We are busy getting ready to leave to Kentucky. Mintse will be in the opening ceremonies of the World Equestrian Games on Saturday September 25. For more information and to order tickets click here http://www.alltechfeigames.com/
The games including the opening ceremonies will be broadcast on TV on NBC Sports http://www.alltechfeigames.com/news/detail.aspx?id=1366

Fardau took this video at the stallion show in Leeuwarden. There will be a similar performance at the opening ceremonies of the World Equestrian Games this fall in Kentucky. Our stallion Mintse has been invited to be a member of the "train"!!!!

Friesian Train

Our "girls" had fun this summer...check it out:



Summer 2009

Fun video made this summer of our Dutch interns riding our horses. (Thank you Jill Miller)

Charlotte and Ottie

Jill Miller, our wonderful 15 year old stable girl, put together this slide show of photos from our keuring this year.


2009 keuring

Congratulations to Tjalle 454 the first Mintse son approved for breeding. This is his report as posted by the FPS:
Tsjalle 454 (Mintse 384 x Brandus 354) is the first son of registered father Mintse 384. It is a harmonious built horse with a beautiful front. The step is active, but wider allowed. Under the saddle the horse showed a slightly high rhythm movement. Under the proceedings he has very good use of the front and hind leg, in which he clearly shows more balance and body use. Tsjalle seems especially great talent as harness horse to have witnessed his very high score of 91.5 points.
Tsjalf fan Fjildsicht 200600248 Stap Draf galop hsw overg. Rijpaard totaal
rijproef 6.0 7.0 7.0 7.5 6.5 7.0 75.5
Mintse 384 x Brandus 345 Stam 70 Stap Draf hsw overg. Looplust Menpaard totaal
Welmoed fan Fjildsicht 199911100 Stb Ster menproef 6.0 8.5 8.5 7.5 8.0 8.0 85.5
houding Voorbeen achterbeen zweefm. Looplust Tuigpaard totaal
Tsjalle 454 tuigproef 8.5 9.0 8.5 7.5 8.0 8.5 91.5

We are offering a special on all our horses until the end of 2009. Please contact Bob at 616-896-8357 for specific details. We also have Mintse frozen semen and Tjimme frozen semen for sale. Great prices!

The FHANA 25th Anniversary Celebration will be October 8-10 at the Reno-Sparks Livestock Event Center in Reno Nevada. We are leaving this Saturday, October 3 with a trailer load of horses and 9 members of the Friesian Connection family. Mintse 394 Sport will be on display for everyone to see and in front of the crowd every day showing off the trot he is so famous for. 2 of his daughters will be there, the 5 year old mare Ottie and the 4 year old mare Renske. Both of these mares received the CROWN status this past September. We will also be bringing Charlotte (a star mare who is very talented in dressage), Quillin (a 4 year old stallion by Rintse) and Cally (a yearling 1st premie filly) to round out our group of horses. It's going to be great fun and we hope many of you can come. Please feel free to come up and introduce yourself and say hi.

For more information check out this web site: http://fhanaconvention.com/

See you in Reno!!!!

The Friesian Connection had a good keuring this year. Our two provisional crown mares both Mintse daughters, both passed the ibop tests and are now crown. We had the grand champion stud colt out of Mintse x Tjitte, grand champion filly out of Mintse x Fetse, reserve champion filly out of Fridse x Ouke.

Congratulations to Debbie Jarman with her first premie colt Damasus J. He also was the grand champion. Debbie Dancer's Mintse colt, Friso also made first premie and was reserve champion.
Shady Nook farm presented Doeke Zuiderwaard another Mintse baby, he also got first premie.
Great Results! Congratulations to all.

Please watch the youtube video created by Cally Matherly regarding the Reno Convention. It will really want to make you go to Reno. See you there!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzBGAhZMH4g

A big thank you to all who came to our Friesian Fun Day and Ice Cream Social! Several hundred people came to enjoy the horses and have some good ice cream. We still have some ice cream left in the freezer in the barn...so if you want to stop by and visit, give us a call.

