Morning of June 17th, 2009

          The goal

Here at Applejack Ranch our goal is to raise quality Appaloosa Sport Horses and Tiger Horses. Using our stallion, Pratt’s Chip of Toby to cross with thoroughbred and thoroughbred cross mares we produce Appaloosa Sport Horses. Crossing Pratt with mares that have gaited horses in their background (Spanish Mustang, Foundation Appaloosa, Tennessee Walking Horses etc.) we produce the Tiger Horse (www.tigerhorses.org). With Pratt’s strong sturdy legs and feet, short cannon bones, great athleticism and wonderful disposition it makes him a great sire for any discipline. All Pratt’s foals have his great temperament and easy trainability, they also have a desire to be with people making them a great family horse. To date all Pratt’s foals have the atigrado (appaloosa) coat pattern making him a 100% colour producer despite the colour and breed of the mare.

Our foals grow up with other foals in a large field were they can play and develop strong bones and muscles. We believe that when foals do grow up with other foals they also become better horses socially. That has come to prove itself through out the years because our foals are independent and get along well in a herd. When it comes to weaning we remove one brood mare at a time from the field to lessen the stress on the foals, when the foals are left in the field with the other horses that they grew up with it makes weaning much easier on them. Less stress makes healthier horses!

For more information on the Tiger Horse and the Appaloosa Sport Horse visit our LINKS page

          The instigation that led to Applejack Ranch

The first horse that came into my life was in 1961, she was Welsh Arabian mare standing at 13 hands the second horse was an Appaloosa stallion named Applejack with the famous gait then known as the Indian Shuffle. The third was the offspring of the two and was an impeccable filly who lived to be 34. Since that first encounter with the Appaloosa and its fabulous gait I have been a fan of the breed ever since, owning many over the years. Bill on the other hand married into this, with no turning back.

Back in 1997 due to the lack of Foundation Appaloosas in BC I traveled to Sweet Home Oregon to purchase a couple of Appaloosas, that is where I met Alice Pratt and her goldmine of Appaloosas. Due to the lack of funds and the difference in the dollar from Canada and the US I could only purchase a mare and her colt. That colt now known as Pratt’s Chip of Toby (aka Pratt) grew up to be a very special horse. Because of my background riding English and Driving we decided to breed Pratt to our Thoroughbred mare to produce an Appaloosa Sport Horse, that was when we got Miha’ke, a spectacular filly (of course I am bias).

Then we bred Pratt to a little grade mare we have and that cross produced Pratt’s Opal, another spectacular filly. Opal fits the description of the Tiger Horse to a T. So, all said and done, that is what started the Applejack Ranch breeding program.

Written by Janine Payne

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