November 2008

De Niro Is Named Stallion of the Year 2008 Congratulations to De Niro on being awarded the Hanoverian Stallion of the Year 2008. De Niro is the sire of Larkshill Supremacy who has exceeded all of our expectations this year - being awarded one of the very few Elite scores at the BEF Futurity and receiving the prestigious Premium title from the Oldenburg Verband. Her dam St Pr St Show Hit, is back in foal to De Niro for 2009 and we are eagerly awaiting the next little superstar! De Niro is also the dam sire of our fabulous colt Fürst Larkshill who is currently in Germany training.

November 2008

October 2008

Premium Success at the Oldenburg Grading and Inspection

We are very honoured that the Oldenburg Verband again chose Larkshill Stud as one of British venues for their mare and foal Inspection tour.  We presented St.Pr.St. Show Hit for grading and we are delighted that she passed with flying colours and was graded into the Main Studbook.

The Verband inspected our filly foals - Larkshill Supremacy and Larkshill's Limited Edition. We are thrilled to announce that both fillies were awarded the coveted Premium title! Well done girls!

August 2008

Carl Hester Crowns our mares Champion & Reserve Champion Broodmare at the British Breeding Championships!

We are all on Cloud 9 and can't stop smiling as you will see from the photographs!

August 2008

Larkshill Supremacy Top Scoring Dressage Horse and Elite!

Our first show of the year and what a result! We took Diaz (Larkshill Supremacy) and Ede (Larkshill's Limited Edition) to the BEF Futurity show. First and foremost they were both impeccably behaved and loaded and traveled quietly and really enjoyed the day.

Diaz was first to go and was amazing. She scored a massive 9.16 points and received the Elite Title - only 4 dressage foals in the country have achieved this! She also received the highest score of the day out of all the horses in the dressage category and qualifies for the Championship Show.

It was then Ede's turn - she wasn't quite as extravagant as she usually is at home and just missed the Elite title by 0.1%. She received a very high scoring First Premium award with 8.90. 3rd highest scoring horse of the day in the Dressage category, just behind big sister and also qualifies for the Championship Show!

The icing on the cake was that Horse & Country TV were filming the event and followed both fillies' progress through the vetting and evaluation and then interviewed me - watch this space to find out when it will be on Sky! We are so proud of both fillies, they really are little stars!

Larkshill Supremacy Receives the prestigious Elite Award Scores 9.16 receives 9.5s & 9s for all categories Qualifies for the Championship Show!		Larkshill's Limited Edition Receives a High Scoring First Premium Scores 8.90 receives 9.5s, 9's & 8.75s for all categories Qualifies for the Championship Show!

August 2008

Fürst Larkshill is off to Germany!

We have finally decided to send Tango our Fürst Heinrich / De Niro colt to Germany to continue his training. We are so excited about this young colt's future and wish him lots of luck. We will keep you updated with his progress.

Fürst Heinrich / De Niro / Volturno Premium Oldenburg Colt 21 April 2006

May 2008

Not one but two stunning black fillies born on the 18th May!

April 2008

Sensational Kaiserkult foal born 26 April!

Saturday Night Fever has an amazing chestnut colt. We had high expectations of this foal by Kaiserkult and we are delighted to say he is an absolute cracker! He is a big strong colt with very long legs and is a born athlete. This foal will be a phenomenal dressage horse. We have named him Larkshill Sovereign as we feel sure he will rule his world one day! Sovereign is offered for sale with his mum or at weaning.

April 2008

First foal is born and he is a masterpiece!

Prada gave birth to a beautiful black colt on the 2nd of April and he is absolutely stunning. We have named him Larkshill Picasso as he is surely destined for greatness and is truly a work of art! We haven't ever had a foal who is quite this confident at such an early age! His pedigree combines some of the finest bloodlines: Hohenstein, Latimer, Sixtus and the very influential Kennedy. He is very correct, has a huge walk and loves showing off his advanced dressage movements in the field already!

Sadly he is will be for sale as we already have our stallion prospects and can't keep any more colts.

December 2007

An Early Christmas Present for the Stud!

I am delighted that our new brood mare has arrived form Germany. We have been looking for a while, searching out the best bloodlines to compliment the existing mares and of course ensuring she has superb movement and the all important kind character. Pinakothek more than match's this criteria!

December 2007

Charlotte is tipped as 'One to Watch' as she notches up another Win!

Extract from the Khaleej Times: "DUBAI — The third edition of the Emirates Equestrian Centre Dressage Show saw Charlotte Drakeley standing out in the Preliminary Juniors class. There was a record number of 97 competitors at the Union Properties-sponsored event, but it was the win of Drakeley from Al Reef Stables on her mount Holly that caught the eye. Click here for the full story

November 2007

Charlotte Qualifies for the FEI European Dressage Championships in 2008!

