Scots Bay colt destined for prestigious facility

Denmark buyer taking foal to Blues Hors to be raised, trained

There is excitement in the stables at Steele Family Warmbloods in Scots Bay as a black colt they bred will be heading to a world-famous equestrian facility to be raised and trained.

Total Glamour, who is now two months old, has an impressive bloodline as its father is world champion Glamourdale and its grandfather on its mother’s side was Totilas, a legendary world record setter. The foal has been sold to an undisclosed buyer in Denmark for an undisclosed amount.

A division of Hustle Farms, Steele Family Warmbloods is owned by Lindsay Steele and her mom, Theresa Steele. They currently have about 15 horses on the farm, including seven broodmares and a stallion.

Although there could be others out there, Theresa said that, to her knowledge, no one to this point has crossed the Glamourdale and Totilas lines. Theresa said it took them three years to find the foal’s mother, Ovada MTA, a four-year-old daughter of Totilas.

“Because you’re breeding one legend to the daughter of another legend, you’re kind of hoping that the resulting foal is going to be something special,” she said.

Theresa said they’ve always

bred quality horses, with some having been sold to buyers in Florida, New York, and across Canada. There are other breeders in Nova Scotia

and across the Maritimes that have excellent programs and who sell horses all over North America.

However, since European breeding programs are considered years ahead, it isn’t usually the case that a horse foal bred in Canada is sold across the Atlantic. If anything, it’s usually the other way around. Total Glamour will be heading to Europe in March 2024, flying out of New York.

“For them to look outside of Europe for a foal, and think that it has the potential, it’s really rare,” Theresa said.

She hopes this will help them start a new trend, get their name out there, and sell more horses. She has received congratulations from just about every breeder in Canada and the United States, and from some in England.

ALL ABOUT OPPORTUNITY

Theresa said they’ve been told by the new owner that the horse will be boarded at the world-famous Blue Hors equestrian facility in Ranboldal, Denmark, to be raised and trained.

The new owner has told them they are working with Princess Nathalie Zu SaynWittgenstein and Cathrine Dufour, Danish Olympic dressage riders. If Total Glamour has Grand Prix potential, he could be ridden and competed by either.

“It’s all about opportunity. He’s a baby, once he gets there, by the time he’s two or three years old, he’ll have to prove himself against the very best,” Theresa said. “If he’s good enough, the stars are the limit.”

The Steeles weren’t sure at first if the undisclosed buyer was legitimate, but everything has checked out. Theresa posted a photo of Total Glamour at one day old on a European Facebook page and began hearing from the buyer

almost immediately.

“Six weeks later, we have a signed contract, and the horse is paid for,” she said.

Theresa said this is a real feather in the hat of Steele Family Warmbloods, and Scots Bay with its hills and large pastures is a beautiful place to breed horses.

Lindsay said she’s been riding for as long as she can remember. She has been in the barns of Olympians and has seen some fabulous horses. Lindsay recalls mentioning to her mom as soon as Total Glamour was born that she has never seen a colt as nice.

“I kind of joked because my birthday was in July and mom asked me what I wanted, and I said the colt,” Lindsay said.

However, she realized Total Glamour had to go somewhere he could reach his potential and she is very excited to see him going to Europe. Although it’s too soon to tell, he could end up a world champion stallion or competing at the Olympics.

POSITIVE SPINOFFS COULD RESULT

Lindsay said European lines have been coming to North America since the advancement of artificial insemination technology, but now that horses can fly both ways, it’s becoming a truly global market.

She said it was a difficult year for horse breeders in general with lower-thannormal

conception rates, so they were particularly fortunate to be blessed with Total Glamour.

The colt’s dam Ovada MTA was bred by Danielle Landreville of Mont Atoca Dressage in Ste Melani, Quebec. Lindsay said the sale of Total Glamour is also a testament to Landreville’s breeding program.

She said there are some famous riders who have come out of Nova Scotia, including Canadian Olympian Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu, a New Glasgow native. However, she had to move to Quebec to achieve her dreams with the national dressage team, and her horses are from Europe.

If Total Glamour goes on to accomplish marvellous things, and if Steele Family Warmbloods can keep up with that level of breeding, Lindsay said it could mean that other international buyers look to them for their next champion.

If the genetics are there and more European buyers begin taking notice of Nova Scotia, it will be good for all horse breeders in the province.

“I don’t mean this negatively, but Nova Scotia has never been the equestrian centre of Canada or anything, and anybody that comes out of here has to work twice as hard and they have to travel,” Lindsay said.

“If the horses are here and people start getting recognized, then maybe it creates more opportunities for other people as a whole, not just us.”