We are looking forward to the Dutch Heritage Day to be celebrated on September 12, 2009 at the Hudsonville Fairgrounds in Hudsonville Michigan. This is a Dutch festival and each year we bring our horses to do an exhibition. Great Dutch food, music and of course lots of Friesian horses. The event is all day but the horses will be presenting a show at 2:00 pm.

Then it's our keuring in Hastings Michigan on September 21 and 22 (over 110 Friesians being judged) and after that it's on to Reno for the 25th FHANA Anniversary celebration.

It's coming soon...our Friesian Fun Day and Ice Cream Social. Saturday, August 22, 2009 from 2-4 pm we invite all Friesian horse lovers to come and enjoy some time with our Friesian horses and have some ice cream. There will be lots of riding demonstrations to music, plenty of horses to pet and some great ice cream to enjoy. This is open to any one so come and bring your friends. It will be a great day to bring the family. For those of you interested in purchasing a Friesian...stick around. From 4 -5:30 pm on Saturday we will be offering some significant discounts on some of our horses. The discounts will be good for one day only and you must be present and pay in full on Saturday to receive the discount.

Where do you go? To our Stallion Station farm which is Amy's barn. 2685 - 144th Ave. Dorr Michigan 49323. Questions call Amy or Janice at 616-893-2964 or email us at deboer@friesianconnection.com

Plans are underway to have a day of Friesian Fun and an Ice Cream Social here at the Friesian Connection. This event will be held on Saturday, August 22, 2009 from 2-4 pm at the FC Stallion Station. (2685 - 144th Ave. Dorr, Michigan) It will be a great day to bring the family and enjoy seeing some of the top Friesian horses in the country...plus enjoy some good ice cream! Both Mintse 384 Sport and Sipke 450 will be presented under saddle. Many fun riding demonstrations and a chance to look up close at approved stallions, model mares and provisional krown mares. Lots of babies to see too! Keep checking here for more details. Plan on coming and bringing friends and family.

Breeding season has been going strong and continues to do so. The Friesian Connection ships out semen on our stallions through mid-September. Mintse and Sipke have been very busy and they are having an excellent conception rate! Check out our stallion page for more information and breeding contracts on these 2 very popular stallions.

Plans are under way to attend the Ohio Valley Friesian Horse Classic on Saturday, August 8. It will be held at the Ohio State Fairgrounds and we hope to bring Mintse 384 Sport. It should be a very nice Friesian horse show. If you come, please introduce yourselves to us, we'd love to meet you. https://www.ovfha.com/

We are also in the planning stages for a Friesian Fun day here at the Friesian Connection. Tenative plans are for a Saturday in August so keep checking back here for more information.

The 2009 keuring for West Michigan will be September 21 and 22 at the Barry County Expo Center in Hastings Michigan. http://www.westmichiganfriesianhorseclub.com/

We will be at the FHANA 25th anniversary convention held in Reno Nevada in October and Mintse will be there too! http://fhanaconvention.com/

On Saturday April 25 we will have an open house for the stallion Sipke 450. It will be from 2-4 pm at our stallion station (Amy's barn). The address is 2685 - 144th Ave. Dorr MI 49323. If you have any questions please call 616-893-2964. We hope you can come!

We are happy to announce that Klaas and Mares VanderPloeg have chosen the FC Stallion Station to stand their newly approved stallion Sipke 450. Sipke is out of the stallion Teade and his mother is the first premie star mare Bouwina whose sire is Ulke. Sipke stands at 164 cm. He will be arriving to the FC Stallion Station in just a few weeks. His breeding contract is now posted on our stallion page. Inbreeding co-efficients can now be computed by using the tool on the www.fhana.com web site. Blood testing for blood type is currently in process. We hope to be shipping semen by March 16. If you have any questions please send your request to janice@friesianconnection.com

WE ARE ALREADY SHIPPING SEMEN FOR MINTSE 384!

