Siraj Abbasi’s interest in horses was obvious from earliest childhood-one of his first memories at age 2 or 3 is of going to feed and pet horses at a local farm. They were not Arabians, but his passion for all things equine was firmly established. After many years of study he has now embarked on his own journey as a breeder of straight Egyptian horses. He seeks to be a creator, not a follower; a breeder, not a collector.

Siraj’s first encounter with straight Egyptian horses came at the farm of Hassanain Al-Nakeeb in Newmarket, England, the co-owner of the renowned stallion NK Hafid Jamil. There he encountered the bright chestnut mare MB Shaleema, a world traveler who had been foaled in Canada, exported to Jordan and finally to the UK. A Seqlawi Jedran, she embodied for him all that he had come to admire in Arabians with exquisite type and floating motion. Her sire Prince Ibn Shaikh was an American National winner and the son of RDM Maar Hala, for many years the leading Egyptian dam of champions. Her dam Bint Jamilla combined blood from the Ansata and Pritzlaff programs, noted for their beauty and athleticism. She became his ideal, the paragon he wants to create for his breeding program. He also cites Messaoud (sire of the National halter and performance winner Orashan and the legendary Imperial Madheen), the German stallion Montasar, and the German mare KP Bint Mohssen as horses who represent his ideal vision of the Egyptian Arabian. The latter two both trace to Malacha, a Dahman Shahwan from the same family as Ansata Ibn Halima. Another dam line which he hopes to add to his program is that of Tamria, who was noted for her extreme head type, overall refinement and balance.

“I admire the Imperial Stud of America so much,” he comments, “because not only did they breed some of the world’s most beautiful Arabians, but they tested them under saddle in competition and many were trained and shown in dressage. Having horses who are outstandingly beautiful but are also good riding animals adds value to a breeding program.” He wants his program to incorporate preservation breeding and also be successful in competition including halter, endurance and dressage. With that goal in mind, he plans to own his own facility as soon as is practical where he will encorporate additional services including saddle training and mare management.

Siraj’s education has been enhanced by his friendships with self-described “pedigree enthusiasts”, networking with breeders whose horses interest him and visiting farms. He plans a trip to Germany and Italy in the summer of 2010 and a trip to the Middle East in the fall including time in Egypt, Qatar and Kuwait. He cites several mentors including Donald Duke of Samsara Stud, and wants to work with like-minded people in the U.S.A., Europe and the Middle East, with mutual assistance helping newcomers and experienced breeders achieve their goals.

Although Siraj has devoted many years to studying the breed before acquiring his first horse, his eye for a fine horse has always been with him. At the 2009 World Championship show in Paris he spotted another chestnut mare who he immediately admired without knowing her identity, who went on to be World Champion Mare-the amazing Kwestura. When Siraj checked her ancestry he was not surprised to learn that her dam was a daughter of the 3/4 Egyptian stallion Palas.

Siraj’s mentor Donald Duke has become his business partner for his first acquisitions. They co-own the outstanding young stallion Muharib Al Rayyan, a Dahman Shahwan of all Ansata lines who is now at Murillo Training Centre in Belgium. “We have chosen to stand him in Belgium because of the proximity to Germany and Austria,” comments Siraj. His first foals will be born in 2011 in Engand, France and Germany. Muharib will be trained under saddle in the near future. Muharib traces to the key Ansata mare Ansata Delilah in tail female, has two lines to World Champion and World Champion sire Ansata Halim Shah, and through his dam traces to Jamil, the maternal grandsire of Siraj’s ideal mare MB Shaleema. “I am attracted to the Ansata horses because they cross well on mares of many different lines, adding beauty and a solid foundation to pedigrees, “explains Siraj. For his first foals Siraj has chosen to lease, rather than purchase, two mares (both from his mentor Donald Duke). Nisreen, a Nabiel granddaughter, is out of a mare who is a 3/4 blood sister to the third dam of his ideal mare MB Shaleema. She combines the best of Gleannloch and Pritzlaff breeding noted for success in hand and under saddle. She compliments Muharib’s exotic, compact look with her stretch of body, short head, large eyes, excellent tail carriage and floating movement. She is of the Seqlawi Jedran of Ibn Sudan strain, a proven cross with the Dahman Shahwan represented by Muharib. Siraj’s second leased mare is Samsara Aisha, a daughter of the deceased international champion Imperial Kamilll (a grandson of El Hilal, the all time leading Egyptian sire of champions and of the National winner and World Champion sire Jamil) out of the Nagel-bred mare Assal. She traces in tail female to the legendary Hanan and is of the highly sought after Abeyan strain. Typical of her pedigree, she has substance, good topline, shoulder and length of neck, plume tail carriage and an expressive face. Siraj planes to retain any fillies produced in 2011 (although if both mares produce fillies he might sell one to establish his reputation as a breeder of quality horses).

Exciting times are ahead for Al-Abbasi Arabians!