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The Lion
King
15.2 hand, HOMOZYGOUS* Legendary Gypsy Horse stallion
In March
of 2004, Gypsy Horse history was made when we imported "The Lion King", and
brought him to our farm in Colorado. This was the stallion everyone was
talking about in England. He was owned by the late Fred Walker when we
acquired him, who did not make it a habit of showing him off at the fairs.
In fact, many people in England never actually saw this horse - they didn't have
to...
The Lion
King earned his reputation by consistently producing the highest quality
offspring the country had seen. In fact, to this day, the Gypsy breeders
overseas will tell you that The Lion King was the best stallion who ever lived.
He was also the heaviest-feathered stallion ever seen. Even heavier than
the legends before him like the Roadsweeper, The Old Black Horse, and The Lob.
This is one of the most well-known and respected gypsy horses in England and
Ireland, not because he's an awesome example of a gypsy cob with amazing
conformation and gypsy horse type, or that he had more hair than ever seen on a horse, but
because he is legendary for REPRODUCING this in his offspring. THIS is how
The Lion King got his phenomenal reputation, by showing what he leaves on the
ground! This is the true mark of any good breeding horse. A gypsy
calls a horse that doesn't leave his type in his foals, "Greedy", and there are
SO many "greedy" stallions out there. Lion King has earned his reputation
as a generous horse, he stamps his type on each of his offspring consistently.
Even today, his offspring are in great demand, and fetch the best prices.
His foals and grand-foals are proudly advertised around the world.
He
is a stallion who came with a name - a REAL name... A name which all the
breeders knew and respected. This was not all that common. Few
breeders actually named their horses at the time, but when one rises to the
level of greatness as this boy, his name became well-known.
Nowadays, it
seems like all the gypsy horses overseas have 'names'. It didn't take long
for overseas breeders dealing to the US market to realize that their horses
could be sold easier to the states if they gave them a name. But a horse
given a name simply to export it, has a name without value. Many of the
so-called notable horses of today will have names which the gypsy breeders do
not recognize. But if you go to the big horse fairs, you'll be
hard-pressed to find anyone who's never heard of The Lion King. He is
truly a legend in the breed, and one who will not be easily forgotten.
Whenever we travelled overseas, it seemed that everyone we met had a story to
tell us about this horse, or one of his get. In fact, the last time we
visited Appleby Fair, there was a vendor who dedicated one whole side of his
display to artwork, photographs, and memorabilia of this famous horse.
The Lion
King was a great producer without question... But was truly a great horse
himself. He had that classic cob build, great markings, plenty of hair,
and an unbeatable personality. He was also homozygous for the tobiano
trait (means all his foals are pinto marked).
Sadly, The Lion King is
no longer with us. He passed away on March 15, 2008. He left behind
a legacy that will endure, and set the standard for excellence in the
breed.
Lion King in Denver's Nat'l Western parade.
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