Our Breeding Program
Our breeding
program is based upon two equally important goals. First,
we selectively breed to preserve the "old-line" Appaloosas.
We consider ourselves breeders of "foundation" Appaloosas,
but use the term "old-line" rather than "foundation"
for our horses because many of the early horses registered
as "foundation "stock through the Appaloosa Horse Club
were crossbreds. Thus, to us the term "old-line" is
more exclusive, and better reflects the purebred bloodstock
we have attempted to pull into our breeding program.
Second,
we produce elegant Appaloosa athletes with soundness,
color, movement, and sanity, capable of competing in
rigorous athletic events. We are aware that the type
of conformation consistently associated with the "old-line"
horses , discussed below, makes them naturally suited
for the Sporthorse disciplines of the Olympics -Dressage,
Jumping and Three-day Eventing. Through our program
we have focused on breeding these traits true, rather
than attempting to breed horses for Western or stock
events.
"Old-line"
Breeding
We have
faith in the "old-line" Appaloosa's versatility, soundness
and sanity. The leopard-spotted horse has a long
and incredible history, tracing back to the Siberian
Altai mountains in Central Asia, where they were revered
and considered sacred.
Because
the ApHC allows crossbreeding to other breeds (Quarter
Horses, Arabians, and Thoroughbreds)-and allows
these cross-bred horses to be registered as "Appaloosas"-
many registered "Appaloosa" horses may be 63/64 something
else. The gene responsible for the coloring of the Appaloosa
is dominant and some of these horses with multiple crossbreedings
to other breeds may indeed possess the characteristic
"color" and pattern of the Appaloosa horse. But with
each successive crossbreeding comes a dilution including
color production. Equally as important is the dilution
of all genetic material, weaken and/or eliminating other
traits the "old" lines were known to possess -extreme
hardiness, surefootedness, rock-hard feet, substantial
bone, long-muscled rather than "bull-dog" conformation,
intelligence, and "can-do" attitude. We believe that
a true "Appaloosa" should possess all of these traits,
and that crossbreeding is not of benefit to that goal.
We believe that a 63/64 Quarter Horse with spots is
not a true Appaloosa, but is just that: a 63/64 Quarter
Horse with spots. As stated by noted Appaloosa breeder,
Ralph Cannon, "I suspect you cannot put a Quarter Horse
head on an Appaloosa, lower his withers, widen his chest,
put bulging muscles on hips and forearms, diminish the
substance of his cannons and hooves, without changing
his athletic ability and his temperament." (Go to Appaloosa Myths
and Facts
for more on this topic.)
Sporthorse
Ability
We believe
in the competitiveness of Appaloosas against other breeds
in open competition. One of the most -if not the most-grueling
of equine competitions, Three-Day Eventing (also called
"Combined Training") was developed to test the mettle
of cavalry mounts for war. Day one consists of Dressage,
designed to test the horse's "listening" ability and
movement. Day two is the strenuous cross-country phase,
with the horses timed galloping over immobile jumps,
ditches, in and out of fences and through water. Many
of the jumps are made from rocks or logs, and others
are intentionally designed to be potentially frightening
for the horse. This phase tests the horse's stamina,
boldness and athletic ability. The final day wraps up
the competition with stadium jumping, testing both precision
and endurance -a horse too tired from the cross-country
phase will not be in condition to jump cleanly in the
stadium round.
Particular
qualities are called for in a horse to enable it to
compete in such a difficult athletic endeavor: Correct,
balanced conformation with appropriate shoulder and
hip angles; uphill or level topline; substantial bone
with big, solid joints -all traits possessed by the
"old-line" leopard Appaloosa horses. Couple this with
the unique, intelligent dispositions of the "old-line"
horses, their endless heart and great work ethics, and
the makings are there for sporthorses of excellent caliber.
We have
worked toward this goal in our breeding program through
two routes: selecting mares who have proven themselves
in the Sporthorse disciplines, or are by proven Sporthorse
stallions; and selecting horses with the conformation,
movement and size to compliment and add to the qualities
of the horses we breed (To see what we mean, go to:
Our Stallions, Our Mares, and Reference Horses.)
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