Articles

An Interview with Señor Fernando Graña

By Henry Curry, Jr., MD

Printed in the Peruvian Horse Review, Volume 3, Number 4, Winter 1976

H. Curry: It seems to be a consensus of breeders in this country that you are one of the most knowledgeable and perhaps the premier contemporary expert on the Peruvian Paso Horse. For the benefit of our readers, would you be kind enough to trace the highlights of your involvement as a breeder, exhibitor and judge of this horse?

Sr. Graña: It starts way back. In the first place, I belong to a family of old time ranchers in Peru and we have owned and worked for five generations in the same hacienda. It was a rather large place so we needed horses to inspect the ranch each day and I was virtually raised on horseback. I couldn't say when I started riding but it was as soon as someone sat me on a horse. I just happed to become very attached. We had a man in charge of the horses who was a trainer, originally for my father. He was really a wonderful man on horseback and he taught me a lot of the training and of the points about the Peruvian Paso horse. I think many of the things I have learned have been through him. I have always been fond of horses in every way, almost all breeds. I have been a polo player many years of my life and even in spite of my weight I've been in jumping contests and other events, so I'm familiar not only with the Peruvian breed, but with other breeds as well. I think that has allowed me to have a broader look at this breed, to see some of the good points of other horses that could be applied from the riding or from the conformation point of view, to our Peruvian horse.

Then in Lima, when the shows started thirty-something years ago, I always attended them. A brother of mine, my older brother, used to be the judge and when he gave it up I was called to judge, and ever since, for about twenty years, I have judged all the shows except for the ones where I have been away. You know the rest I think.

H. Curry: You have bred some very fine horses; would you mention some of the most outstanding ones?

Sr. Graña: Well, yes, we've had some good horses over the years like everyone else. But because my brother and I have been judges since the shows began, we have not felt free to show our own horses. So only occasionally I have taken one or two that I thought were very good and was excused for judging that entry. So we've had some champions. For instance, to speak of the last few ones, I've had Maharaja, who was a Champion about ten years ago, and Minerva, who was Champion of Champions three years in succession. And I also have Gitana, a daughter of Caramelo, who was Champion of Champions three years. Now I have Cascabel. (Editor's note: Cascabel was Champion in 1971 and Champion of Champions in 1975 and 1976.) The other mares I have, without even being shown have been declared in the reserve of the breed, the ones that are not allowed to be sold to any other country; for they are considered valuable stock for the Peruvian Paso Horse. I've had some other prizes, like Barrabas, the gelding I see here in Santa Rosa each time I come. He was trained by me and also won first prize when he was one and a half years old. I gelded him afterwards because he was such a good horse to ride and I wanted one to do my work on. We do ride a lot, and in those days, for inspection, we rode for a number of hours each day. That is why I gelded that horse. I wanted a very good horse for that purpose.

H. Curry: How many horses did you have when the ranch was in full operation?

Sr. Graña: Well, we had to saddle fifteen horses every day for the supervisors on the ranch and every person needs at least three horses; so all in all with the broodmares and young ones we had at least one hundred thirty to one hundred forty horses on the place. Well now, everything has changed so much, we don't have the land any more so I only have a few, about eighteen right now which are, of course, the selected ones.

H. Curry: Reportedly the Peruvian Paso is derived from a combination of Andalusian and Barb with some mixture of Friesian and Spanish Jennet. Is this generally thought to be factual, by knowledgeable breeders in Peru?

