Good Morning,
I hope all of you are having a happy, healthy week! Everything at Lane’s End is going very well. My paddock pals and I are ALL enjoying the lovely weather and every moment of snacking on the lush Kentucky Blue Grass!
I’d also like to thank you for the kind comments you have written about my dear little sister, EBLOUISSANTE. As you have already noted in your responses, she is not owned by the Moss’…but by our BREEDER. He bred both of US!
On a horse’s JOCKEY CLUB PAPERS (the birth certificate for a horse), the name of the BREEDER is always listed. BREEDING is such an incredibly important part of our industry. The BREEDER is technically the person who owns the mare at the time the foal is born. Sometimes, a mare owner may ‘foal share’. This means that one person owns the mare and another individual provides the stallion season used for this mating. Under these conditions, each party would be listed as the ‘breeder of the resulting horse’ and each would own an interest in that particular foal from the moment it is born.
The majority of the time, though, the breeder owns the MARE and selects the stallion she will be bred to that year. The mare owner secures the stallion season for his mare and thus becomes both the owner and breeder of the foal once born.
A mating is planned with many significant components that need to be considered. Some of the most important are pedigree elements, conformation, size, and the overall general health of both parents. Many people also want to factor in and consider the particular running style of a horse and/or the distance capabilities of each of the potential parents Is the hope to have a pedigree that will encourage more SPEED QUALITIES or are you looking to reinforce the STAMINA INFLUENCE in this family line? There is so much to be considered. It is truly a huge responsibility for an owner to breed the best horse possible.
I would think that the main goal of a BREEDER would be to breed a quality foal who is healthy, strong, very sensible, and has good conformation. It sure looks like “E” got off to a great start in ALL of these areas! (JUST LIKE ME!) Thank you, MOM! She certainly was a great influence on both of us!
In racing literature, it is often stated that breeding horses is not an exact science. It takes a lot of HARD WORK, PATIENCE, and VERY IMPORTANTLY…LUCK!
My owners do have several broodmares. I am one of them! They enjoy the entire process…every step of the way! In our SPORT, it is often said that winning with a homebred is a very, very special thrill because of the total involvement you’ve had with the horse from the earliest stages of it’s life!
JUST IMAGINE….with foal crops of well over 30,000 horses born each year in our country…to be the ONE who breeds a horse who wins the Kentucky Derby or a Breeders’ Cup Classic…what an ACHIEVEMENT this is!
This is not only a complete THRILL….it is TRULY A GIFT!
With love,
Hugs to All~(Isn’t my baby sister TOO CUTE!)
Z
Trina Nagele
Dearest Z, I’m glad to hear you thinking about all that goes into breeding, and I’m wishing you that bit of luck that is the final ingredient. Maybe you’ll tell us about the Mosses’ other broodmares someday. Have they had a chance to give you any pointers? Now it’s time to say good night, and sweet dreams, dear Z.
@audreyc—Belated happy birthday wishes to your Emma. Bet she looks splendid in her sparkly fly mask. I enjoyed your story of how you let her smell it real well, and she then lowered her head for you to put it on her. Too cute!
@Mike Smith—Congratulations!
@HELEN FROM MICHIGAN—I too feel we are one big family! And it’s nice to know you are from Michigan—that’s where I was born and raised. Love those lakes!
@msnap12–The pronunciation e-blew-ee-SAWNT is pretty good. The “t” in Eblouissante is pronounced because it is followed by an “e,” but the final “e” is silent because it doesn’t have an accent mark, if my college French still serves me. The final syllable gets the stress.
@Paula Higgins—I agree with you about Z’s ears while she was racing—they shower she was never full-out. That tallies with what Mike said in The Independent (UK)—she was still just “messing around” at the finish line of the BC 2010. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/mike-smith-allstar-rider-prepares-for-ascot-at-the-grass-roots-2288485.html
@DJ — Beautiful tribute to Old Glory! Long may she wave!
@Brooke—That’s wonderful that you adopted Dusty. We will look forward to hearing more about him and the fun you have with him.
@Sandra Frey— Sorry the storm kept you up. Glad you’re safe, and I hope you can catch up on your sleep tonight (It’s late Thursday evening here as I write this.)
@Vicki B—Thanks for your comment about the Mike Smith link.
@Margaret and Joyce—I love the good-natured competition to be first. Good luck to all! Too cute!
@Elena Erdman— Great post about the donkey Smoke from Iraq, now in Nebraska doing therapy work with wounded veterans—Z would approve! Will Smoke get a Facebook page?
@ Marilyn Braudrick—Thanks for sharing about your visit to Barn 55 and your observations on Eblouissante. I hope you will keep posting with updates.
@Diana S—Perfect wishes for this Memorial Day.
