Foxvangen's Solaris

V-86

The name "Solaris" means SUN, and his name fits him to a "T" because he truly lights up the world with his happy free spirit and grace. Solaris was sired by Foxvangen’s Braveheart Two who currently resides in Germany. Braveheart is winning many hearts in Europe as he did in the United States. He is a very accomplished young stallion with a lot to offer the breed. Braveheart's sire is our senior stallion of Clarkson breeding, Foxvangen's Toy Boy. Braveheart's dam is Chief's Magic Ribbon H...the end of her line save the sons and daughters she has Blessed us with.

.Foxvangen's Braveheart Two

Braveheart Two is now standing at stud as well as being used as a riding horse. He is accomplished at Parelli and reining and was tested on the Analoc E machine where he placed second highest in the world for gait against over 1,000 gaited horses from all over Europe and South America. He did that without one day of gait training!. He has passed his athletic ability as well as his wonderful temperament down to his son, Solaris.

Foxvangen's Belle Lyra

Foxvangen’s Belle Lyra is the dam to Solaris. Lyra is a lovely light Isabella palomino sabino with much the same quality of Solaris. Lyra is a gentle spirit and a lovely mare to watch in motion. She is fluid and soft when she moves and carries an amazingly beautiful frame. She has passed her qualities on to her son in large measure. Lyra was sired by Montana's Blue Nugget P. and her dam is our lovely Clarkson mare, Miss Molly Fox.

This combination stacks over 60 years of selectively bred stock horse athletic ability, suppleness, agility, and a natural smooth foxtrot gait into Solaris. It also brought along wonderful bone, joints and exceptionally good feet! Solaris also has a lot of speed. He can gallop at speeds and motion like a Thoroughbred and does so effortlessly and with a singing heart. He is a happy natured horse with a puppy dog disposition that craves human contact.

Foxvangen's Solaris was born March 30, 2005. His entry into the world was not as it should have been. In fact his birth was the most difficult delivery I've ever made in my more than 45 years as a foaling midwife. Being a large foal born to a maiden mare he was just too large for the pelvis size. Lyra was trying to deliver him before she was fully dilated causing the pressure to misalign one of his legs but even at that he was so large it took three of us pulling as hard as we could to get him out. As soon as he drew his first breath I was totally smitten. He was somewhat down on his pastern and quite ribby but that was probably a good thing! If he had been fatter we may never have gotten him delivered at all!

Solaris 4 hours old

As soon as he was on his feet he was gaiting away and just so gentle and sweet natured he stole my heart. He came to me as if we were old friends and from the very first would rather spend time with me than with his dam.

He was not afraid of anything. Because it was wet and cold out I put a foal blanket on him and he stood perfectly still for me to slide it over his head and buckle up all the straps. He accepted the halter without a second thought and was leading by the time he was only a few hours old.

Solaris 1 day old

Every day I could hardly wait to get to the barn to see him and have another lesson. We became fast friends. He would lay with his head in my lap when he napped. If I went to the pasture he would leave Lyra to come to me. Generally newborns won't stray far from their dam for the first couple weeks.

Solaris was such a free spirit. He loved to run and had an amazingly free wheeling style. He was light on his feet and just scampered and ran all the time as if that was his favorite thing to do.

Solaris 5 days old

Solaris played with the other foals and was inquisitive about everything. Then one morning when he was two and a half weeks old I was leading them out to pasture when that second sense we sometimes get (especially mothers) told me something was wrong. Solaris was not his bright, happy self. He was quite lack luster. I watched him as I walked with him and he seemed very tired. He was obediently coming along but it seemed it was all he could do to take each step! My heart just sank because I knew right away what was wrong. Solaris was septic. He had not gotten enough colostrum.

I took him and Lyra straight back to the barn and called the vet. The nearest equine vet is 60 miles north of us. I loaded Lyra and Solaris and off we went. We got there within an hour and a half of my feeling he was ill! AND it was a good thing we did. His white count was already way over 1,000 and he was feverish. X-rays showed his joints were still in good shape but as fast as his white count was elevating time was running out if we were to save him

Solaris 2 days old

To save him we had to give him a plasma transfusion, two liters. It takes about an hour for each bag to be dripped into their veins. All that time Lyra stood in stocks where she could see her son laying on a mat in the surgery room. He was laying with his head on my lap...something she was used to seeing. She stood very still and quiet during the entire procedure.

Solaris was also given injections of antibiotics and a tetanus. Poor little guy I'm sure felt like a pin cushion by time he was finished but it was necessary to save him.