Sr. Graña: Well as to the origin of the Peruvian breed, everyone seems to admit there is a combination of bloodlines; there is the Andalusian, Barb and the Friesian, those three. But, I also consider the Arabian horse. If we think that horses did not exist in South America before the Spanish came, all the horses came in those days from the horses the Spaniards brought. Naturally you can imagine that the group of people that came here with Pizarro were not precisely horsemen or were not precisely the type of personnel who would be very choosy about horses. So they just brought animals they thought would be useful without regard to the background from the racial point of view. To give you an idea of that, let me relate a story which history holds to be true. The first time this bunch of people went to a southern port, Palos, in Spain, they had the money to buy the horses, but they went down and had some fun and spent all the money. This is a fact and is written in several history books dealing with the conquerors of Peru. So they collected more money and eventually bought some horses that were available. Now it stands to reason that they bought horses with some Barb influence, especially if you consider that for 800 years Spain had been under the rule of the Moors. But if you consider that there were horses from Northern Europe coming into the peninsula you can also accept the likelihood that either the Moors or the Spanish would have some horses from Arabia or with some Arabian blood. That's the only way I can explain the heads and necks that you do find in some of the Peruvian horses. They are very similar to the Arabian. Well I know that my very good friend, Mr. Ascasubi, who is a great authority on this thing, makes a point that the Arabian has nothing to do with the Peruvian Paso horse. This is one of the points upon which I disagree with him. This doesn't mean that I know who is right. But in any event, I cannot explain the heads of many of our horses without the influence of Arabian blood. Now you can still see traces of all these breeds in the Peruvian Paso Horse; for instance, some of them, very few, have a round powerful hind quarters. Even so I've seen some very good mares in Peru that have a slight depression in the middles of the hind quarters and which comes very much from the Friesian, the big strong horses that were used in Europe on the battlefields. Then you can also see the termino probably began with the Spanish horse. Even now the Andalusians have a little bit of termino; not as much as the Peruvian, but they have it. Then as with everything else you can sort of breed in those things and make them more and more just with proper selection. So I suppose that the Peruvians of two or three hundred years ago bred for it not only because it adds something to the smoothness of the ride but also because it's flashy and they liked it. It's something that attracts people's attention. They were breeding horses with termino but the beginning of it probably came from the Andalusian horse. Now the Barb is easily traceable because it resembles very much the conformation of the Peruvian horse and some of the noses we call "sheep" noses come from the Barb. Also they have this capacity for standing hard work and many hours of walking and being rather rustic. It seems all those conditions are very much from the Barb horse.

H. Curry: Do you know when the Peruvian Paso was first thought to be a genetic entity, i.e. when horses possessing termino and a four beat lateral gait were first able to consistently transmit these traits to their offspring?

Sr. Graña: That is something that I can't give you very good information on; because there have been no books, no records, no history of this actually. But as I stop to think of it, I know for instance that my great-grandfather bred these horses. My grandfather and my father used to have a special taste for this breed and we had a sort of special type of horse. And if it was a genetic entity, let's say one hundred and fifty years ago, it stands to reason that it must have been accomplished at least about three hundred years ago. Furthermore, I can recall little details here and there, that help understand how this was. I remember seeing a picture in a house of a friend of mine that portrays one of the viceroys coming into Lima with his group of people and their horses. You look at the horses and you see them gaiting. So if these horses were gaiting already in those days, this is almost two hundred fifty years ago, then you must realize that the work had been started way back and these horses existed as a genetic entity I would say about three hundred years ago. That is just my guess because I can't prove it, but I think it is about right.

H. Curry: In the introductory comments of your seminar you mentioned that "paso" is a word for which there is no precise equivalent in the English language. "Brio" is apparently another such term. You helped us define "brio" for the Breed Standard of the PPHRNA several years ago. The definition has been well accepted but some controversy remains about its significance. Would you elaborate on the importance of brio?

