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 "Rosie" was bred and raised by Elsie Darrah of Last Chance Farm. Her dam was the cornerstone of Elsie's program, Fireball's Mountain Maid. Elsie's elite group of mares represented many years of breeding and selection to get the type of mares that would produce exceptional foals that display the characteristics of original walking horse breed standards. These mares produced foals with a natural head nodding running walk. They were versatile enough to meet the challenges for the many riding disciplines in show, pleasure, working and sporting events. Rosie's sire was Royal Ivory, perhaps the most well known cremello walking horse stallion of all time. Elsie wrote of Royal Ivory in her colored stallion review: "Royal Ivory is my all time favorite cremello stallion and he is a key player in my breeding program. He has it all: pedigree, color, gentle disposition, natural walking ability and good conformation. He will do anything you ask of him. He is an excellent trail riding horse and is used to pull a horse-drawn hearse in parades. He is the perfect gentleman as a breeding stallion. His foals have the same gentle disposition as their sire. If you are looking to add color, conformation, natural walking ability and personality to your foals, Royal Ivory is for you." I fell in love with Rosie on my first visit to Rise and Shine Walkers in 2003. She was just a gangly youngster then, but I could tell that she'd have the tremendous size, bone and walk of Elsie Darrah's favorite cross. I offered Micki $6500 for her and she reluctently accepted, but ended up changing her mind and keeping Rosie. As she grew and matured, Rosie surpassed my expectations. Her towering size and stature might have been intimidating on another horse. Not on Rosie though. Her sweet, gentle disposition made her easy to handle. I was THRILLED when I was given the opportunity to purchase her in 2018. I bred her to The Tennessee Stud, a talented young stallion that we had carefully bred and raised. I couldn't wait to see the results of such a phenominal cross. 11 months later, her filly arrived. Rosie had managed to find the only perilous spot in the entire field to foal next to, and the little one tumbled into a ditch and managed to end up pinned under several trees. Jarred and I rescued her and the vet came to give her a once over and make sure she got the colostrum that she needed. Just two days later our hearts were completely broken when we lost Rosie due to a twisted gut. Rest in peace, beautiful mare.
 Westwood Farms - Locust Dale, Virginia 22948 - stephanie@westwoodfarms.net - 540-825-1300 |
