The Hanoverian 08|2012 - the American Hanoverian Society!

In memoriam
20 The Hanoverian 08|2012
News Sport
Fritz Floto passed away
Fritz Floto passed away on his farm in Canada
at the age of 88. “The term Hanoverian
and the name Fritz Floto are synonyms in
North America,” That is how the Canadian
magazine Horse Sport so appropriately describes
the importance of this horseman from
the old school. Fritz Floto was the pioneer for
the Hanoverian breed in Canada and had a
great influence on the development of the
Hanoverian horse in the United States, too.
He received the golden Honorary Pin of the
Hanoverian Verband in 1980 for his services.
The Department of Agriculture in Hanover
awarded him the Golden Prize Medal for his
services in building up and spreading the Hanoverian
breed in North America. The German
Equestrian Association awarded him the
Gustav-Rau-Plaque in 1990. Fritz Floto was
born in 1924 on Gaedebehn Farm in the district
Malchin that is in Mecklenburg. He experienced
the terrors of WWII as a member of
a cavalry regiment and in the artillery in Russia.
He emigrated to Canada in 1952. He
settled down with his wife Erica in the vicinity
of Guelph, Ontario, where they started a
dairy farm. Fritz and Erica had two sons. He
sold his cattle in 1968 and accepted a position
with the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph.
In 1961 he was able to purchase two
Hanoverian mares called Windrose by Weiler
and Fernanda by Fernjäger as well as the sire
Weimar by Firnis. They had all just recently
been imported to Calgary at that time. He
laid the foundation for the Hanoverian Breed
in Canada with these acquisitions. He imported
several stallions in the following years in
close cooperation with the Hanoverian Verband
and the State Stud Celle. For instance
Denar by Duft, Waidmann by Waidmannsdank
xx, Ansturm by Adlerfarn II, Equuleus by
Eindruck II, Sandsturm by Sendbote, Lepanto
by Leibwächter and, at last, Welfenschatz by
Walhall. He has distributed Hanoverian horses
all over North America. Fritz Floto served
the Hanoverian Verband as branding representative
in Eastern Canada for decades. He
was an honorary member of the American
Dr. Ludwig Christmann presents the document
with the honorary membership to Fritz Floto.
Hanoverian Society and a member of the
mare and stallion committee of the AHS. His
opinion was always highly valued with respect
to mares and stallions. Fritz Floto openly
voiced his opinion in accordance with his
Mecklenburg nature. You always knew where
you stood with him and you could count on
his word 100 percent. He was helpful, sincere
and honest which many new Hanoverian
breeders in North America quickly realized,
respected and valued. The Hanoverian Verband
in Germany and the Hanoverian breeders
all over North America mourn the death
of a great horseman who always had an
open ear for every breeder’s concerns. n
Breed Orientation Course
From all over the world
Thirteen Hanoverian breeders from Finland,
France, Great Britain, Spain and the United
States visited the breeding area the end of
June to participate in the so-called breed orientation
course. Participants visited several
mare shows and stallion stations, the State
Stud Celle and Adelheidsdorf. Visits to Hanoverian
breeders as well as lectures on the
breeding program and stallion lines complemented
the one-week program. “The lectures
on horse evaluation and - not to forget - all
the visits with breeders, stallion stations and
mare shows meant we saw and learned something
new everywhere. The grand hospitality
and the efforts from all sides to make us
feel comfortable and welcome! It was phenomenal!
We want to extent a warm thank
you to all,” Kerstin Bomke from Great Britain
summarizes the group’s consensus. n