Lo and Behold there on his quarters was a familar firebrand. I had noticed the mark during the spring after Nell shed her winter coat and we had been searching for a lead on what it may have meant. Suddenly out of the blue we find Aristo bearing the same mark and the excitement starts to build. Finally we have something on our horse without a past.
Whether it was fate or purely amazing luck a few moments later I came across this:
This is the brand for Westfalen Haflingers. Unfortunately the site is all in German so I cant tell you what that means. We sent emails to people who seem to have a connection in the hopes they understand english and can tell us more about the brand.
It is strange to think that my Nelly Noodles came all the way from Germany. We always had an incling that if she was british she would have come with more history and its not unusual for dealers to buy horses abroad and sell them for more over here. It is a shame that all her past was lost along the way but now at least there is a chance of finding out who bred her if there is a registry. I always wondered why Nell never really listened to me. It was probably because she speaks German! ;)
The most wonderful thing so far about finding her brand is that we now have proof that she is PURE haflinger. I always knew there must have been a mistake when we got the passport saying she was a cross. Hopefully on these facts and pictures alone we will be able to re-register her.
I'll update you as we get more information but even if we don't it has been wonderful just knowing where she came from.
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Summer came and we moved her to Kestal Farm with the others. Lucy came along too and they spent the summer munching on long, lush grass in a field all to themselves. Her condition was fantastic by now; her coat was soft and shiny, her roach back disappeared and her personality really shone. She proved herself to be a wonderfully bombproof and fun ride, although exhibiting a stubborn streak which is well known in Haflingers.
This summer me, Emma and my sister took the horses to a show. Lucy was a veteran to showing, Tralee was a hunter so unfazed by large crowds and Nell was just Nell. It is possible that she was loved once upon a time and she too wore a blue ribbon but for me it felt like the first show. All around the in-hand ring she acted like a bitch, pulling me and standing on me but looking back at these photos, all I can think of is how beautiful she looked. She may have only won a 5th and 3rd but I think she looked wonderfully conditioned and clean.
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