The vet told me he would likely be very tired and sluggish for a few weeks. The transfusions can be very hard on their body. Solaris also had to be on mega antibiotics for two weeks. We took him home.

Needless to say I sat under that foal for the best part of three weeks. He was too weak to stand and nurse. It seemed to hurt his neck or give him a head ache to reach up under his dam for the udder. SO I milked her and fed him by bottle. Lyra was extremely good about all of this even though she was a maiden mare.

Little by little Solaris got stronger. He began to take interest in his life and his surroundings. It made my heart happy to hear his sweet little nicker of greeting each time I came to the barn. He began to play a little in his paddock. How delighted I was to see him hop around like a frog trying to buck and play as he had those first two weeks.

Solaris 2 days old

Sometimes Solaris would stand in the sun and doze off to sleep standing up. It was as if he needed the sun on him. After all he was named for the sun!

Finally about 4 weeks after he crashed, Solaris was well enough to go back out to pasture. That was a happy day for all of us. He still took more naps than the other foals but when he was up he was active and normal in his behavior. It took a good three months before he was strong enough to call him 100% normal. THAT was a red letter day for certain!

Solaris at 6 weeks

As soon as he was over his bought with partial passive transfer failure, Solaris began to grow and grow. He soon was taller than any of the other foals and could out run them all. He was a delight to watch. By time he was three months old he looked more like six months.

Solaris at two months

Solaris at 3 months

Solaris at 6 months

Solaris running at 9 months

Solaris at 1 year.

Solaris 2 years during one of his more balanced times.

As Solaris grew he remained extremely quiet and gentle. He knew he was a boy but never got rowdy or difficult in any way. He grew up in a steep pasture where he could run and race and develop his body and coordination. His brother was half a year older and an instigator of mischief. He would pester and heckle Solaris constantly but Solaris remained quiet and only defended himself against the brothers advances. He took quite a bit from his brother until one day he found out that he was bigger and stronger than the brother. THAT day he pushed back. He did not kick or bite but he just put his shoulder against his brother and started walking. It was rather funny in many ways but it was also about time! He pushed his brother clear down the hill and then came back just as quiet as he left.

The brother came after him again and again but each time Solaris just put a shoulder to him and shoved him down the hill. The hill is a good 500 feet so this was no little feat.

After several days of this and the brother not taking "no" for an answer, one day Solaris just cleaned his clock! He never got mad and he never got excited. He just quietly and systematically showed his brother who the real strength belonged to. They never got mean and they were not really fighting. They were testing each other's strength which is what bachelor stallions do in the wild. But that day Solaris showed his brother he was a much more powerful horse...THAT day, Solaris became a stallion.

Solaris and his brother deciding who is stronger age 2.5

At three Solaris began getting more gold in his coloring. It sort of took us by surprise since he'd been so light but we enjoyed seeing his glowing dapples and finally getting to see all his sabino markings!

The stallions lived much as they would in a wild bachelor band which gives them companionship, a way to learn the needed skills of being a stallion, and the freedom of motion that allows them to naturally develop their bodies, balance, gait and athletic ability. After a good romp they would stand near one another and snooze generally either nose to nose or cheek to cheek. At night they would lay back to back most times or sometimes facing one another. It is a good life for a young, developing stallion. Stress free and happy. At our farm the stallion pasture includes a steep hillside where the boys race and frolic to their hearts content. During that playtime, they learn to control their limbs and body movements to high degree. The field is over 1200 feet long so they also get opportunity to race and stretch their muscles naturally as they grow! This is as near to the ideal way of raising colts we can think of.

Solaris and Pharaoh, half brothers, playing boy games in their pasture. Afterwords they eat cheek to cheek and sleep side by side.

They were happy, well developed, and above all not frustrated and all pent up. Most people do not realize they are stallions when they meet them.

At Foxvangen Farm we like to test our young stallions breeding ability. We strongly feel that no matter how well a stallion performs..whether on the trail, in sport or arena, he is only as good as his offspring. History tells us that some of the greatest champions of all time came from parents that were either not successful themselves, or thought to be inferior in some way. Some of the greatest horses in the world came from parents who either didn't compete at all, or were not very accomplished. It does not take a champion to produce a champion....it just takes a great horse.

We want the whole enchilada! We like our stallions to have the ability we seek, the grace and symmetry that marks them as well bred, but they MUST be able to produce foals that exceed even their own merit or they are not improving the breed. In short, if a stallion cannot produce well then he does not need to be a stallion.