From Karen Brenner - artist

VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE PAINTING

Vote online for your favorite painting in the Beautiful Horses of Michigan series. (You can actually vote twice -- once online and once in person at the Expo.) The painting with the most votes will be reproduced on cards, mugs, T-shirts and all sorts of stuff in its own Cafe Press Shop! Plus one lucky voter will win $25 worth of merchandise from my Cafe Press Shops. Online voting runs March 1-31, 2009. Please encourage your friends to vote too!

Here's a link to the online ballot - the Friesian Connection is asking you to vote for Mintse!

Beautiful Horses of Michigan

Congratulations to Klaas & Mares VanderPloeg as breeders and owners of the newest KFPS Stallion. Sylester P Sired by Teade 392 out of Bauwina W ( Dam Sire: Ulke 338) was approved at this years stallion testing At DG Bar in Handford CA. His new Stallion name is Sipke 450. We hope to have a picture of him posted here soon!

Regulatory Steps for Shipping Semen from the USA to Canada

Importation of semen from the USA to Canada is not insurmountable with
the new regulations - indeed, they are essentially the same as the "old"
regulations that were in place before the border opened to semen
movement about 10 years ago - but they may prove impossible for some who
want to ship cooled semen because of time-lines. The steps are as follows:

* The mare owner applies to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency
(CFIA) for an import permit. There is a link for a current application available for downloading at the end of this update. (Note that it is quite a large file at 552 Kb, so you will want a reasonably fast connection). It would be best to confirm with CFIA
that the form is still the current one if someone is reading this in the more distant future!
* Upon receipt of the import permit, it must be sent to the stallion
owner/manager to accompany the semen at time of shipment. If it is a multiple-entry permit (which we recommend with fresh semen in
case of the need for a rebreed, even though it is more expensive), then a copy can accompany the semen shipment, but the original
must be available for review by CFIA/CBSA (Canada Border Services Agency - formerly "Canada Customs") if requested;
* The semen is collected in the presence of a veterinarian certified
by USDA-Aphis for the purpose, and they must issue a "Zoosanitary Export Certificate for Semen"
that certifies as outlined at the foot of this list;
* That "Zoosanitary Export Certificate for Semen" is taken to a
USDA-Aphis office for endorsement by the Federal Vet;
* A Customs Invoice must be completed and accompany the shipment -
they are currently available on-line at
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/forms-formulaires/ci1.pdf
* Semen presented for importation into Canada must be in individual
receptacles or straws, each marked with the collection date,
identity of the donor and the semen collection premises;
* The semen is shipped.

As you can see, it's not difficult, but there are some specific steps
that must be completed. If they are not, then the semen will be rejected
at the time of inspection by CBSA. The requirement for endorsement by
USDA-Aphis in particular is the item that may produce impossible time
constraints for some. Obviously frozen semen will permit longer time-delays.

Note that there are NO differences as to the region where the horse is
located. Some Internet bulletin board posts that we have seen reference
the stallion being in a "CEM free zone" or a "State not currently
affected" and that it might make a difference, but it makes no
difference to the import requirements. It is semen from ALL of the USA
that must be certified in the manner described.

"Zoosanitary Export Certificate for Semen" Declaration wording:

1. The donor stallion(s) have not been on a premises where
T.equigenitalis has been isolated during the 60 days immediately
preceding collection of the semen for export to Canada or a
premises currently under quarantine or investigation for CEM.
2. The semen was processed using an extender that contains
antibiotics effective against T.equigenitalis.

Current regulations can be obtained through the Canadian Automated
Import Reference System at
http://airs-sari.inspection.gc.ca/Airs_External/Default.aspx

We at the Friesian Connection are completely prepared for all the new regulations. Canadian mare owners can contact us if they have any questions. janice@friesianconnection.com



Canadian Import Permit

Canada has put into place new regulations for all semen imported into Canada from the United States. If you are a mare owner who lives in Canada please contact us for information on the new procedures for any semen shipped into Canada from the U.S. janice@friesianconnection.com

Last summer we were contacted by Karen Brenner with a request to paint Mintse for her "Beautiful Horses of Michigan" series which will be shown on exhibit at the Michigan Horse Expo March 13-15, 2009 at the pavillion at MSU in East Lansing Michigan. Well it is done and we are very pleased with her work. Be sure to check out her site to see the painting she did of Mintse.

