14/01/2026
Let's talk colour.
If you looked at the horses I own and breed, you'd think I love a red roan, and chestnuts aren't far behind. The reality is that Chestnut is not my favourite colour by a long shot. I do like roans, but blue roans are my favourite colour. Bling is overrated. Who wants to worry about socks on show day?
A good horse is a good horse.
And a good horse is any colour, with any markings that is within the breed standard. We shouldn't breed for colour, and you certainly shouldn't buy for colour.
Soundness comes first. Sound of body and mind. The prettiest horse in the world isn't worth it's salt if it can't be handled. Equally, an ugly, but sound, horse will have a home forever. Good feet, good legs, and a great brain will get a horse anywhere. A sound body saves you money in the long run. A sound mind keeps you safe.
Then we want willingness. A want to connect and a want to work. I've had the displeasure of riding and handling horses that are unwilling, and it's frustrating. At it's worst it leads to a partnership that is dangerous, and those horses can quickly get to the kill pen. My horses need to be enjoyable to ride, to handle, to train. Willingness not only wins in the pen. It wins in the training arena, at home, and with the professionals that are part of the team that care for your horse. A farrier will do a lot for you if your horse is easy.
Talent is the last thing on the list. Of course we want talented horses that perform. Talent makes the work easy. We want them fast, sharp, soft. The right kind of hot. The type where when you say go, they go. When you say stop, they stooooop. But they look like a child's pony in the assembly area. This is the thing that ultimately brings home the buckles and the prize money.
Size is also important, but breeding reiners it's less of a concern. They're little powerhouses.
And if it comes out pretty, well hot dang. If not, it's still an amazing horse.
All of this comes before colour.
I want to see videos, progeny, records. Does the progeny break well? What percentage are born sound? What's the rideability? What are the genetics? What does my trainer think of the bloodline? Have these lines been crossed successfully before? Are the right double crosses in there? Are the wrong double crosses absent or worth the risk? None of these questions even discuss colour.
Colour is a perk. Breeding for colour is a risk. Especially when that is all you are breeding for. The stud fee of top stallions is the same regardless of colour. And there are many chestnut stallions that have more prize money under their belts than some of the pretty coloured ones. Colour doesn't make a horse sound. Colour doesn't make a horse willing. And colour doesn't make a horse talented. If a good horse is any colour, then a great horse is any colour.
Currently our breeding program is for us. When I breed my red mare to my red stallion and have a red foal, that foal is likely to stay with us. Because it's a damn good bloodline. But the day we do sell progeny that is a striking colour, we won't be doubling the price. Because we breed for soundness, willingness, and talent.
Pictured: KQH red roan foal at foot (Nu Too Much x Nava Whizz), KQH red roan 2yo filly (Nu Too Much x Nava Whizz), Defying Physics (stallion, Einsteins Revelation x Hustlin Holly)
