CKM Quarter Horses

08/24/2024

Couldn’t resist the colours tonight! 🥰

08/22/2024

08/21/2024

Couldn’t resist this picture of Rem and Poco last night, when Rem went in with his final mare for the season! This is DC Kimspoco, a product of the Clay Ranch Quarter Horses breeding program. Poco is here on a longer term lease agreement between us and The Wood Ridge Ranch.
Poco is a stunning mare, built just how we like them… stocky and correct! Normally, I gravitate to a horse that has a bit more height. But when they’re built like she is, it really doesn’t matter!! All I care about is that she’s a Dang Nice Mare!!! 😂🤷🏼‍♀️👍🏼 She is being crossed with Rem for this season, since she was a late arrival, and Rem happened to be here in the yard, ready for another girlfriend. Lol. I would also like to see how she crosses with Gunner, and potentially our young stallion prospect, Spencer (an own son of Red Eddie Drift, and out of a Playgun granddaughter). If Spencer proves himself to be anything like his Daddy, a potential future cross between him and Poco could result in a deadly cool ranch horse type foal! 😁
For any interested in pedigree, she goes back to not one, but TWO longstanding Manitoba breeding programs, that both were extremely influential in igniting my passion for raising horses… Lazy H Ranch (my Dad’s late Uncle, Larry Hicks), and Clay Ranch - where Poco was born and raised (my dad’s cousin, Dan Mullin and family). The horses in the pedigree with Wakopa at the start of their names, were foaled at Uncle Larry’s. The ones with DC before theirs, are a product of Clay Ranch. The stallion named “Worthy Rey” was the sire of my old “Pride”, that I grew up riding! 😊

08/21/2024

For those who are a fan of our mare, “Piper” (CKM Drifts Red Piper, 2022 AQHA bay roan mare), here are a few more I got tonight! Very very pleased to see how she’s growing, filling out, and developing! She should fit into our program quite nicely. Very glad we decided to keep her, being the final year for the Eddie/Dixie cross, which was always one of my favourite crosses before we lost Eddie to a broken leg. The hope, is to cross her with Gunner next spring as a 3 year old, to foal at 4. I’ve been waiting for what feels like forever, to start seeing the Gunner/Eddie daughters cross in our program! 💜

08/20/2024

The only pics I got yesterday were of the horses at home. Will hopefully get out to get some foal pics tomorrow!

08/18/2024

Updated pics for 3 of the foals!

08/18/2024

**AVAILABLE**
This kid is looking like he going to be a TANK (yes, capitalized. Big tank. lol). Born May 1, 2024.
Out of a Red Eddie Drift daughter - one we call Nibs. Nibsy is out of an own daughter of PC Boons Feature (PC Boons Feature was a maternal grandson of the great Sunfrost). Nibsy stands 15-15.1hh.
Sired by Re*****on (RL Peptocats King), this c**t has a pedigree top side that should translate into athleticism and brains. Rem goes back to legendaries High Brow Cat, Peptoboonsmal, and Haidas Little Pep. Rem stands 14.3-15hh.
This kid should have the ranch sense and ability to destroy a cow. He should mature to be a good footed, solid ranch/rope horse style gelding, built to do a job and look good doing it! He is shedding out to be red roan (based on his colour at birth, we don’t *believe* he is NOT going to grey, but can’t guarantee that without colour genetics testing). I’d expect him to mature around the same size as his dam - 15-15.1.

08/14/2024

We haven’t had pics of this guy since he was “fresh outta the oven”, as his dam a “Fox” - was away to be rebred to Havuk N Miracles.
Speed lines on the top side, Cowhorse/cutting on the bottom. Should make a heck of a rope or barrel prospect.
Fox is 14.1, and Kenny is ~15-15.1, I believe.
He is available. 💜

08/14/2024

Ok someone needs to claim this kid, before I try to keep another one for myself! Spent most of yesterday taking pics, and this guy made it sooo easy! 😂🥰
This is a buckskin roan c**t, out of Ducky, sired by Re*****on. He IS available! 😊

08/12/2024

Some more updated pics of the foals - just missing Fergie’s and Fox’s (need to get updated pics of them - they’ve been away at outside studs, and haven’t got a chance to get some recent pics of those two.