@Anne from Paramount, CA—I’m glad you enjoyed those pictures of Z by Geoff Shackelford. He lives in Malibu and goes to the racetrack often, so I bet it was the same person seated in front of you who was so excited when Shackleford won the Preakness.
Trina Nagele
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT, TO SEE GORGEOUS NEW PICTURES OF ZENYATTA FROM WHEN SHE WAS AT BARN 55, GO TO THE FOLLOWING LINK AND THEN CLICK ON “PREVIEW:” http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2108661?ce=blurb_ew&utm_source=widget
MY VERY FAVORITE PHOTO IS THE SPECTACULAR FULL-BODY SHOT OF Z IN A POSE SIMILAR TO THAT CAUGHT IN NINA KAISER’S BRONZE, WITH Z’S DAPPLED COAT IN FULL COLOR SHINING IN THE SUNLIGHT AND HER MUSCLES ALMOST BURSTING OUT OF HER SKIN. SHE TAKES YOUR BREATH AWAY. MY SECOND FAVORITE: Z PRESSING HER HEAD AGAINST MARIO’S CHEST IN LOVING EMBRACE.
Trina Nagele
@Paula Higgins—Typo above—it should be
“they showed she was never full-out.”
Judy
Are you pregnant again? Please tell us…..We hope you are! The winks and hints are driving us CRAZY
judy berube
Dear Z:
Happy Friday. Thinking of you and hoping all is well. Love you and love to all of you. Judy and Russ
Lisa g
@Trina: Thanks, beautiful thing to see first thing in the morning. She is absolutely Too Beautiful.
Lisa g
Ms Zenyatta, good morning beautiful. Just looked at some pics of you from Your New Book, and it was Too Wonderful. Cannot wait to hear more news about your sister. I love you and have a wonderful, grazing weekend with your girlfriends. Hope you can tell us news soon. I love you..Lisa g
janice
Morning ZENYATTA sister looks GREAT with all the storms around i was so worried about you and your friends the weather has been so bad latley gotta go il be waiting for your sister to run LOVE AND MISS YOU
The Kennedys in San Diego
@Marilyn Braudrick — Thank you for your impressions of Eblouissante. She sounds wonderful. We can hardly wait to see her. Are your horses trained by John?
The Kennedys in San Diego
Sounds like it is highly unlikely that Coolmore would breed one of their mares (Vertigineux) to a Darley stallion(Street Cry)to produce a full sister or brother to Zenyatta.
The Kennedys in San Diego
@Trina Nagele & msnap12 — Since the French word, eblouissante, has an acute accent on the first e, I think the first syllable would be pronounced as ‘a’.
Kathryn Cogswell
“d$#@! tornados;” — Diana S, it`s perfect!
Joanna
Just a couple of observations: 1.For those getting all excited about seeing E race…remember she’s only 2 and if she follows Z’s hoof tracks, she’ll need more time to mature before pounding the track in a serious manner. John is her trainer; I trust he’ll do the absolute best for her. 2.There was a question about the Moss’s getting E. Well, that doesn’t sound like such a good plan when hopefully Z is already bred to Bernie who is E’s sire. I’m all for line-breeding but having a bunch of really close relatives in the gene pool is potentially ugly. Great postings, everybody!
Shari Voltz
Its Brooke thank you for all the nice comments of Dusy and me!!! She love hearing about Zenyattas fans!! And she Loves you guys too! Thank you for ALL! the LOVE!
Brooke
Theresa Buck
she sure is…can see a lot of you in her but she has no socks
Shari Voltz
you 2 look exactly alike except z has white above her nose but, set u 2 a soooooooooooo BEUTIFUL. :) <3 ERIN
Agnes Carlson
Zenny, you and your sister are both so BEAUTIFUL!
I can’t stop thinking about how exciting 2012 will be. You will – hopefully! – become a mom, and Eblouissante starts her racing career! SO EXCITING!
Hugs and kisses from Agnes in SWEDEN!
Shari Voltz
HI QUEEN Z, I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO POST THIS SUMMER BUT NEXT YEAR I WILL BE ABLE 2 POST 2 U THIS IS COREY M. FROM SHARI VOLTZ’S CLASS AND I MIGHT BE MOVING TO WEST VIRGINIA BUT UNTILL THEN BYE BYE HAVE A GOOD SUMMER GO ZENYATTA GO! :) !
Abigail from Montreal
Hi there Zenny!
Isn’t that exciting news about Mike Smith’s win in England? I hope he brings you back a little somnething….maybe some Crabtree & Evelyn bath gel?
