The Advantages of Running A Quarter Horse Farm
Quarter Horses are the most popular breed of horses in the world, even over that of Thoroughbreds or Arabians. If you are thinking of taking on an existing horse farm or converting a piece of land to a horse farm, there are considerable advantages to choosing to make it a Quarter Horse farm. Outside of their versatility and good looks, they also have a large throng of fans.
What Type To Focus On
Before you pick your stock, you need to choose just what type of Quarter Horse you aim to produce at your Quarter Horse farm. Do you want to go for Quarter Horse racers (which are more Thoroughbred-influenced); do you want horses that can win at shows or horses that can pull horse drawn farm equipment one day and let the kids ride bareback the next?
You need to think about what you can do to make the Quarter Horse a better breed. There are some Quarter Horse crosses that getting very popular with horse owners in the way that designer dogs are getting popular with dog owners. These crosses include the Azteca, a cross between a Quarter Horse and the rarer Andalusian breed and the Appendix Quarter Horse (Thoroughbred x Quarter Horse).
But you can't make these crossbreeds without good, healthy, sane Quarter Horses. It's no good just producing the same old kind of Quarter Horse on your Quarter Horse breeding farm. You need to make them better not only to sell, but so they won't be abandoned by their new owners.
Any Side Businesses
Unless you are incredibly rich, don't expect your Quarter Horse farm to be your sole source of income. Many Quarter Horse farm owners and breeders have to have their farms serve a dual purpose in order to make ends meet. Many Quarter Horse farms also give out riding lessons or open their rooms up for tourists. You might rent your horses out for supervised trail rides or rides in horse drawn farm equipment.
You might have part of your Quarter Horse farm be for the horses and part of a cash crop like corn, hay or oats. The main crop would then pay to feed the horses, as horses tend to loose people more money than they make. One of the most famous Quarter Horse farms, the King Ranch of Texas, concentrates on raising beef cattle in order to help fund the Quarter Horse breeding program.