08/12/2024

2024 AQHA Dun c**t.
Born May 28.
Sire is SAQ Shadow Twoeyed (“Gunner”, 2016 AQHA buckskin, 15-15.1hh, 95% Foundation Bloodlines). This stallion tends to throw nice minded horses, and we have been told by more than one person that it’s like his foals were “born broke” - easygoing and gentle nature, take things in stride fairly well.
Dam is BMF Silk N Lace (“Randi”, 2009 AQHA Grullo Mare, 15-15.1hh). Randi is well built, quiet, and easy to work with. Her foals by Gunner have been much the same - smart, trainable, and levelheaded.
Pasture visits welcome!
We are located near Killarney Mb.
2️⃣5️⃣🍎🍎.

08/03/2024

It’s been a crazy couple weeks around here, and I’m extremely behind in going thru my foal pics, cropping/editing lighting etc. That is this week’s plan - will try to get updated pics of as many foals as I can, and get them posted, along with what we still have available.
For now, here is a pic of the newest mare to “join the string”. This is 2019 AQHA Mare, PEPINICS NOT KIDDIN, aka, “Clover”. We were approached by someone who was referred to us, by the breeders of this mare. She has an injury to her hind leg, that will likely limit her ability to compete. She has joined our program, in exchange for her first foal. She will be bred to Gunner for the first one, with the foal going to her previous owner, as per the purchase agreement. I’m leaning towards Gunner being an annual cross for her - His solid build and easygoing nature should compliment Clover very nicely, and hopefully produce some pretty nice ranch/rope horse prospects!
Welcome home, Clover. I have a feeling that you will be a great fit here with us! 🥰💜

07/21/2024

Well, we still have some available 2024 foals. But, it’s looking like this big, beefy filly out of Macey isn’t going to be one of them. Lol.
I learned a long time ago, that when a horse repeatedly chooses a person, just to go with it. And it seems, that this big bay filly has chosen her Human. She has been drawn to Ryder for quite a while now. She comes to see him every time he’s with me. She chooses him over me, even though she knows me best. During today’s check when she came to see him, just after I took the 4th and 5th pictures, Ryder told me she’s his favourite, and he asked me please not to sell her. Well, I guess that’s the sign I needed that maybe she’s supposed to stay here, so I told him what had already been going on in my head all week. She hasn’t sold yet, and it’s clear that they have the start of a real nice bond. I guess there’s really not much point fighting it… she is supposed to be his. Lol. 🤷🏼‍♀️
His Paint mare, Blue, is unlikely to be rebred. She has produced two foals in a row (2022 and 2023), with leg issues. His yearling I kept for him last summer is a c**t, and obviously isn’t suitable for the “broodmare gig”, becasue, well…. he’s got the “wrong equipment”. Lol. Ryder missed having his own mare foaling this year, so she will be his broodmare when she’s old enough. For now, they can just be friends.
🥰💚💜
Baby Macey is going to be a big, solid mare, built just how I like them. And she already seems to have her daddy’s “born broke” temperament. She WILL be a good fit for the program.
So, I guess Baby Macey has chosen her Boy, and I’m just gonna go with it. Welcome to the “keeper” bunch, Baby Mace. Guess we need to decide on a barn name for her now. Lol. 🤷🏼‍♀️😂

06/26/2024

Poor Re*****on. Despite our efforts when we noticed he had a bit of a runny/sore eye, he developed an ulcer on his eye, most likely from the dang burr dust that seems to be pretty much unavoidable around here. We do our best to treat things early and avoid these kinds of issues, but occasionally that isn’t enough.
I took him to the vet today, got him some eye meds, and some blood serum spun out (apparently it works really well in eye injuries). He’s also on some daily pain meds (orally) to help with the pain and inflammation. He will be at home a week or so, which could push his mares back a little bit foaling in the spring, but getting his eye healed up is more important. We need to think long term for him, and if we have a couple later mares in the spring, so be it. I’m just thankful we caught it before it developed into a “melting ulcer” which can actually result in loss of sight and/or the eye itself. 💜🙏🏼
I couldn’t help but laugh at how ridiculous he looks in the (Warmblood sized…. Whoops 🙄🤦🏼‍♀️😂🤷🏼‍♀️) fly mask. It’s too big for him, and the way the tops of the ears fold over, reminds me of a Scottish Fold Kitty, with their folded over ear tips. 😂😂🥰
(I put two pics of the eye itself behind the fly mask pics.