Solaris 3 years in his spring color.

It is very hard on a seasoned stallion to be gelded and many times they develop secondary problems or actually die from complications of the process. So we give our young stallions a test year. If they do not produce up to our strict expectations then they are castrated before they are four years of age. In order to meet that deadline we breed them at age two. Their first offspring then hit the ground in the stallions third year. If they produce well then they are worth putting more time and money into training etc. If not they are young enough and inexperienced enough to make good geldings. This method of sorting the wheat from the chaff has served us well over the years.

Solaris was bred to two test mares in 2007. His first foals were born in August and September of 2008 and were excellent!

At three Solaris began to notice the ladies more. He has never been raucous about it but he will watch them and occasionally call to them. He will sometimes show off and foxtrot the fenceline watching them. It does shorten his stride to have his head up so high but he never goes lateral.

Solaris at 2.5 watching the girls as he foxtrotted the fence line.

When he gets their attention he puts on a show for them, preening and prancing and acting goofy. He never challenges the fence and he never challenges me. But he can really put on a show at times and keeps us fully entertained when he does!

Solaris at 3.5 showing off for Pharaoh in the other field

His canter is true. He can running walk and likely rack although he does not rack naturally. His natural gait of choice is the foxtrot. In all the time since his birth we have never seen this horse pace. He is the true, old style, foundation type Missouri Foxtrotting horse! Solaris is registered as a Blue Papered Foxtrotter but he could be Gold Papered if we chose to send his papers back in. He is also registered with the Foundation Foxtrotter Heritage Association with a factor of V-86. That means he is 11/16 old Foundation blood...that which came from Saddlehorse and Morgan, not Tennessee Walking Horse as so many of the more modern type are. His heritage has been traced back through the various breeds that were melded to produce him...all the way back to 1612! It's a remarkable pedigree of champions and noteworthy horses from each breed the blood trailed through.

Solaris 3.5 years guarding his mare against Pharaoh who is pastured across the driveway.

Long strided and loose moving, Solaris moves like a dream. He uses his body well naturally and is developing rapidly into a very strong horse. Solaris is a light Isabella palomino sabino. He tests positive for the SB1 Sabino gene and has one copy of cream. His coat tone may deepen some as he matures. He has long stockings on three legs and an apron face. His eyes are dark amber and soft.

Look real close...see the amber ring in his eye?

Solaris has fabulous bone and large, flat joints and terrific feet! His legs are correct and powerfully built with long, broad forearms and gaskins. Solaris has a strong hip with the long, lean muscling necessary for free motion and speed. This is the type of muscling that also lends well to distance and endurance. Even though Foxvangen's Solaris has just turned four years of age the dynamic structure and strength of this young stallion is already obvious. He is still growing but is standing just a hair under 15 hands at this time.

Solaris 4 years old. His metallic coat glows in moonlight as well as in the afternoon sun.

No matter what angle you view him from, Solaris is a solid, well conformed, very handsome horse! Solaris is innately kind and gentle. He is playful and loving. In short he is just one lovely horse! Solaris grew up with his brother Foxvangen's Pharaoh so he had another horse to play rough and tumble with, develop his body and mind by racing and competing. Now that he is a breeding stallion he shares space with a mare so he is very well adjusted and happy.

Solaris at 4 years. He was filling out nicely

There was nothing more fun than to watch those young stallions play and race around their pasture together! In this way as young stallions they learn to be social...and a horse! We do not believe in locking horses up in stalls or small pens. To us that is cruel treatment particularly in horses bred for centuries to be free moving. Play time is important to mind, body and development just as much as any training could hope to be. The result is relaxed, amiable stallions!

Solaris 4 years old. His gentleness shows

Solaris is also registered as a foundation sire with the Pleasure Saddle Horse Registry and is registered as an SB1 sabino in the Sabino Horse Registry International.

Solaris in his faded summer coat foxtrotting up the hill.

The older Solaris gets the more we are impressed with his gentle nature and obedient behavior. He is more like a loyal old hound dog than a horse! No matter where he is if I call, his head comes up and he starts toward me.

Solaris coming when called

At the age of five his mane is already down to his forearm. He has a nice sweeping stride and an efficient way of traveling. No matter what angle you look him over, he's a well balanced, correct, beautiful stallion. He will only get better as he matures.

Foxvangen's Solaris is an ongoing labor of love. He just keeps getting better and better as he matures. We will be updating his page from time to time so you can follow his progress!

HERE ARE SOME OF THE MANY FACES OF SOLARIS