We are proud to announce that we have had an exclusive interview with Herman Claessens, owner of Fokkerij D'o. For years we have supported him with our high-quality horse feed and we are honored to share his story with you.
- Where does your passion for horse breeding come from?
That grows over the years.. Started with one horse at the age of 15, this is now 50 years ago, laughs.
- You have produced some very well known and successful offspring! What do you think is the key to success in breeding?
Perseverance. The hardest part is to always remain critical of your own products. Always try to compare them with the better ones of their generation. Check all young horses and only continue breeding with the healthy ones. That has certainly become increasingly important in recent years.
- Which horse has been particularly important for your horse breeding?
Important was Tivoli Du Thot (Narcos II – Redstar II – Xillor). The foundation dam of the entire breeding. And then the 160 horses; Ideo D'o, who was Belgian Champion 7 year old; Hos D'o; Bo D'o, Naomi D'o…
- An article was recently published that caused quite a stir in the horse world. “Are we breeding too much on paper?” What are your thoughts on this?
Absolutely! When you sell foals or embryos you miss all the information you see during the training of your horse. Character, carefulness, rideability, perseverance ... A lot of information that helps influence your stallion choice.
- As a professional horse breeder, what do you consider important when raising and training young horses?
Allow plenty of exercise. A herd animal needs to grow up in the group. Make sure they have all the food they need to grow but certainly not too fat. Seeing a few ribs is certainly not bad!
- What wisdom would you like to pass on to young breeders?
Always be critical of your own breeding. Try to follow the sport as much as possible.
Be wary of free jumping, stallion inspections and stallion shows. “High jumping over low obstacles is a different sport”.
Training is very important and maybe later your horse will end up with a better rider and only then can it come into the picture.