06/21/2024

I need to get a few more updated pics still (Cass, Fox, Chey, Twiggy), but pretty happy with the foals again this season. Still have a bit of availability, mostly c**ts. Dont hesitate to contact us if you have any questions! 😊

06/12/2024

Well, nobody ever said raising horses (or any animals, for that matter!), is easy. 😞
Our last foal of 2024 was born around 3am Monday. He was a beautiful foal, out of the mare we call Skip, and sired by Havuk N Miracles. But when he was born, he couldn’t seem stand on his own. We bottle fed him every 1.5-2 hours, all yesterday and overnight, after one of our Killarney vets tube fed him yesterday morning to get him the much needed colostrum, and did an IV. He had really perked up thru the day and night, and was starting to try to get up on his own a little bit - he wasn’t steady, and he couldn’t walk around really without support, but he would stand for about 30 seconds or so. But was definitely an improvement from when he was first born.
We got him to our “equine specific” vet this morning, since he made the night and was getting stronger. She was on the road yesterday and not able to squeeze him in. It’s her busier season, so completely understandable, and we knew that was a possibility when we contacted her yesterday morning. However, she could see him this morning. So we loaded him and Skip up, and had them there for 845am today. We did X-rays of his joints (looking for issues since standing was a problem for him), and unfortunately, we found that he was born with unhardened carpal bones in his knees. They weren’t fully developed into hard bone as they should have been. The more he tried to walk on them, the more damage he would do to those “still soft” carpal bones, which would lead to crippling lameness and a short life full of pain. We had no real choice aside from to put him down. It’s stupid because he was getting stronger and improving otherwise, but the kindest thing to do for him, was to allow him to pass quickly and humanely. It was the only option that would be fair to HIM. He was the sweetest thing, and he deserved so much better than the short life he got. But, if nothing else, I hope he felt how loved he was. 😞💜
So we are done foaling now. Not the ending we hoped for, but at least we have 16 other healthy foals on the ground.
At the end, I posted 3 pics of X-rays. First pic is a normal foal’s knee. Second is Skip’s c**t’s knees - totally NOT developed. Third pic is the underbite common with these cases - which ours also had. Our equine vet said for underbites, we should do X-rays of knees if the foal is struggling with something like standing, because the two things go hand in hand like this sometimes, and it can be an indicator of bigger issues like this, when baby also can't stand. Looking at the third X-ray, we can see that the teeth of the affected foal didn’t even look normal. He would have a hard time eating with teeth like that, even if he didn’t have leg issues. So I learned something today I guess.
The other thing that I learned, is that while this can have a genetic link, it can also be a thyroid/iodine deficiency trait… Skip had a foal with this same problem in 2022. This is now the second, of only four foals, to present with this condition. The first foal like this in 2022, was dismissed as fluke, as it’s not a super common condition, and Skip’s 2021 foal had been healthy and normal. But it was still knowledge we kept in the back of our minds until her next normal foal the following year. Her 2023 foal was normal, so we finally dismissed 2022’s as most likely being simply random chance. But now, her 2024 foal was born with the same issue. Obviously, we have put her breeding career on hold indefinitely, until we learn more about the genetics, and/or prevention of this condition for future foals. She will become a saddle horse, if we cannot confidently prevent this in her future foals.
To look at it from a genetics perspective, her first foal with this condition, had a different sire than this year’s foal. So if it’s genetic, it HAS to be linked to Skip, and is not linked to Kenny (Havuk N Miracles) or the other stud (now deceased). The odds of BOTH studs carrying some undetermined recessive gene that would cause this, are exceptionally low. So it’s linked, somehow, to Skip. I also don’t think it’s “overall diet” for Skip, because she eats exactly what the other mares eat, and she is the only one to have a foal with this problem, not once, but twice. So if it doesn’t turn out to be something genetic, it could maybe be some condition or deficiency that’s unique to Skip (Not veterinary info there - just me thinking out loud, working thru the logical “known aspects” of it, in my head! Lol). Our vet is going to see what she can find out for us about genetics and other causes, as well as if prevention of this condition in her foals is possible, going forward. We pulled some blood from Skip to check her thyroid and iodine levels this morning. So I’m interested to know those results. We want to make an informed decision going forward, so we can determine if she needs to become a saddle horse or emergency foster mare, or can remain a broodmare with some simple precautions in place to prevent this in the future. We feel it would be irresponsible not to look into this further before we consider breeding her again.

