Ben Rabba 1964-1990

By Jewell Cantrell. August 6, 1990, was perhaps the saddest day of my life; it was the day I had to have my dear old friend of many years put to rest forever. BEN RABBA, who lived to be 26 years old, was a charismatic stallion who became a legend in his own time. He was the most magnificent, arrogant, loving and gentle horse I have ever had the privilege of knowing. He touched the lives of many people and everyone who ever came in contact with this great horse was absolutely captivated by him and loved him. BEN RABBA was responsible for many people becoming involved with Arabians.

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Rebecca Gillen and Rabbiana+/, LaGue photo.

Ben Rabba’s Legacy, and Me

By Susan Gillen, DVM. Although Rabbiana was my first and dearest horse, I went on to ride and show many more of Jewell’s Ben Rabba foals. Each one captured my heart for their willingness to please and beautiful attitudes. Inheriting Ben’s quality of movement, they all were successful performance horses, although they were completely amateur trained. Among my favorites were Viva La Ribba (Golden State Futurity Reserve Champion Western Pleasure Junior Horse), Bwana Sahib (Region III Top Five Western Pleasure Junior Horse and Top Ten Bonanza Horse), La Contezza (National Top Ten Western Pleasure AAOTR), Calipso Mon (Multi Champion Western Pleasure and Hunter Pleasure and now owned by my sister JoAnn Harlan), and Shezzaflame (Top Ten Western Pleasure ATR Futurity). I am convinced that amateurs can be successful in the show ring if they have horses that are not just beautiful movers, but horses with incredible minds.

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Ben Rabba, photo provided by Jewell Cantrell.

Cantrell Arabs and the ‘Ben Rabba Collection’

By Pamela Biery. Many years ago, between appointments and errands, I went by Cantrell Arabians hoping to see the latest foal crop. Standing by the fence with Jewell Cantrell chatting about this and that, I suddenly felt a chill. We were surveying some fifteen to twenty Ben Rabba daughters, granddaughters and old-line Crabbet mares. I looked again at the pasture dotted with exquisite mares and back to Jewell, shaking my head. I was astounded not only by the beauty of the scene, but by the potential impact of the ‘Ben Rabba Collection’ on Crabbet breeding.

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