2012 season

Southern Cross Studfarm Interview continued....

One could be forgiven to think that Jill's first stallion choice would be Breitling W, as many of her youngstock can be found out of this outstanding stallion. However, I did ask Jill how she made her stallion selections for her mares.

"We start by imagining our ideal offspring and then look at what qualities in the mare need to be improved, amended or enhanced to get it. We then look at stallions with these qualities and where possible look at their offspring and what tends to be inherited. If the mare has already had previous offspring we assess these critically to decide whether to repeat the pairing or try something new."

Before I asked this next question , I think I already new the answer. However, as daring as I thought it was, I went on to ask Jill which stallion she would love to own that is currently doing well..

"As I’m sure everyone is aware I am a huge Breitling fan but I also love the Trakehner stallion Imperio who dazzled on the young horse circuit a couple of years ago. He is so elegant and everything about him looks easy and smooth. We visited him at home and he has a charming temperament but also an air about him that says “Look at me”."

Breitling W by Bismarck x Maat

"As a breeding stallion, he seems to pass on his tall, elegant frame along with powerful movement, and last year two young stallions from his first foal crop were approved and awarded premiums. I’d be very happy to have him in the barn at home!"

Imperio, Trakehner Stallion

Moving on towards the end of my interview, I asked Jill what her future goals were for Southern Cross Stud.

"For the stud, it would be to continue to produce horses that are successful at recognised assessments such as young horse evaluations by studbooks or the BEF Futurity, stallion licensings, mare performance tests or in competitions under saddle. As a stallion owner, there are two sides: for the stallion we have now, we’d eventually love to see him competing successfully at Grand Prix but from a breeding point of view it would be to produce successful offspring. When visiting great places like the Wittig’s farm or Hoerem, the home of Imperio, it is really inspiring to see different generations of home bred stars sharing the barns and in the long term we’d love to be in that position."

As they have a stallion I asked if they offered any breeding incentives to mare owners?

"At the moment, no as we are not standing any stallions publicly. However I think this is a great way to attract quality mares and we would certainly be open to this in the future."

As a "new face on the block" so to speak I was keen to see how they would like to see British Breeding evolving, and whether this was something they had given thought to, while setting up their new venture.

Yearling and two year old fillies

"It would be nice to come together a bit more to share ideas and celebrate successes. I think the internet is helping this with breeders chatting and swapping ideas online. However it is pretty depressing to attend the stallion gradings in Germany with all the attention they receive, and then compare that to the ones we have watched in cold, empty arenas in the UK. When you think of all the cost, effort and time that goes into producing an approved stallion it is desperately sad that there aren’t more people there to celebrate those that are successful or assess them for potential breeding choices. Perhaps we are all a bit too British and modest, maybe we should be shouting about our achievements? For our part we are always happy to share our experiences with other breeders, we have been on the receiving end of this generosity and it has proven invaluable to us."

As with all my interviewee's I asked Jill about her thoughts on the continuedl discussion about lack of horse power for our top riders, and I asked how she thought this gap could be bridged.

"I don’t think there is a one-size-fits-all answer to this. We have struggled to find riders for our horses in the UK. Part of the problem has been that we have wanted to keep some at home or within travelling distance. We have good facilities and this situation allows us to be more involved with their training, as we can follow their progress more closely. This is really useful feedback for our breeding program and is not quite so easy when the horse is far away.

Another pressure is, of course, finances: to have several horses in training with successful riders is hugely expensive and it can often be cheaper to do this on the continent."

Ice Age, Oldenburg Gelding by Inselfuerst x Goldstern

"One of the options that we have been open to is shared ownership, which is where a percentage of the ownership is given to the rider in exchange for a reduction or cancellation of training fees. This can work really well as it shows a long term commitment to the rider which is particularly useful if both parties share long term goals such as producing a Grand Prix horse. It would be a dream for us to have horses competing successfully for British riders but unfortunately it has proven easier to do this on the continent to date, which is sad. That said we are building a good team around us at home at present with a few riders who are great at starting the horses or training them on, and we hope that these relationships continue to develop to benefit all parties."

Lastly, if asked Jill..........."If someone was to think of “Southern Cross Stud”, what would you like that thought to represent with your horses?"

She very simply said "Probably two things: quality, and happy horses."

Marengo, Black Gelding
Metternich x Wenzel I

For me, it is very clear to see what the goals and ambitions are for Jill and her husband. They started out by doing the right thing....going direct to those people who could advise them best on what horses would give them the edge in their dressage breeding. Considering they have only been in existence for 5 years it is very remarkable what they have achieved in such a relatively short time. Not only to have a Licensed stallion that is doing well among his age group in Germany, but several horses that are out making a name for them in the UK as well. You only have to look at the quality of their mares, and the foals they are producing to know that only good things will happen to them in the future.

I would very much like to thank Jill for taking the time to speak to us, and give us an insight into their breeding programme and to share their hopes for the future. We certainly will be watching them and their success.