Beautiful Horses of Michigan

The De Boer family would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. May God bless you as we celebrate the birth of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Great news, Mintse had 5 provisonal crowns this year. To all bookings we receive by December 31, 2008, we are offering a special. All those who book and pay for Mintse for 2009 will receive a free Mintse afhgan a $75.00 value.
Book now and we will send it out to you.

The DeBoer family would like to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving. May your day be filled with great food and great fellowship with the people that you love. May God bless you and your families!

Bob and Arlene will be attending the central mare show in the Netherlands on Friday and Saturday. For those of you who are interested you can follow the show on the internet:
Author: KFPS Date: 10/15/2008
The Central Inspection and the Pavo Stallion competition on Saturday 18 October can be seen live on the Internet. The KFPS has commissioned a company by the name of Filmloop to tape both the inspection activities and Stallion competition.
This means that even if you can't come to the Central Inspection in Drachten this year, you needn't miss out on the inspection and you can still see the young stallions presented in dressage or in harness on Saturday evening.
If you want to follow the inspection and Pavo Stallion Competition on the Internet, click on the link.

Central Keuring

Thanks to Jill Miller (our young neighbor girl who helps us out tremendously!)for putting together a nice video of our keuring experience on You Tube. Jill is in 9th grade at Hopkins Public School and she took one day off school to help us at the keuring. It was the day of the adult horses and she did a great job capturing the busyness and excitment of the day for us.

Click on the link and then click on "watch in high quality" link below the video and enjoy!

2008 keuring

The keuring which was held in Hastings on September 22 and 23 had some great results for the Friesian Connection. We had an Ouke stud colt with a first premie, a Mintse filly with a first premie and she was the reserve champion of the fillies. We had a Jorrit mare who became star, a Mintse 3 year old who became first premie star, she stood at the top of the three years old and last but not least our Mintse 4 year old daughter got another first premie and became provisional crown. Mintse did great as always. We are very pleased with the results and we thank the judges, Fetse Veldstra, BJ Wittenberg and JR Blumenthal and we certainly don't want to forget our wonderful runners, Dan Sneller, Eric Smith, Martinus Hoekstra, Minze Jan Hoekstra, and Robbert van Bergeijk. Last but not least we want to thank our "star" intern Kim Elderman who did a great job in helping us get our horses prepared. We couldn't have done it without you Kim! Also a special thank you to Jill Miller who has been helping us all summer and also helped at the keuring. Thank you Jill.

Congratulations to Klaas Van der Ploeg with his two first premie Mintse babies; to LaVern Kauffman with his reserve grand champion first premie Mintse stud colt; to Ted Van der Kooi with his first premie Mintse baby and to Maribeth Aarnink to her first premie Mintse stud colt and grand champion. John Burke also had a first premie Mintse colt at the Minnesota keuring. Pam Pritchard with her first premie, grand champion colt in Wisconsin. Tabi Hopp with her first premie grand champion filly in Napa, California. If there are any other first premies out there please let us know.

The 2008 keuring for Friesian horses will occur in West Michigan September 22-24 and we hope you can come! It will be held once again at the Barry County Expo Center in Hastings Michigan. The keuring will start on Monday, September 22 at 9:00 am with the judging of foals through 2 year olds. Tuesday, September 23 the judging will begin at 8:00 am. The order of events will be - young Stallions for star and consideration for breeding Stallion - approved stallions (Mintse 384 Sport!) - Mares - Geldings. Wednesday will be the day for horses to perform IBOP testing (performance test under saddle). There will be 2 horses doing the test and the day will start at 9:30 am.

We hope you can come!

Address 1350 N. M-37 Hwy. Hastings, MI 49058
(Located on the east side of M-37, south of Middlevill and approx. 3 miles north of Hastings)

The Friesian Connection plans to bring 28 horses including 9 foals ---many of which are for sale.

