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Introduction  |  Conclusion  |  First Supreme Champion - Kid Meyers

What the Real American Quarter Horse Means to Me

from "The Real American Quarter Horse: Versatile Athletes Who Proved Supreme" ~ by Paul Mattson

Conclusion

A multitude of ideas and emotions flood my brain when I think about a conclusion to this book. It reminds me of the Oklahoman, Will Rogers, and the super-wide loop of his trick rope. I would like to borrow that loop and corral all of these ideas and emotions into this loop, squeeze it tighter and tighter, and what is left is the conclusion.

Incidentally, Will Rogers really enjoyed his polo ponies, and from what I understand they were range-bred horses for the most part, but they had the attributes of the modern Quarter Horse. They were quick and agile and had good minds. Most likely they could have been described as Quarter Horses.

Now my thoughts are wandering back hundreds of years ago to the colonial quarter horses and the descriptions that were made of them; they invariably mentioned the shorter, compact form and symmetrical, muscular hind quarters which were credited for their early speed. They were said to be exceptionally beautiful, agile, balanced horses, and they commonly displayed short fox-like ears and large jaws. This same description was quite universal regarding most of horses that later became foundation stock for the AQHA. They descended from horses such as Janus, Sir Archy, Printer, Steel Dust, Shiloh, Old Billy, Cold Deck, Rondo, Sykes Rondo, Dan Tucker, Old Fred, Peter McCue, Traveler, Little Joe, Possum, Joe Bailey, Midnight, Zantanon, Joe Hancock, Oklahoma Star, Old Sorrel, Chicaro, Joe Reed, Joe Moore, Flying Bob, My Texas Dandy -- the list goes on and on.

Then I hear a voice which says, "Where are those old-time Quarter Horses that had no Thoroughbred blood?" My conclusion is, there never was any such animal! Either that is true, or the above-named foundation horses had no Thoroughbred blood. The fact is, these foundation horses were loaded with Thoroughbred blood and some were registered Thoroughbreds. Those that contributed heavily to the Quarter Horse breed include Top Deck, Rocket Bar, Depth Charge, Chicaro, Custus Rastus, Spotted Bull, Joe Blair, and well, I almost forgot, Three Bars, who showed up in more of these pedigrees than any other horse. Three Bars was a registered Thoroughbred.

I think of the old time founders of the breed who wanted to "preserve" the Quarter Horse who had this distinct body type, speed, ability, intelligence and good disposition. I really believe that this "body type" was the driving force behind these old timers that provided the energy to start a breed registry. Right here I give the founders AAAT for promoting the American Quarter Horse. Their success is undeniable. With 3,000,000 registrations, it is unequaled anywhere.

In the early days of the registry, there were differences of opinion as to whether the "bull dog" or the "race type" was "right", and every breeder did his best to raise and promote what he liked best. After fifty years we see the results, which is that horsemen still don't always agree, and we have some variation of type, especially where selection for specialization has occurred. However, for the most part, it is amazing how uniform the type has remained for the all-around Quarter Horse who still retains the original characteristics of strength, speed, agility, intelligence and good disposition __ which is what endeared us to him in the first place!

Even more exciting is to see the strength of certain bloodlines contributing to, almost dominating, this versatile type of horse. It seems that in spite of man's attempt to "improve" the breed, that the original Quarter Horse is still alive and well. The proof is seen between the covers of this book. Whether he was bred on purpose or he came about by chance and rose to the top like cream, it is evidence that the breed will survive intact as long as breeders select for the versatile athlete.

Breeding and pedigree research can become a very complex study, and not surprisingly, there are a great many people who are very much into it, simply because so much can be learned and gained from it. It's also fascinating and fun! The extensive pedigree charts provided in this book will satisfy the most diligent researcher and provides material for endless studies and comparisons. No matter what your particular interest, I'm sure that many discoveries and breeding revelations will be brought to light as you ponder their contents. No doubt you will discover common bloodlines in some of these horses that you did not realize were related.

Certain well-established successful "crosses" will be immediately recognized, but others are there for the careful student to find and experiment with. When you consider that there are no "new" genes, the importance of strengthening those which you believe in takes on more significance. Successful patterns in the past frequently involved inbreeding certain lines for several generations, and then outcrossing to a fresh source, often a Thoroughbred whose background was heavily weighted with the blood of Commando, Ben Brush, Bull Dog, Domino, Teddy, Sir Gallahad 3rd, Spearmint, Ultimus, Stimulus, Bonnie Joe, Chicaro, Plaudit, North Star 3rd, Ballot, Voter, etc. This has happened so consistently that the presence of this blood in a pedigree seems to be required. It is astounding how many of the greatest horses have this type of pedigree.

Because the versatile horse which we are discussing here is also so uniform in size, conformation and type, it seems to me to be a fact that they do inherit these characteristics, and therefore, bloodlines are quite an important consideration. Certain families have demonstrated the ability to produce this type, but I'm sure that there are many unproven or untried combinations that are also capable of doing it.

The job of making a finished performance horse once you have the raw material is the next step, and a critical point in the process of developing the super individual we want. This is a subject that I will not attempt to get into, except to say that it is the very thing that prevents the majority of horses from reaching their potential. They lacked proper handling and training.

Each and every one of the many owners and trainers that I spoke with in preparing this book came across with the same message: these horses were exceptionally intelligent and willing to please, quick to learn, and a tremendous pleasure to work with. These people obviously had the ability to develop the horse's mind and manage them in a way that was positive and rewarding, and not forceful and conquering. The results of this kind of relationship are surprising, even amazing, especially when you remember that many of these kind and loving "family members" were stallions!

These were people with special talents and whose love and admiration and pride for these horses was evident in the beautiful relationships they had with them. Their enthusiasm shows in the stories and photographs in this book, and hearing them first-hand was a privilege and pleasure I will never forget. More than once I was moved to tears, mostly of joy, sometimes of sadness, for the horses and horsemen as their stories unfolded. I shared their laughter and triumphs, too. It has been wonderful.

It has been twelve years since the last Supreme Champion was crowned. Will there be another? Some think not, because they think the specialty horse has crowded out the versatile horse. And he is a different type of horse. When breeders select for maximums in specific qualities, inevitably they will sacrifice others, and they can only carry an extreme so far before they no longer have a horse that is sound or useful. This natural limitation, in conjunction with man's other regulator, the pursuit of fashion, will eventually cause a change of course with any "fad" that he invents. Some take longer than others, but eventually he will veer back toward the versatile horse, because only he remains in the middle.

The encouraging thing is that the greatest majority of horsemen actually do prefer the middle-of-the-road type of horse -- the average sized, smooth-moving, talented, intelligent, calm, trainable horse that is your friend and can do whatever you ask of him, whether it be to rope a steer, win a race, or take you on a safe enjoyable trail ride. These are the horses that the every-day person is using, for work and for play, and the rodeo folks ride with confidence and pride. He's out there, in quality and quantity, but he is not promoted like the specialty horse because of economics.

I believe the versatile horse will become fashionable again, and more Supreme Champions will be added to the roster if horsemen will express their preference for, and promote, the versatile horse. Breeders will adjust to meet the demand, halter horses will again be judged as athletes, but only if the consumer (that's you!) chooses this type. There is a growing interest in recent years for the revival of the "real" American Quarter Horse.

Back to Part One

Copyright (c) 1990 Paul Mattson.  All rights reserved

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Introduction  |  Conclusion  |  First Supreme Champion - Kid Meyers