Meet the stars of the show – Part 4: Namibia

We’re continuing the “Meet the Horses” series in Namibia. This region is not for the faint-hearted. Crisscrossing the Namibian landscape on horseback requires horses that are tough, brave, resilient, a strong mind and a healthy dash of attitude.

First, we’d like you to meet their legendary quarter horse stallion Gaucho and two of his offspring, Habanero and Muchacho (can you see the pattern?!) If you’ve experienced the thrill of a Namibian Desert Crossing on horseback in the past few years, chances are you would have met one of Gaucho’s progeny. Gaucho’s offspring provide all of this, by the bucketload. The team in Namibia have found that the Quarter horse / Arab cross works very well which gives the ‘cow sense of the Quarter Horse, and the zing of the Arab’. Gaucho is also matched with Warmblood, Boerperd and Hanoverian cross mares to produce his talented line.

GAUCHO

Andrew Gillies told us the story of his prized stallion: Gaucho is a registered quarter horse from a Quarter Horse Stud in Namibia but the way he became part of Namibia Horse Safaris was a bit convoluted.

It started at Desert Homestead, where the neighbour acquired 6 new horses. These would intermittently jump the fence and chaos would ensue. One day, Andrew marched next door offering to buy the horses, and an offer of N$8000.00 (about USD600) was accepted for all 6 horses. Turns out the horses belonged to the previous manager who had moved on and left his horses behind. A few weeks later a chap came for a job interview, stating he owned horses in the Sossusvlei area – and it soon became apparent they were talking about the same horses! As possession is nine-tenths of the law, they remained with Andrew. Initially, he had no intention of breeding with the “stray stallion” and had asked the vet to castrate him, much to the previous owner’s horror!

As it so happened, for the best for Gaucho and the team, only one of his testicles had descended making it a much more complex operation than originally thought and the vet returned from Desert Homestead without his trophy. It was during this reprieve that they learned of Gauchos heritage and he was duly appointed “sire of trails horses”. Many of our guests will know Habanero, Muchacho, Cuervo, Kariba, Hombre, Macarena with Pablo, Molly, Hemisphere and Halo about to make their debut onto the safari scene.

Right now, Guacho is enjoying his lockdown with three mares at the base near Windhoek. Andrew has put him with sisters Polka and Schnute (the two chestnut Warmblood cross sisters, much loved by guests on the trail) and Kayla, a bay Thoroughbred cross.

MUCHACHO & HABANERO

Muchacho and Habanero are called The Kalahari Bro’s as they were born and grew up together on a farm where there is generally grass, even when the rest of the country is suffering drought. They both started together in 2017, on the same safari.

Habanero is 15.1 hands and a cool character. He can be ridden by anyone, especially if his chum Muchacho is around – he’s even sometimes ridden in a neck strap by confident riders. He has a very curious lip-smacking habit when drinking – which gets everyone laughing – and curiously his half-brother Haegar does the same thing….

Muchacho has a calm relaxed demeanor with a very merry, high stepping action in the trot and canter which is extremely comfortable to ride. He is best suited to confident riders as he can be timid at times but is growing into his confidence as he matures. He is much loved by anyone who is lucky enough to be paired with him on an epic adventure across the hauntingly beautiful landscapes of Namibia. Muchacho is relatively new to the working crew as he was started as a three-year-old by Phoebe on the farm Seeis from December 2016. Phoebe’s gentle and patient guidance produces calm, reliable horses that are sensitive to light aides. Muchacho joined his first safari as a loose horse to get used to safari life, but also occasionally ridden by Phoebe as back up rider. They had a chance encounter with a lion (which is rare in Namibia), but level headed Muchacho handled it like a pro. He has since got several safaris under his belt… or girth 🙂

AROKA – THE POCKET ROCKET

Aroka is from the Cherubim stud, in Namibia, which has registered Nooitgedachters, Arabs and Quarter horses, all bred for their endurance in the extreme Namibian environment. While she might not have the conformation of a typical endurance horse, she has been part of the herd for 9 years and has proven to be a true champion! Despite her size, she would easily come in the top 3 fastest horses of the full Namibia herd. She is incredibly fast out the blocks, often climbing from the back to the lead in any race across the desert. Isabel was lucky enough to ride her and said that when she gets going in that fifth gear, you feel like your feet are almost brushing the floor as she reaches flat-out for each stride. Like clinging on to a low-flying, eye wateringly fast cocktail stick! Aroka is wonderfully responsive and can even be ridden in a halter. She is a feisty little mare and hangs out with her elite circle, Lavida, Flica, Macarena. Mares seem to be very opinionated and only like those they hang out with – the exclusive club! The geldings know to keep their distance! She is very intelligent and hard-headed and needs a skilled rider as she will scurry out from under you if you don’t have the skill to stay on