Hollybrooke Stud - News 2025

Show and Performance New Forest Ponies

John and Wendy Adams
Forest Farm, Crow Hill,
Ringwood, Hants BH24 3DE. Telephone: 01425 476020
Mobile: 07754587853

info@hollybrookestud.co.uk

6th June

Our foals Hollybrooke Patience (named because we waited so long for her to arrive!) and Hollybrooke Dignity are growing well, now eight and six weeks old. Patience (on the left} is huge and already showing the amazing Hollybrooke temperament. She is probably one of the biggest, boldest foals we have ever bred. She absolutely adores people. Another one who is going to be liver chestnut. Dignity is very smart and promises to follow in the footsteps of his older brothers.

This amazing video was sent to us from Belgium showing the stallion Hollybrooke Americano having fun in the sea. He also competed and was placed in, the beach show jumping competition. What fun. such a pity we don't do things like that in England.

28th May

I have to start this piece a with a wonderful photo that I have been sent this week.
The pony is the three year old gelding, Hollybrooke Galaxy (Skywalker/ Hollybrooke Gingernut). He is enjoying some love and attention from the grandchildren of the lady who took the photo. They have two Hollybrooke ponies and she says

'What wonderful ponies they are with amazing temperaments'

I can't tell you how proud that makes us!

We took two ponies, the three year old Hollybrooke Rosabaya (left) and and the four year old Hollybrooke Duchess (right) to one of our local shows. It was great to see both classes so well supported with over 14 ponies in each class. The judge considered both our ponies too fat. I explained it was difficult to know how to starve them more as they wintered out with no feeding or rugs just what they could find for them selves in the field. Forest ponies are very good doers! They were both placed third in their respective classes so we were very pleased

10th May

It was a great day for Hollybrooke ponies at the NFPEC Elite Show. Our two year old colt Hollybrooke Distinction (photo below left) followed up his win at the colt inspections by winning the two and three year old colt class. We were thrilled not only with his win but also how he coped with the whole new experience. Interestingly it is the third time we have won that class. We won it with Distinction's full brother Duke back in 2013 and Jupiter in 2022.

Two other Hollybrooke ponies were successful. Hollybrooke Calvados won the NPS Intermediate WHP and the championship (photo above left). Hollybrooke Halo (Distinctions full sister) won the NPS M&M Junior WHP 148CM.

24th April

The majority of today's news relates to our wonderful gold graded mare Hollybrooke Debbie and our

very special stallion Hollybrooke Tinker.
We are really pleased that it has been announced by the Breed Society that their two year old son Hollybrooke Distinction has won the award for the highest scoring colt at the spring inspection. He is the third full brother to get a stallion licence and the second to achieve the highest score.
The stud has an amazing record in both the colt and mare grading's. The last three colts we have entered have all achieved the best colt award and the last three mares presented have taken the same award in the mare section.
The photo of Distinction on the right was taken by Wendy Mason during the loose schooling section of the inspection.

It demonstrates how well he carries himself and what a wonderful mover he is.The progeny of our stallions did exceptionally well at the inspections. Hollybrooke Tinker is the sire of our winning colt. He was also the sire of one of the eight yearling colts chosen for the Futurity Yearling colt scheme and the grandfather of the winning yearling colt. Skywalker was the sire of another of the chosen yearlings.
On Easter Monday Debbie presented us with her eleventh and final foal, a colt (she has only ever had three fillies) who is a full brother to Distinction and Duke. We are thrilled with this foal. We hope this one will be just as successful as his brothers.
Debbie looks amazing but at twenty three we will not cover her again. Once this foal is weaned she will live out the rest of her days in retirement here at Hollybrooke. The photo was taken when the foal was just 3 days old.
Another pony bred here, Hollybrooke Jupiter has made a great start to the season by being placed 2nd in a large and very strong open, mixed breeds Royal international Qualifier.

12th April

We at last have a foal! Hollybrooke Grace has a chestnut filly following a 375 day gestation. Definitely a record for the Hollybrooke Stud. There can be no doubt about the date she was covered as she had a scan on the 26th April last year confirming a 25 day pregnancy. The foal is absolutely huge and very mature and hairy no doubt due to the very long pregnancy.

I make no apology for sharing this post from
the Hollybrooke Face book page about Hollybrooke Americano (Green Cottage Ambassador/ Hollybrooke Melitta)
Splashing into the season with the wonderful Hollybrooke Americano.He is a big ambassador for the New Forest Pony breed in Belgium. With his perfect character, ride ability and talent he is a big asset to the pony breeding in Belgium.
It makes us so proud that a pony we bred is doing such a great job to promote the Breed in Europe.

8th April

Our first outing of the year was when we took our two year old colt Hollybrooke

Distinction to the Breed Society colt passing. He is a full brother to the very successful Hollybrooke Duke. He was a really lovely foal but grew like a weed last year and looked more like a TB than a Forest pony. However, he has matured over the winter and is starting to achieve his initial promise.
We had taught him to load quietly but he had never traveled, he had wintered out in the field with no rug and spent his first night in a stable in over a year, the night before the inspection, so we were more than thrilled that he looked great and behaved beautifully. He passed his judges inspection and vetting. We had lots of complimentary comments about him. We now wait for the results of DNA and pssm tests before he is issued with a stallion licence.

Another pony to make a super start to his competitive year was Hollybrooke Calvados. He jumped an amazing double clear at the BRC Show Jumping Winter Finals to assist the NFPEC 70 team to 10th place and he achieved individual 36th (out of 102) What a super pony he is.
We are still waiting for our first foal. Hollybrooke mares usually have really long gestations of about 355 to 360 days (the book says 340 days is normal) Hollybrooke Grace has taken it to the extreme this time and is now well over 370 days and still no foal.

14th February

We are struggling through another very wet and miserable winter up to our eyes in mud and water like all other breeders and farmers. However, the ponies all look great and the youngsters growing well.
We ended 2024 0n a super note with John and his part bred New Forest Woottonheath Obi winning his race at the New Forest Boxing Day Point to Point. As you can see from the photos it was very muddy and wet!

Two ponies we bred also competed in the races Hollybrooke Brown Sugar on the left and Hollybrooke Huckleberry on the right.

While our ponies have been having a quiet time others have been out and about.

Hollybrooke Americano (Greencottage Ambassador/ Hollybrooke Melitta) a licensed stallion in Belgium, has been producing some lovely clear rounds in show jumping.
Sadly Melitta's last years foal a smart colt by Skywalker will not be able to be shown this year as his field companion has chewed his tail!
We do have a two year old colt Hollybrooke Distinction, a full brother to the very successful Hollybrooke Duke who we plan to take to the colt grading in the spring.
Two other ponies one we bred Hollybrooke Calvados (left) and the other Brock Brendon (right) by Hollybrooke Tinker have also been out doing some early season jumping.

We have two mares in foal, one to each of our stallions who are both due in March. However knowing our mares i expect it will be April before they arrive.

Maintained by Wendy Adams