Yesterday brought some very big news to Quarter Horse enthusiasts
all over the world; the All-time leading breeder, Carol Rose, is set
to hold a complete
dispersal sale in mid August of this year. This comes as a
shock to many in the business, and is somewhat disconcerting, given
the fact that so many large, well-known breeders have also had
dispersal sales in the past 12 months. People are wondering
why, and also what this means for the rest of us. Fear, worry,
and sadness are common emotions when we see our leaders step down,
but I pose to you that while the landscape of the horse industry is
changing, it is also an exciting time to be a part of shaping it into
its future form.
I have been looking up to Carol for a very long time. When I
purchased my first Quarter horse in 1992, I also got a subscription
to The Quarter Horse Journal, and remember marveling at the
impressive profile she cut in a male-dominated industry. I felt
that because she could do it, then there was room for me to do it
too. Carol has class, a no-BS sensibility, and a hard working
focus that still inspires me to stick to my guns and keep going in
the face of adversity. It is no accident that she rose to the
top, and I think all women (and many men, of course) in the
performance horse industry are thankful to her for all she has done
to produce, promote, and represent the American Quarter Horse the
world over. She is simply an icon.
Yet, she is a person too. Who can blame her for wanting to
cut back? Breeding horses, even on a small scale, takes so much
work, so much planning, so much time. And she has done it year
after year, maintaining the position of #1 in the industry, producing
hundreds of horses who are consistently the best and most sought
after in the world. Her reach has been broad, as horses from
her breeding program have excelled in nearly every performance
category offered by AQHA, which takes an incredible amount of
versatility and market savvy. She has worked hard and done
well. Perhaps she feels that it is finally time to enjoy the
fruits of her labor, to rest, relax, and maybe let others take over
in driving the industry forward.
The question is, who will be the next leaders? Will we see
some large-scale breeders take the place of those who have left, or
are we seeing a shift toward smaller, more specialized breeding
operations? My thought is that yes, we are witnessing the rise
of smaller, leaner producers, though there will always be large
players out there. The economy is certainly playing a part in
creating this situation; the overhead on keeping the large farms
going can be crushing and every single thing needed to breed and keep
horses has gone up in price. In addition, the market has
shrunk, as there are fewer people who are able have horses period,
much less buy more horses, show and breed them. It is a much
harder thing today to keep a large facility going, with multiple
trainers, multiple stallions, hundreds of mares and foals, vet costs,
equipment to maintain, thousands of pounds of feed & bedding to
buy, a constant show schedule, marketing and sponsorships, etc. than
it was 10 or 20 years ago. Smaller outfits are more nimble, can
respond to market changes more quickly and can maintain a budget with
greater ease. Smaller breeders are also blessed with an
intimacy and knowledge of their animals that will ultimately pay off
when it is time to sell. These changes will likely result in more diversity among horses produced as well.
Change can be scary, but it doesn't have to be. Rather than
looking at our current situation and wringing our hands, we should
see this as an opportunity to step up and take our place in carrying
the industry forward. Maybe we won't be able to ride the big
farm's coat tails, but if each of us is doing our best with each and
every horse we own, moving forward with enthusiasm, honesty, hard
work, frugality, and class, won't we be carrying the torch for the
next generation of horses and riders? Won't we be doing Carol
proud by not letting everything fall apart when she steps down?
It is time to go to her dispersal sale, buy her wonderful horses, and
keep going.
On a personal note, I was lucky enough to have met Carol a few
times at reining events, and she was so very gracious to me. Last
year, when it came to light that she follows this little blog of
mine, I was simply over the moon with joy and pride. I would
like her to know that her leadership and example has impacted me
deeply, and that I wish her the very best as she moves on to new and
exciting adventures in the next chapter of her life. May she
find peace, happiness and get to sleep in late. :)
