it has survived the ravages of war, drought, disease, recession, politics, ignorance, and greed. Today, the Andalusian is considered a rare breed in the USA and is highly treasured by loyal aficionados.
Bloodlines are the intimate family of genes that mark the qualities of the breed and differentiate the type within a breed. As a line is developed over generations, these inherent qualities become the defining, pre-potent attributes that distinguish the bloodlines (ex: a Straight Egyptian vs Polish Arab)
PRE-POTENCY
(prē-pōt'n-see)
Genetics: The ability of one parent, variety, or strain to transmit or impress its individual traits or hereditary characteristics to an offspring, apparently to the exclusion of the other parent, variety, or strain, because it possesses more homozygous, or dominant, (epistatic) genes.
The attributes sought by the breeder become deeply embedded and concentrated in his/her line over generations as the breeder selects for specimens with complimentary type. Often this type is developed from crossing relatives from the 3rd to 5th generation or farther back, and is referred to as line breeding. The less influx of outcrossing to other lines, the more stable or predictable the results. The same is true for undesirable traits, so the goal of any quality breeding program is to diminish the objectionable characteristics and adhere to breed standards.
The older the bloodline, the more ingrained the prepotency of the race. A line bred Andalusian, when crossed to a modern breed, such as Morgan, Saddlebred, AQHA, etc, will often produce foals that look purebred or very close.
We are most respectful of the mysteries of genetic prepotency yet a breed can be changed, even lost forever in a short span of time by indiscriminate or careless breeding practices. The Aspiration, the heart of this endeavor is the passionate drive to preserve and perpetuate the heritage of our ancestors, and to honor the long history and tradition of this horse
The Legacy of Kings
Awaits You
The Cartujano or Bocado horse has been widely used by producers of bullfighting horses in Spain such as Casa Domecq, Peralta, Miura, as well as in Portugal as foundation stock to develop certain lines of the Lusitano.
The past generation of Pure Spanish Horses captured the essence of breed qualities we seek to preserve. They were meticulous in selection and practiced culling to maintain quality. Horses were also culled for poor temperaments well into the 1970s.
We aspire to continue to preserve the ancient legacy of the Pure Spanish Horse.
Extensive research into bloodlines brought us to the Cartujano (Carthusian) lines, best known for their expressive baroque characteristics. The Cartujano horse, also called Bocado for the brand of the bit, was selectively bred then preserved by monks in the 1400s. They possess great beauty and exhibit high carriage and traditional elevated movement with extreme impulsion, still called for today by the breed standard. They are vastly intelligent and sensitive with genteel temperaments and riveting presence. The pure Cartujano (Bocado) is unmistakably Andalusian in all his glory & are very rare numbering around 1,000 worldwide.
The Bocado represents one of many bloodlines in Spain and over time have been incorporated by many breeders into their programs. The Yeguada Militar stud run by the Spanish government utilized a number of Bocado stallions in the 1900s.
Their descendants are prevalent in the Spanish Royal School of Equestrian Arts and prominent studs of Spain.
We believe the Cartujano line is more baroque and true to the original breed type is that they were isolated and protected by the Carthusian monks from the influence of crossbreeding by the military stud (Yeguada Militar) to outside breeds, including the Neopolitan Draft, Arabian & Thoroughbreds. See the articles about history, Carthusian Monks and the Cartujano line.
Visit the Yeguada de la Cartuja Hierro del Bocado site
Line Breeding, In-Breeding, Outcrossing
In-breeding is the pairing of close relatives, i.e., father daughter, dam to son; brother to sister. Concentrate the gene pool and intensify both the positive and negative qualities, with mixed results.
Line breeding is the selection from within a specific line with more distant relations with a goal of achieving consistent qualities or attributes. Out crossing is the use of unrelated bloodlines with far less predictability.
We carefully plan every foal, meticulously researching the past century of pedigrees to produce our next generation of the exalted Spanish horse.
Our breeding program is about preserving the coveted Bocado attributes with distant line breeding. Our stock descends from the most prominent studs from the Bocado Line. When tracing these lines to circa 1879, it becomes apparent that the Bocado breeders were working with related stock. We select for complimentary traits when pairing each individual to produced the best possible outcome. This enhances the odds of achieving the desired results, protects the Bocado line, and safeguards the gene pool from in-breeding.
The result is intensely satisfying - a versatile, noble, athletic, intelligent, fearless and loving foal capable of forming a deep connection with their human partner. Imagine the thrill on a balanced, sure footed, smooth and responsive horse that moves under the slightest shift of pressure, from anticipation of your queue. Once you have experienced this connection, you will never settle for less!