Ouke 313 May 7th, 1988- Jan 30th, 2011

This email came from the Friesian Connection
With great sadness we wish to inform the Friesian community of the passing of Ouke 313
May 7, 1988 - January 30, 2011
In January of 1998 the Friesian Connection became more than just a stable with mares and foals. We became the proud owners of one of the few...a KFPS breeding stallion. Over the past 13 years we've grown with the addition of other stallions, however Ouke was the one who taught us the love of stallions.
Ouke stood at stud in both the Netherlands and Germany before coming to America in 1998. He covered mares naturally. He was the type of horse that developed a relationship with a person, and Ouke's person was Bob DeBoer. Together they successfully covered many midwest mares for 12 years.
The last few months showed an aging Ouke and we knew the time for him to pass was coming nearer. However Ouke displayed an eagerness and attentiveness right up until his last day. He looked forward each day to Bob's arrival in the barn. During the early hours of Sunday morning he passed away peacefully.
Ouke will forever be remembered by our family as the beginning of being a "Stallion Station". With him we learned a lot about equine reproduction and specifically about Friesian equine reproduction, things that we've then been able to apply to what we do today. While daughters Amy and Janice assumed responsibility for the other stallions at the Friesian Connection Stallion Station, Ouke was always "dad's horse". The entire DeBoer family will miss Ouke dearly but no one as much as Bob DeBoer.
A special thank you to Cally Matherly for the picture of an older yet youthful acting Ouke.

We send our sympathy to Bob DeBoer, it is hard to lose a beloved horse.