The silver lining in the situation, is that a friend sent me a link this afternoon, about someone looking for a nurse mare near Winnipeg - their foal lost his dam to colic this morning. I sent them a message right away, and they’re picking Skip up this evening, to go and raise the orphan foal at a thoroughbred farm. So thankful there’s a silver lining in the crappy situation. Maybe not for us… but for that orphan foal in need of a momma, and for Skip, missing her foal and not understanding why he’s gone now. 💜

06/08/2024

⭐️RELEASED⭐️
Contact for more info! 😊

2024 Black AQHA C**t, born May 21. He is out of the mare we call Fergie. She stands 14.2-14.3. She tends to produce foals that are very solidly built with no shortage of athletic ability, and very smart, trainable minds.
This c**t is sired by our bay roan stud, RL Peptocats King. “Re*****on” stands around 14.3-15hh. He is intelligent, easy to work with, well mannered, well built, catty and athletic. He generally produces foals that are well built, athletic, and smart.
We would expect this c**t to mature somewhere in the 14.3-15hh ballpark. His half brother is being used for sorting and penning in Ontario, and seems to do quite well, taking things in stride as he learns. He is thick, agile, and smart. We see no reason why this black c**t shouldn’t be much the same way… he is a nice mover, should be smart and catty enough for a job, but level headed enough to take trail riding! 😊

05/18/2024

⭐️ RELEASED ⭐️
This absolute tank of a c**t is ready to be released as available.
This SOLIDLY built red roan c**t is out of the home raised mare we call Nibs, and sired by Re*****on… no shortage of foot, bone or muscling with this kid! He’s going to be built to do a job, and do it well, as a mature horse! 💪🏼🥰

Nibs stands around 15-15.1hh, is well built, quiet, athletic, and very smart. She is also an own daughter of our original (late) stallion, Red Eddie Drift. Eddie consistently passed size, correct builds, and teachable minds on to his foals. Nibs is no exception, and her foals seem to carry on that influence as well. Nibs was started under saddle when she was younger, and our trainer really liked her.

Re*****on stands around 14.3-15hh. He is athletic, friendly, and very very smart. His foals are consistently curious, well built, athletic, and learn quickly.

This c**t is pr!ced at 💸✌🏼✋🏼👌🏼👌🏼.
50% holds until weaning.

05/16/2024

Gunner got to go out at one of the rental pastures a bit early this season, with 3 open mares. Our pens are so muddy, and we just wanted to get a few horses out of the mud. So naturally, Gunner got a bit of a quick ”photoshoot” while he was exploring!

05/15/2024

This handsome man made his debut overnight… he was here, dry, and already keeping Bailey on her toes when I went out on my 2am mare check! He’s a dunskin c**t, sired by Havuk N Miracles. This, is “Kenny Baby, #2”.
Holds are in place on this one, but if he becomes available, it will be posted here first. 💜
With his arrival, we are up to 11 healthy foals on the ground, with 6 mares left to foal. We are in the home stretch! 😊

05/14/2024

The latest foals…
Black c**t out of Fox, sired by Havuk N Miracles. (NFS - CKM holdback).
Buckskin filly out of Cass, sired by Re*****on. (💸✌🏼✋🏼👌🏼👌🏼).
Bay (unsure if roan) c**t out of Chey, sired by Re*****on. (💸✌🏼👌🏼👌🏼👌🏼).
Trying for better pics but my timing has sucked - I keep hitting foal naptime, or they’re having lunch! Lol. 😂🤷🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️