I am very proud to announce that my niece Charlotte Drakeley has won the Junior Rider, Middle East FEI World Dressage Challenge 2007. Riding Cennen Arlach a 12 year old pony owned by Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan (the Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates), they were the clear Champions and the crowd's favourite, as Charlotte is only 13 and one of the youngest riders in the Championship! Charlotte has now qualified for the FEI European Dressage Championships in 2008 - well done Charlotte, I am so proud.

Our breeding programme is already underway to try and breed Charlotte her dream Grand Prix horse - no pressure then!

November 2007

Success at the Oldenburg Grading and Inspection

We are very honoured that the Oldenburg Verband chose Larkshill Stud as one of British venues for their mare and foal Inspection tour.  We presented Libitina and Schweben for grading and we are delighted that both were both graded into the Main Studbook.

The Verband then inspected their foals - His Royal Highness and Henry Vlll. We are thrilled to announce that both colts were awarded the coveted Premium title! Well done boys!

And the good news doesn't stop there! They also inspected Fürst Larkshill our yearling colt by Fürst Heinrich who was awarded the foal premium last year. The fabulous news is that they confirmed he is good enough to go forward for grading in Germany next year. We are absolutely over the moon!

His Royal Highness (left) Oldenburg Premium Foal Henry Vlll (right) Oldenburg Premium Foal

October 2007 Spirit is a talented Show Jumper! We have just received an update from Donna, Spirit of Orion's owner. Spirit is still his cheeky lovable self and he has been doing incredibly well at show jumping. He is already winning at discovery level and he is now jumping clear at newcomers (1.10m). Congratulations Donna and Spirit - we can't wait to come and cheer you on!

September 2007

Fürst Larkshill Impresses

I just wanted to share these photos with you of our young Fürst Heinrich / De Niro colt Tango, he is quite simply breathtaking. We are planning to send him to Germany next year to prepare him for grading with the Oldenburg Verband.

September 2007 - Trakehners UK Show

What another amazing show - 3 Reserve Champions!

Larkshill Rheinzauber Reserve Foal Champion

Not to be outdone by his big brother, Rheinzauber also excelled. Rheinzauber was the Reserve Foal Champion and top colt foal at only 6 weeks old! He was the youngest foal at the show and was amazing, so bold and confident. He won his age class and then went on to be the Reserve Champion. The German judges commented on his outstanding type and conformation with excellent movement despite his young age. Another one to be kept entire as a stallion prospect! As usual Zippy captured the hearts of everyone and many gave him a cuddle!

August 2007

Tarino qualifies for the Winter Regional Championships - first time out!

Tarino went to his first dressage competition on Sunday and was brilliant. He won both of his classes scoring 66% and 71%. He was so calmed and relaxed, working in quietly in the indoor school. When it came to his tests he was a bit more talkative, much to everyone's amusement! Well done Tarino!

July 23rd 2007

Last foal of the year born and what a cracker!

Dali foaled at the civilized hour of 11.30am. She made it a hat-trick this year as all of our mares have chosen the field to foal in - clever girls! As always Dali made it look easy and Zippy was on his feet in 10 minutes looking for the milk bar.

He is a super bay colt foal, nicknamed Zippy as he is constantly zipping around the field, showing off! He is absolutely stunning with bags of confidence and character - a real head turner. He has superb Trakehner type with a beautiful dished head and excellent movement with great knee and hock action. Zippy is very friendly and inquisitive and is already capturing the hearts of all who meet him! We have named him Larkshill Rheinzauber as zauber means charmer in German and he certainly lives up to his name!

July 9th 2007

Second His Highness foal has arrived!

Monday morning 10.30am and Schweben insists on joining the herd in the big paddock. After half an hour of being closely watched (we've been on foal watch for the last few nights) she finally relaxes and has her foal, with the whole herd watching in the middle of the field! I think Libitina had a word and said it's the "in " thing to do this year. It was a really easy foaling and guess what - another black His Highness colt - yipee!

We are delighted with him, he was a week early but is healthy and full of life. He is stunning with very long legs! Schweben is the perfect Mum, relaxed and loving. We have high hopes for this little chap, we will post more photos as soon as possible. Check out the tongues in the middle photo!

July 2007

Symphoniker is impeccably behaved at his first show!

Saturday was Symponiker's first outing, the Midlands In Hand show. It was torrential rain and knee deep in mud! He sailed round the Warmblood class and after a very close call was placed second. We were especially pleased as this class was judged by Ted Green (Chairman of the Hanoverian Society) and we wanted to know what he thought of him. He really liked him but as he was a little bum high on the day, he placed him second but looks forward to seeing him in the future. No photos I'm afraid as the weather was so dreadful but trust me he looked gorgeous!

June 2007

Ria loves her photo shoot and plays to the camera!

Yesterday was Ria's photo shoot and wow did she love the camera. She took advantage of galloping around the school showing off before settling down do do some good work. She is so athletic and has a huge uphill cater and of course she is drop dead gorgeous too!