Sr. Graña: Now again about brio; this thing has been discussed in the seminar we had two days ago. (Editor's note: The seminar mentioned was held by the PPHRNA in conjunction with the 1976 National Show.) But it is such an important thing I think we should go on about it until everything is clear. I remember that day (in the seminar) I asked a few of the people present, North Americans, how they would define brio. I was interested in their definition because it is a word that has no direct translation into English. I was very happily surprised to see that all the answers were correct. There was no misinterpretation of it, though you would have to put two or three answers together to get the complete significance of what brio is. Some horses are cold blooded, with a laziness to work, who have a tendency to lower their heads and perform in a lazy, doggy manner. These horses have to be reminded constantly, with the spurs, with the reins or your voice, to keep on working. And some of them, if you are going for a long, long ride, let's say through a desert or something like that, will come to a moment when they practically, if not collapse, will be walking so slowly that it is very uncomfortable. And you will start thinking, will I get there or will I not. Brio is just the opposite of all that. A horse with brio may drop dead but will not go slower if you are asking him to keep his speed. He will do what you want him to do. If he has a leg that is hurting, he will forget about it because he will overcome those things just by his courage, by his willingness to work, by his willingness to obey. Then they have an alertness in their look, they have a way of moving that is much more graceful. They have all those things that not only makes a horse attractive, but makes a horse useful. And brio is a great corrector of many things. For instance -- horses of very good breeding, especially from the gait point of view, have a tendency to get into the amble when you first saddle them. If a horse does not have brio, you have a terrible time trying to get him out of the pace. But if a horse has brio, all you have to do is collect him a little bit, let him feel the spurs or the whip and he will break this and go into a very good gait and probably stay that way for the rest of his life. Horses with brio understand what you want they they don't like to be punished. Some horses even will obey so much to the point that you don't need the whip or the spurs. You just talk to them in a way that they know they are being urged to do something. You want them to jump a ditch or something, and they will go on and do it. So brio is something that I find very useful, not only for the looks, the appearance, and the arrogance, but also for the riding and the capacity of work the horse has. Putting all this together it is one of the essential things a horse should have. Another fortunate thing is that it doesn't come by chance. It is definitely bred in. So if you have a stallion with brio and a mare with brio and they come from a family that has it, you are sure to have brio in the offspring. And I think it is something that you should never be careless about.

H. Curry: I was talking with Pepe Risso several days ago and he said the horses with brio are much easier to train. I think some people in this country feel that brio is difficult to handle. It is obvious from your comments, that you agree with Pepe Risso's evaluation, that brio makes a horse easier to handle in many respects. He feels that horses with true brio are not as dangerous to handle. He doesn't feel they are likely to kick and resist training and are therefore safer than horses without brio.

Sr. Graña: I agree with all that entirely. And it should be understood that brio should not be confused under any circumstance with plain nervousness or what is called hysterical behavior, that a horse gets into a panic from the rider or something. On the contrary, a horse with brio doesn't shy so easily from something peculiar he finds in the road like a bundle of something that has been abandoned, or a stone in a funny shape or a bird or a dog or something approaching. They are calmer in that way, because brio is in part courage, and courage is what makes an animal or a person calm in moments of danger. So I don't think brio interferes at all with the handling. On the contrary I think it helps. As far as horses with brio being easier to train, that is absolutely beyond question. It is a great ease, something that helps very much in the training of a horse because he will respond to your demands almost immediately.

H. Curry: In a previous discussion you had mentioned several "fallacies" regarding the Peruvian Paso Horse that you would like to dispel.

Sr. Graña: Well there are several fallacies spread around the Peruvian Horse. Nothing too serious. But for instance it is said the Peruvian Horse should never run or can't run, can't gallop or canter. That's not true, not only they can run, but it should be part of the training. I think I already said that in the seminar. When a horse is in the late stage of the four reins before going into the bit alone with two reins, he is supposed, not only supposed, demanded, to run, flat out, just as if you were playing polo on the horse. Then you have to check him and turn around and be able to swing his hind quarters, because as you know the equitation of the Peruvian Horse is different from that point of view. The horse has to be stopped and rolled back, then put in his normal gait without any nervousness at all. So running is something you can do, you should do. Also when a horse is not loose enough in the shoulders, when he is tight, then a good procedure is to have him run on several occasions for three hundred to five hundred feet and then stop him and do it for several days in succession. You will find that the horse will probably loosen up in the shoulders. Some trainers do it as part of the training. The only thing that should not be done, is to run the horse every time you ride him. If you can run a horse and stop him and then get him into his normal gait, that will very seldom harm the horse - almost never I would say.

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