Quinta Oliveira Stud Farm

The farm is managed by Nuno Alexandre Andrade de Oliveira, who, despite his professional education in civil engineering and management, found his passion for horses, their training, dressage, and competition to be more compelling. From an early age, he assisted his father, José Campos de Oliveira, with running the family's century-old agricultural estate.

As a partner in the family farm business established in 1995, Nuno began devising a way to integrate and adapt the family's business to breeding Lusitano horses, which possess unique functional and temperamental qualities suited to a wide range of customers.

The family farm was initially founded during the golden years of dairy production in the Entre Douro e Minho region. Later, due to economic difficulties affecting the dairy sector, the farm transitioned to beef production. Finally, in 2001, after Nuno Oliveira completed his studies and discovered his true calling as a farmer and horse breeder, the farm shifted to breeding Lusitano horses.

Nuno Oliveira began transforming the family farm into a business dedicated to Lusitano horses. The renovation of the farm from cattle to breeding facilities became the subject of a business project for the Modernization and Training of Agricultural Enterprises under the European PRODER program, which was personally presented by Nuno Oliveira at the European Parliament in 2012 during the first European Congress of Young Farmers.

Initially, the stud was designed to produce horses for its own use. Over time, it evolved into a serious and professional project after Nuno Oliveira undertook Monitor Assistant courses, followed by a Monitor course administered by the Portuguese National Riding School. These courses provided him with professional rider training, which defined the genetic selection criteria for the stud farm, always oriented towards functionality and the riding capacity of its horses.

After achieving this level of education, Nuno directed his newfound knowledge towards the practical implementation of his skills in Lusitano breeding. He understood that his stud farm did not have the vast pastures of Ribatejo and Alentejo, where horses grow up in nature until they are 3 years old. However, he did not want to confine his breeding to small boxes with limited movement and no socialization with other horses.

The Mares That Started It All

After meeting all the requirements for breeding pure Lusitanos, the first five mares were acquired in 2001. They were:

• Ela (Manuel Vidal line, daughter of Ibérico II, Ortigão Costa line)
• Opalina (Cunha and Carmo line, daughter of Islero, from the same line)
• Nokia (Vaz Monteiro line, daughter of Guadalquivir, Manuel Tavares Veiga line)
• Rebeca (Manuel Castro Martins line, daughter of Fidalgo, Coimbra Barbosa line)
• Tricana (Manuel Maia Correia brand, daughter of Mondego, Manuel Tavares Veiga line)

In 2010, four additional Alter Real mares were acquired from Coudelaria de Alter:

• Anjelical
• Arjentina
• Anjelita (all daughters of Jacaré II)
• Aomega (daughter of Ohiede)

Currently, the stud farm has twenty-five breeding mares, all descendants of these two groups of mares.

The stallions used, in chronological order, were:

• Ripado (Ortigão Costa line)
• Latino (Vasco Freire brand)
• Sino (Alter Real line)
• Martini (Manuel Jorge de Oliveira line)
• Ladino (Ortigão Costa line)
• Tojo (Maria Vidal line)
• Mississipe (Maria Isabel Pereira line)
• Joco (Alter Real line)
• Don Juan de Cabeção (António Lopes Aleixo line)
• Niassa (Maria Isabel Pereira brand)

Recently Acquired and Used Stallions:

• Helxir (Alter Real line, acquired in 2014)
• Que-Ibago (Coudelaria Nacional line, acquired in 2019)
• Enviado (Alter Real line, acquired in 2020)

Functionality and Care Go Hand in Hand

For the reasons mentioned above, it was decided to organize horse breeding in a semi-free regime, where the animals spend the entire day in freedom in previously divided and managed meadows, sown with varieties of grasses and legumes, in strictly calculated proportions to constitute an important basic component of their diet.

Hay for feeding is also produced on the farm to avoid purchases from abroad and, more importantly, to avoid potential health risks.

On the farm, feed is managed personally depending on the horses' age, their position in the breeding chain, or their training and sports performance.

Selection and genetic improvement are carried out using specific criteria for morphology, functionality, and genealogy, with both private and external stallions carefully selected with scientific evidence, combined with the extensive knowledge of the breeders.

For the concrete implementation of Coudelaria Quinta Oliveira's strategy, this meant a significant investment in riding infrastructure, such as indoor and outdoor arenas, boxes, and various equipment for monitoring and observing estrus and pregnancy periods. These structures are designed to develop and train the stud farm’s horses and allow the development and preparation of foals until they are ready to move on to their new owner.

The psychological and functional training of each of the stud farm's animals, supported by a high degree of professionalism, adds significant value to the Lusitanos produced here. They are all developed with personalized follow-up, both in terms of mental and morphological and functional aspects. This helps to maximize the natural potential of each horse.

Coudelaria Quinta Oliveira also exports horses, with its main markets being Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, the USA, Canada, Puerto Rico, South Africa, and Jordan.

When sold, all horses undergo a veterinary examination (if desired by the buyer), including blood counts, biochemical analysis, X-rays, and a complete general clinical analysis.