Click here for more photos

May 2007

First His Highness Foal has arrived!

Saturday afternoon 5.30pm and Libitina finally gives us a colt that we have always wanted from her! A stunning black colt by His Highness - he is absolutely outstanding and we are thrilled.

Libitina likes to have her foals early and this was no exception being nearly 2 weeks early! She also prefers to foal in the field, so needless to say she had her way again, with us just watching and smiling.

He is a lovely strong colt, with lots of presence and he is pinging around the field. This is her first colt after 5 fillies so we are really delighted especially after the very sad news that His Highness has recently been put to sleep after a freak accident. We will be keeping this little chap entire as a stallion prospect.

For more information and photos click on Libitina's foal.

March 2007

What a difference a month can make! Last month we were playing in the snow and this month the horses are basking in the sunshine, enjoying the first of the spring grass. Slowly they are starting to shed their big woolly winter coats to turn into beautiful sleek horses again.The young colts are all progressing well, we have started their in hand work in preparation for the showing season and they are all being very grown up and enjoying the attention. Finally, the broodmares are getting bigger by the day, Libitina is the first to foal in May and we can't wait!

February 2007

It's so exciting, like most of the country we have snow - over 12cms! The horses love it, galloping around playing just like small children! Here are a couple of sensible pics - we were laughing so much at them we didn't get any action photos!

October 2006

We are delighted to announce that we have decided to keep our Fürst Heinrich colt entire as stallion prospect.  Joining him will be 2 colts purchased at the Elite Hanoverian Foal Auction in Germany.

		Symphoniker is a stunning black colt by Stedinger by Sandro Hit. Stedinger was the unequivocal Champion of the 2002 Oldenburg Grading and first reserve champion of the 2004 main premium ring. To date he has 5 Licensed sons including the champion of the 2006 Oldenburg Keuring Status Quo.
		Dream Boy is a stylish dark bay colt with wonderful paces by Don Romantic by Don Schufro. Don Romantic was the Champion of the stallion grading in Herning. He was also the Champion of the material test at Vilhelmsborg and received 10’s for both his canter and ridability.

		And then came our biggest achievement to date in Trakehner breeding................. Lexington wins the Best British Bred Trakehner of the whole show!  This is such a great achievement for the Stud after just 6 years of breeding and we are over the moon!
Larkshill Lexington BEST BRITISH BRED TRAKEHNER

September 2006 - Oldenburg Verband Inspection Tango is awarded a Premium! We took Tango (Fürst Larkshill) by Fürst Heinrich on his first outing with his dam Monik by De Niro. He attended the Oldenburg Verband’s foal inspection and we are thrilled that he was awarded a premium. The representative from the Verband liked him very much and said he had very good movement and excellent conformation and is a super prospect for the future!

August 2005 – Best British Dressage Foal Show Libitina does it again – her second foal to receive 82% - what a consistent producer of quality foals. It was Lexi’s first outing and wow did she shine in the ring. She took it all in her stride and loved the attention. She scored 82% and was the highest placed Trakehner and came 13th out of 75 dressage foals – we were delighted!

July 2005 – The Royal Show

Another outing for Lakota and this time we all went to the Royal Show for the first time. It was quite unlike any of the other shows we have been to, full of Shire Horses with all their brasses shining and lots of pomp and circumstance.

Lakota took it all in her stride and even tried to say hello to one of the gentle giants!  She did brilliantly, she was beautifully behaved and was the highest places two year old, (unfortunately they amalgamated the 3 year olds and 2 year olds!). The judge commented on what a lovely mare she was but the older horses were more developed.  A happy day out for all of us!

June 2005 - British Dressage Young Horses Championships

Lakota went to the British Dressage Young Horses Championships and was placed 3rd in the 2 year old class – as always she loved all the attention! She was also the highest placed Trakehner so received a special rosette!

September 2004 - Trakehners UK Show

Legend made the trip to the Trakehner Show at Addington and we were rewarded with a second place in the 2 year old class, Legend was brilliant!

August 2003 - Best British Dressage Foal Show

Libitina and Lakota, her second Kostolany foal, did brilliantly at their first outing. Not only did Lakota load easily and travel like a pro, she then strutted her stuff in the ring and won her class and scored an impressive 82%.  Her scores were Type 8.5, Frame 8.0, Conformation 8.0, Movement 8.0, Overall 8.5.

This qualified her for the evening Championship which was amazing fun. After a quick nap, (where she was heard to be whinnying in her sleep!) Lakota came out fresh for the Championship where she was placed 7th overall out of a total of 62 foals – needless to say we were over the moon and a little bit merry!

August 2003 - Trakehner Show

Another show for Legend and again she was in the ribbons coming 3rd out of all the yearlings and 2 year olds – Fabulous!

July 2003 - British Dressage Young Horses Championships

Our first outing with Legend as a yearling, and what a great result 2nd in the yearling class we were delighted! Hopefully this will be the sign of things to come.