A vibrant, medium bodied coffee with extraordinary flavor and a wonderfully rich aroma. This coffee originated in Ethiopia, and through the centuries, has only become better. We are proud to offer this Fair Trade Certified coffee.

The coffee that is shipped from The Friesian Connection will arrive to customers within a few days to 1 week of roasting which is significantly fresher than coffee that ships to a distribution center and sits on a pallet until it is shipped to a store where it sits on a shelf until sold and then consumed. Each batch of coffee is Micro Roasted in small batches, which allows us to control the quality of the beans in the batch. Larger roasters will have a broad spectrum of light to dark roast within each batch.

Click here to order!

Today is the 74th birthday of Bob DeBoer - founder of the Friesian Connection and patriarch of the DeBoer family. We his children feel so blessed to have him as our father, because of him we have been honored to share in his passion for the horse that comes from his place of birth, Friesland, the Netherlands.

Every year the city of Holland Michigan has a festival to celebrate its Dutch heritage. It is called Tulip Time and is a week long festival. The last day of the festival always includes the Muziuk Parade and has over 50 bands marching. This parade is over 2 hours long and has a typical attendance of 1/2 million spectators. For the last 10 years the Friesian Connection has been riding some of their horses in this parade. This year Mintse 384 sport joined the other Friesian Connection horses and absolutely wowed the crowd with his stunning looks. Mintse was ridden by Amy DeBoer Kroll. As they paraded down the 3 miles of parade route Amy could hear shouts of praise from the many spectators. In addition to the Friesian Connection horses Tjitte 333 was ridden by Jennifer Horvath and a team of Friesians driven by the Bus family came all the way from Pennsylvania. To see a video of what Tulip Time is all about click on the link.

Tulip Time

Amy DeBoer Kroll's model mare Anita produced a beautiful colt by the stallion Wander 352. He was born on April 13, 2008. His name is Caspian he appears to be a prince!

Janice and Amy (stallion managers for the Friesian Connection) are pleased to announce that we will once again be standing the Gypsy stallion Royal at our stallion station for the 2008 breeding season. Royal is owned by Michelle Hammond of Hope of Glory Farm. We encourage you to check out Royal's website for more information on this lovely Gypsy stallion. At the end of the 2008 breeding season Royal will return to his home at Hope of Glory Farm.

Hope of Glory Farm

Congratulations to our very own Arlene De Boer as she is elected to another term on the Board of Directors of FHANA. We'd also like to congratulate Scott Kelnhofer as it is his first time on the Board of Directors.

Go to the "Our Stallions" page and the breeding contracts are available in Microsoft Word format. The Friesian Connection breeding season is from March 1 to September 15. We will, however, schedule special collection times on an individual basis if you want to start earlier.

The Friesian Connection's co-owner and acting President of FHANA, Arlene De Boer, celebrates her 65th birthday today. Arlene also owns and operates Featheredhorse.com, her online equestrian store for "all things Friesian". Email her at arlene@friesianconnection.com to wish her a happy birthday!

This is a portion from the Dutch magazine "Phyrso", Foreign lands section - the article is about the FHANA World Friesian Horse Extravaganza and Competition and was written by Ids Hellinga, secretary of the KFPS.

"Stand Up For Mintse

FHANA had a nice surprise for the public. Three qualified stallions ....gave a show all 4 days. ...

...However, it was Mintse 384 who stole the show. As in the past he showed off his impressive powerful movement in the long lines as well as under saddle. The public literally stood on the benches and just as in Leeuwarden he showed off even lengthening his stride with the loud applause. He certainly is a gain for the American breeders."

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to see Mintse perform at the FHANA World Show and Extravaganza this past October. Mintse was at his best in wowing the crowd both in long lines and under saddle. Special thanks and recognition goes to Brad Cutshall (Landmark Farms) of Kalamazoo, Michigan who rode Mintse in the championship class in dressage and earned an amazing score of 80.8%. This after Brad only started working with Mintse for 2 weeks prior to the show and Mintse had no formal training since January 2007 due to quarantine and breeding season. Mintse truly deserves his sport predicate!