Wolkentanz (1991 – 15 October 2010), also known as Wolkentanz I, was a champion

Hanoverian The adjective Hanoverian is used to describe: * British monarchs or supporters of the House of Hanover, the dynasty which ruled the United Kingdom from 1714 to 1901 * things relating to; ** Electorate of Hanover ** Kingdom of Hanover ** Province o ...

stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

who stood at stud at the Celle State Stud in Germany. He was noted as a leading sire of

dressage Dressage ( or ; a French term, most commonly translated to mean "training") is a form of horse riding performed in exhibition and competition, as well as an art sometimes pursued solely for the sake of mastery. As an equestrian sport defined b ...

horses.

Background

Wolkentanz was bred by Gerd Lühr, and foaled in Borgholzhausen in 1991. He was

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

in colour and stood at maturity. The sire of Wolkentanz, Weltmeyer, was a major influence on the Hanoverian

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...

. He had been champion stallion at the Verden licensing in 1986 and won the 1987 performance test at Adelheidsdorf as well as being named the top three-year-old. Ultimately, Weltmeyer was named the Hanoverian Stallion of the Year in 1998 and his offspring included 70 licensed stallions. As a young horse, Wolkentanz was noted for having correct conformation, but he was considered a bit small in height for a warmblood. However, he was also recognized for having excellent gaits. He changed ownership two times and was owned by a youth rider prior to his stallion evaluation. Following the evaluation, the evaluator, Burchard Bade of the Celle State Stud, obtained the young stallion for the Celle program.

Accomplishments

In 1993, as a two-year-old, Wolkentanz was named champion at the Verden Stallion Licensing. In 1994, he was named Champion Three-Year-Old Riding Horse at the Federal Championships of German Riding Horses. In 1995, at age four, Wolkentanz completed the stallion performance test with an overall score of 133.78 and was rated the best stallion of his age group. In 1996 he was Reserve Champion (''Bundeschampion''), ridden by Ole Köhler. He became known as a performance horse at Celle as part of the Celle Dressage Quadrille, recognized for having a very good-quality trot. Wolkentanz became known as one of the best sires of dressage horses in Germany. Among his many offspring, he produced 21 colts who became licensed stallions, five ranked Premium, and 102 mares that were rated as States' Premium. In 2005, the

Deutsche Reiterliche Vereinigung The German Equestrian Federation () is an umbrella organization in Germany for equestrian sports and breeding. It is the governing body for the majority of equestrian sports and their organization in Germany, including FEI-recognized disciplines ...

(German Equestrian Federation) gave him a Breeding Value Index of 157 points, and a 97% heritability rating. His dressage breeding value was also very high, at 152. He was stabled at Aurich when he became ill and was taken to an equine hospital. There he had to be

euthanized Animal euthanasia ( euthanasia from el, εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal or allowing it to die by withholding extreme medical measures. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditi ...

on 14 October 2010, due to an ulcer that led to an intestinal perforation. The Celle State Stud issued a statement at the time of his death, saying, "Wolkentanz was of great significance as foundation sire at the State Stud." the progeny of Wolkentanz had won over €497,252 in prize money. He also had a younger full brother, named Wolkentanz II, who was exported to Canada in 2009 and died in 2015. Additional crosses of Weltmeyer and SPS Lovely also produced two full sisters, Weiße Rose and Wolkentänzerin. denotes inbreeding

References

{{reflist, 30em Hanoverian horses Individual male horses Borgholzhausen