Kaia of Solstice

Kaia was bred as part of the restoration project for the Russian Warmblood, also known as the Orlov-Rostopchin. Her breeding is 40% Akhal-Teke, one of the world’s oldest breeds, originally from the deserts around Turkmenistan and now a keystone of Russian horse breeding. The Akhal-Teke has unique soft gaits, with a trot that snakes from side to side. They are legendary for their stamina, devotion to their humans, and ability to subsist on little forage and water. They provide great reliability and speed and are easy to train.  Akhal-Tekes have routinely performed well in the longest endurance rides in the world, including 2600 miles from Ashkhabad to Moscow with 300 miles of Kara Kum desert which is crossed in 3 days with only the water they can carry! 

Kaia is bred to be an improver. Her Akhal-Teke heritage is combined with 30% Arabian blood, largely Polish, Crabbet, and old American lines. This combination of two foundational desert breeds, bred for generations with a very specific focus, gives her offspring extraordinary endurance potential as well as great refinement. More importantly, in my opinion, she passes on that devotion to their humans as well as the rideability that characterize these breeds.

Finally, Kaia combines the two foundation sires for Russian Warmblood breeding in the US: Gorhonik and Iskusnik. Gorhonik is by the black Russian-born purebred Akhal-Teke stallion Gorhon, out of a Russian Warmblood mare that constitutes the first generation bred by Dr. Barbara Weber at Solstice Farms. Notably, Kaia is also linebred to her damsire, the Elite-I imported stallion Iskusnik, thus concentrating and preserving this bloodline. He appears in her pedigree through two daughters in the second and third generations representing 37.5% of her genetic heritage. Her damline goes back to the desert-born Arabian mare Basilisk ox 1875 (read about her here).

Kaia has produced two spectacular colts for us, both pictured below: Kyrian in 2023 by the Trakehner stallion Torrent, and Gavril of Solstice in 2021 by the Russian warmblood stallion Galileo of Solstice. Both are tall, black, with correct conformation, striking looks, easy temperaments, and the human-focused devotion we expect from their ancestry.