2009: One of Arizona´s great champions passed on April 16th. Madelyn Leeds´ magnificent black stallion, Lion of Judah went unto greener pastures. Lion of Judah was 21 years old, born and raised on the Cave Creek ranch of Leeds´, he soon became the central figure in the ranch´s breeding program, which began in 1964.
Lion of Judah won many championships and awards. He was a Junior Champion at 9 months of age, a United States National Top Ten Futurity colt, Arizona Futurity Champion, plus many times Halter Champion.
We brought Lion out of retirement for fun one year to go up against a beautiful chestnut U.S Top Ten stallion who had been winning all year at the Class A shows, Leeds said. It was the Fall Scottsdale Show. Unbeknownst to Madelyn, the millionaire owner of the chestnut horse had told his trainer ´If Madelyn shows up with her black horse, do not show the chestnut´. Well, the trainer felt his horse would beat the black and went against the owners´ wishes and showed the chestnut. The black won, and the trainer of the chestnut was fired.
Not only was he a champion - he was a media star. In 1997 Cadillac chose him to be the rearing black stallion in their commerical, it ran for almost a year.
´They called me and asked if he reared,´ Leeds said, ´I said NO, of course not; I called Charley Motley who taught him to rear for the commercial. I asked him if he could get Lion to rear? And, Charley said ´Piece of cake, it´s getting him not to rear afterwards that´s hard´. In another photograph, we took Lion to a mountain top in Cave Creek, it was a blustery March day, cold and windy. Charlie led him to the top which was barely 12´x12´ and the photographer, who was across a ravine on another mountain, captured the rearing black stallion with the sun setting. This beautiful photograph depicting the wild west went into a travel brochure of Southwest tourism distributed in Europe.´ Leeds owned both the sire and dam of Lion of Judah, both individuals were bought as youngsters. Al Barif as a yearling and Reelmahr at 6 months. Reelmahr, better known as Lizzie is an Aristocrat, in the Arabian division an Aristocrat is a mare that has produced 4 or more Class A Champions or better.
´I see a lot of his mother in Lion, especially his disposition, and the smoothness comes thru his sire, an Aladdinn son. One trainer told me that Lion would ´stand up and salute if you would ask him to´. Lion of Judah´s get trainers loved, they wanted to please.
Lion of Judah sired many Champions. His first son out of a Top Contender daughter, Revelationn, was U.S. National Champion Stallion, AAOTH, Canadian National Champion AAOTH, United States Futurity colt, 3rd on the cards + multiple Champion. His first daughter, the black Forget Me Never out of a Shaihk Al Badi daughter was sold to Chile and won her Class at the Chilean Nationals. Lion was also the sire of many Western and reining horses. His gorgeous black son, Lldorado won numerous Futurities, he was United States National Western Pleasure Junior Horse Top 5, plus. Another beautiful son, Little War won numerous Maturities and was Scottsdale Western Pleasure Gelding Champion in 2002 plus. Another son, the pretty Half Arabian Doc Holiday was United States Half Arabian Western Pleasure Junior Horse Top 5, plus other western wins. Most of these wins under the capable hands of Bob Locke.
Lion of Judah always improved on the mare, he was an exceptional breeding stallion. The many owners of the Lion of Judah get cherish them for their unique beauty, personality and trainability.
Lion of Judah will be missed by everyone in the Arabian world.
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