Britains first coloured Thoroughbred has been born at Westdown Stud in Devon. The colt foal, which is as yet unnamed, is by the American coloured Thoroughbred stallion I Was Framed the first coloured thoroughbred to be registered with Weatherbys. Breeder Shena Halliwell plans to keep the colt entire and stand him as a stallion, although he will also go into training for the race track.
I Was Frameds first British foal was born at 11:45pm on Monday night and is out of Halliwells mare Facsimile, a successful racehorse whose progeny have all been winners. They include Picot de Say, who was a triple winner across 17 days last year.
The new colt is beautifully put together with striking markings and a lovely head, said Halliwell. He was up and suckling within an hour. He is very strong and bold and a bit cheeky.
I Was Framed made breeding history last year when he became the first Thoroughbred to be registered as a coloured horse by Weatherbys. The case of the brown and white colt was discussed at the annual meeting of the International Stud Book Committee but I Was Frameds pure-bred parentage was verified.
Halliwell made the decision to put Facsimile to I Was Framed after reading about the coloured stallion. At first I thought there was no such thing, she said, but then I heard I Was Framed was coming to the UK and looked into it and really liked what I read. Known as Hannibal to owner Melanie Phillips, the stallion has covered more than 20 Thoroughbred mares, including another of Halliwells who is due to foal in two months.
