British dressage rider Nicola McGivern has a full brother to her Olympic ride and 2003 European medallist Active Walero. The bay colt, “Little Walero” (pictured right), was born just before midnight on 25 March.
“When I saw it was a little colt I was absolutely ecstatic,” said Nicola. “His recipient mother, Boo Boo, is incredibly laid back and left him alone for 2hr. As a result he’s incredibly inquisitive — as cheeky as you like.
“He’s out in the paddock getting the feel of his very long legs with Boo Boo attempting to keep up. She is not overly impressed, as she would much prefer to be working at filling her rather stout frame — she’s been a superstar.”
Nicola found Walero’s dam, Marata (“Mother”), who is by Matcho AA, at a potato field farm in Germany last year. The 16.1hh grey is 22 this year and so unable to carry a foal. Three fertile embryos were flushed from the mare. Two were inseminated with frozen semen from Walero’s sire, Wanderer, and one with fresh semen from Laura Richardson’s stallion Millennium.
“Amazingly, Michaela at Twemlows has recovered another embryo, this time by Hotline. We will breed Mother again to Wanderer next time and keep our fingers crossed,” said Nicola.
Another of Nicola’s recipient mares is expecting a Marata foal to Laura Richardson’s Millennium and Walero’s second full brother is due in July. She already has a Millennium chesnut filly with four white socks out of a Santander mare.
“Little Walero is a temporary name because another name has not come to mind yet and the Millenium filly has been named Millie,” explained Nicola. “We will have to think of some more names as it will get very confusing with so many baby Waleros and Baby Milleniums due.”