Dottie: Great post, as usual, and so interesting to read. I think we all need to be reminded how blissfully unpredictable the breeding of thoroughbreds can be….and just how much luck goes into the mix! It always impresses me when a Great One like Zenny comes along — every horse is a gift, but Zenny is even more than that. She’s a pearl, in the sense that there are a ga-zillion oysters but very, very few that hold a perfect pearl within. when I do my own research, it is really quite astounding to discover the truth behind the fact that there are really no duplicates of great horses. Nor do the great necessarily reproduce the great, as would be the case with Secretariat, whose influence came more through his daughters to their sons than through siring another Secretariat. Of course, given your own considerable expertise, Dottie, this is not news. But it does make one fill with a kind of wonder that the stars aligned as they did to bring Zenyatta into the world — and into all of our lives!
Joan Walls
Dear Zenny,
Can’t you see that all of your adoring fans are anxiously awaiting the “NEWS” We, also, want to enjoy your thrill in having a beautiful and smart foul! Love and hugs. You are just TOO CUTE!! Hooves crossed! Joan
Trina Nagele
@Kennedys in SD—Yes, the first “e” is pronounced “a” IF you mean “a” as in “date” (so-called “long a”), but not “a” as in “at” (so-called “short a”). I figured msnap12 was trying to make that distinction by using a single “e” (as in “hey”) for the long “a” sound and using the double “e” for the long “e” sound in “week.” In the International Phonetic Alphabet, the long “a” sound is represented by using the letter “e” between slashes: /e/.
Trina Nagele
@Corey M in SHARI VOLTZ’S CLASS–Did you say you can’t post during the summer because you don’t have a computer at home? Maybe your public library has computers that you can use, if the library is not too far for you. Good luck to you and all your classmates, and we will look forward to hearing from you in the fall if not sooner.
Shari Voltz
Dear Zenyatta what a busy morning. I wish I was with you just walking and taking in the beauty of Kentucky. Some of my children will not be able to talk to you this summer but just know that YOU have made a lasting impression on them that will last a lifetime. My Homeroom and I have had such fun this year learning about social studies and all things horsey :) The children have learned a lot of life lessons through this site and by folowing Uncle Mo. I feel so blessed to have had you help me be a better teacher. Thank Dottie and Mrs. Moss for all that they have done for these children. I also thank the Zenyatta fans because all of you that commented or encouraged them made them better little people. We love you Zenyatta now and for always. Hugs and Kisses, Shari and Homeroom 215 XXXOOO
@ I am going to call Dawn tonight to see how she is doing :)
The Kennedys in San Diego
@Trina Nagele — yes, the French ‘é’ is pronounced like the English long ‘a’ as in date — sounds like we agree that the first syllable of Elouissante is pronounced like the English long ‘a’.
Jean M.
Beautiful Zenyatta, I have so enjoyed this informative post and the precious picture of Eblouissante with you in your conversation pit. Also read an interview with Mike Smith after his win in England, and the reporter mentioned “the charismatic US wondermare, Zenyatta”. That is your cue to blush! Love you and miss you so much.
Gary Moulton
Northern Dancer to be celebrated at Woodbine Race Track for the next three days.
.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/more-sports/greatest-sire-in-history-would-be-50-today/article2036581/
Trina Nagele
@Kennedys in San Diego—Yes, we totally agree! Sorry that I made it look like you are from South Dakota (SD) in my previous reply to you.
@Anyone who is interested—It gets so confusing when we try to express sounds rather than spellings with the regular English alphabet since there are so many more vowels sounds than there are vowel letters or spellings. With the letter “a” for example, there are not only long and short pronunciations, but the “ah” sound as in “art” and also the unstressed sound that we usually use for the indefinite article “a” as in “Z is a stunning horse.” The best thing is to have a guide word for each sound.
Gary Moulton
I‘ve been thinking more about the “Zenyatta Stakes”. She deserves more then just one measly stakes race named after her to mark all Z’s accomplishments on and off the track. She deserves a race series. She is the true Iron Woman of our time. For a horse to win 3 in row is nothing compared to Zenyatta, 19 in a row, are you kidding me, I bet more men have walked on the moon then horses that have won 19 in a row since the US Civil War. Now maybe I was thinking to big to start although Z should be represented across the land. May something a little more reasonable would be a three race series, maybe 4 to 5 weeks apart with a 5 million dollar prize for the sweep. The series could be held at the West Coast Tracks. Maybe you could have a contest to come up with a name for the series. With a new race series there would be more opportunities for everybody that races fillies & mares. We should start a petition. Well I better get back to work, LOL
Henrietta Wolfe
Z and E, TOO CUTE!!! How fortunate are all of us to be part of YOUR life—-VERY FORTUNATE!!! xoxoxoxo
MK
I absolutely love the pictures. And I thank you again for the education. I love learning about everything involved with this great sport and like today, learning new vocabulary: conformation. Wonderful!
Happy Memorial Day weekend to all!