Watching Nikita grow

Nikita is my horse. He was born on April 13 1998 and was bred by Ivana and Didier Thievent, Switzerland. To learn more about their stud farm and breeding program, go to their website (text in German).

I fell in love with Nikita in Summer 1998 when I saw him on a picture. He was everything I had ever dreamed of, like I'd made him up! His color, the star on his forhead, the compact body, his breeding: too good to be true! Since I had met his sire, the Tersk bred stallion Nikel, I'd known that I wanted him to be the father of my future horse. I met several of his offspring, and was impressed by their athlethic good looks, friendly eyes and strong nerves.

I already knew Nikita's breeders and Evelyne and I followed their invitation to visit their stud farm. Nikita was even better in real life. And I liked the Thievents breeding philosophy as well as the way they treated their horses. I have loved many horses in my life, but this was the first time I really wanted one so bad. This just wasn't the right moment for it. I had to finish my second round of studies as a librarian, find a job and earn the money to buy a horse and then provide for it.

But there was no time. In the following spring I had to make a decision, as the Thievents wanted to advertise Nikita, and I knew he would be very easy to sell. My husband and I sat down for a long talk and then we took the risk: I bought my first horse!

The same month I bought Nikita I got pregnant. But that is another story. Anyway, Nikita enjoyed his youth with a bunch of other colts the same age on a huge pasture far away from me, where the Hossle family took excellent care of him. I visited as often as possible.

In summer 2000 we had to geld him and soon afterwards he moved to my riding instructor Nadja Maurer, who became his trainer. 

He was started under saddle one year later and stayed with Nadja most of the time, except for summer camp on an alp in the mountains and one brief stay closer to my home in summer 2002. Nikita got sick at the beginning of autumn, when the weather was so wet that the horses could not be turned out to pasture for days on end. Even though the stable was big and the horses could move around in it, the lack of space was too much for him and I had to bring him back to what he thinks of as his home.

Now I have found another stable nearby and Nikita will move by the end of July 2003. I hope it works out, as it is very difficult to build a relationship with a horse you only see once a week. 

Christa