Rule to live by in gypsy horses:

Hair isn't everything, but you can't have everything unless you have the HAIR!

Put two Gypsy Horses side by side with the same conformation, size, and temperament and if one has heavier feather it’s worth twice as much. The saying among the Gypsies is “Every hair is a sovereign,” which in our culture would translate to every hair is a dollar. The truth is not every Gypsy Cob is created equal. Many of the inferior horses look, at first glance, like the treasured Gypsy Horse but always stop and take a closer look. I am amazed at how many horses I have seen advertised as the real mc coy who barely have enough feather to cover the top of their hoofs. Don’t be fooled by these horses, in the Gypsy community they are just another worthless horse. So assuming you have already determined the horse has good conformation, lets take a closer look at the feather.

 Feather is important in both mares and stallions so don’t let anyone convince you that a good-feathered stallion will improve the chances of a heavily feathered foal out of an inferior mare. (Take a look at our mares for an example of a good mare with abundant feather) Feather is a recessive gene and it’s cumulative. So to have the best shot at a heavily feathered foal start with a good mare and a good stallion, not one with just feather but TONS of feather. Both mares and stallions should have feather that not only starts at the hock but also completely covers the FRONT of the hoof and all the way around the hoof.

 Take a look at BFS’s http://www.gypsyhorses.com/feather.htm illustrations and information about feather. As you can see our boy “Snoopy” (photos shown) has more feather than even the top one year old stud colt they use as an example for a top notch prospect and keep in mind he is only 8 months old in these pictures. If you are looking to add some SERIOUS feather to your Gypsy foals, keep this young boy in mind.  He also has a double mane, excellent conformation, heavy bone, size, and the temperament of a traditional gypsy horse that is so revered. As if that wasn’t enough he comes from one of the most respected breeders with well-known bloodlines in all of England. He will be standing in 2005/2006 to registered mares as well as put to our own mares. If you haven’t seen our mares (also heavily feathered) take a peak at their pages…. The combination should make some nice heavily feathered foals!