Q:  Do you stand your stallions to outside mares?

Q:  When is breeding time? When is foaling time on your ranch?
A:   Each stallion is turned out with his band of mares around May 10th, if the pastures (grasses) are ready. He will run with his band for 60 days, and then come home. Foaling starts the middle of April and runs for about 60 days. Our mares foal out on the summer pastures with the stallions, unattended and several miles from home. Every morning is spent driving to each pasture to feed and check.

Q: What type of feed do you feed the horses?
A:  During the summer we haul commercially purchased "broodmare pellets" to the pastures. They are about an inch in diameter, and about 4 to 6 inches long. It is easy for them to pick up out of grass or snow. Nursing foals are feed free choice a commercial creep feed in walk-through feeders. When foals are brought home in the fall, they are switched to whole oats and straight alfalfa hay. Horses at buildings are fed whole oats and alfalfa (stallions, pens of young stock, etc.) Pastures are emptied the end of October, and the mares come home and are turned out in the fields to winter. There they are fed free choice. Once a week the hay wagons are refilled with big bales of alfalfa and baled oats hay (oats included, not combined). They also graze on the corn fields.  Plus, 12:12 mineral all year around for all horses.
 

Q:  Do you sell all of your weanlings every year?
A:  We offer all of our weanlings every year as it is our sole means of income and has been since 1968. Our foals are born slick in the spring, but unpredictable spring storms, snow, etc., cause them to hair up. We can't take pictures for our foal ad until they have shed out, which is usually August.  Then, it  takes until from August until October for that ad to come in the Appaloosa Journal. This is a disadvantage, coming out so late. Thus, often the weanlings are not all sold out by December 31st. And, in turn, we will have "yearlings" to offer the following year.

Q:  What is the farthest one has traveled to a new home?
A:  Alaska, Mexico, Panama, Hawaii, Australia and Chile for foals; Belgium, Sweden and Germany for adult horses. Since it takes so long for the Appaloosa Journal to arrive overseas, many of the foals the foreign buyers contact us on from our ad are sold. We hope our site on the Internet will help with this.

Q:  Do you imprint or use desensitization techniques on your foals when they are born?
A:  We are never present when the foals are born, since foaling takes place several miles from home, making this impossible to do at birth. But, with the people loving disposition of our horses, it isn't long and the foals are looking for attention. This friendly attitude makes studying them, drawing registration markings, and picture taking difficult, but very impressive to customers who are amazed at how attracted to people they are, when they don't see them that often. 

Q:  I want to buy a Sheldak Ranch Appaloosa, but I cannot pay for it it's entirety and need a few months to save. Do you offer financing?
A:  Since our only income is our horses, and we have to wait 12 months for a foal crop to sell each year, it is hard for us to sell on time. We would strongly  recommend obtaining the financing from your bank to pay for the horses. If there is a situation where we would offer financing, we require one-third down to hold, and full mortality insurance. If it is possible for us, the horse may be boarded at the Ranch until paid for.

Q:  Do you deliver horses?
A:  No, as we have no hired help at our Ranch and we have no way of leaving our operation. It takes both of us to feed (Kim drive, Dave drop pellets) at each of the pastures every summer morning, so that, coupled with chores twice  a day all year long, leaves not much time to get very far. Many of the transports that advertise Nationally in the Breed magazines have been to our Ranch to pick up for our customers. 

Q:  I think I know which youngster I want...how do you want me to identify which one it is? 
A:  Please refer to the foals by the names of their dams. As, "Cherry Slipper's filly",  or "Kiss Of Heaven's colt". Over the years, nearly everyone has called or written for information by foals' birth dates, or color and markings. We do not keep birth dates memorized, and with more than one foal born on a some days, this method makes it hard to identify. 

Q:  Can you send me a video of your horses?
A:  No, we do not do videos. When we spend the time we must driving to the pastures every day, we really make it count:  colored photos for customers, for ads in the Journal, for registrations, and now for our web page. And, with our horses grazing out on pastures, videos are not advantageous.  It is hard enough to get attention for one fleeting moment for a still photo. To have a video of grazing horses wouldn't be real exciting. 

Q:  What horses have you bred/owned that were your favorites?
A:  This is really a hard question. They are all "favorites" in our hearts, in one way or another. I guess Mighty Tim just has to be number one. He was with us nearly his entire lifetime. Although if you count the tears when they passed on, there was no difference between Mighty Tim and Spittin Image. And, if Mr. Exclusive would have been with us, instead of at the veterinary clinic (where he was finally put down), as many tears would have been shed burying him, too. 

Q:  What honors or awards have you bee most proud of?
A:  Any and all awards won by our horses have made us proud. I guess having raised Prince Shannon, (pictured at right), and learning of his Reserve National Champion title at his first show, then seeing his offspring dominate nearly every National Top Ten list years ago was quite a thrill. Then to go on and become Leading Sire of Halter and Performance Horses, And, then to  be named in the Hall Of Fame was quite an honor, which we, in turn were proud of.  But you know, some of the greatest feelings have not come from the National & World Champion titles the horses we have raised and sold have won, and not in the National High Point titles, nor the Superiors, nor ApHC Championships. It is in hearing how our honored and respected our breeding program is. By the Appaloosa Club, influential people in our breed, and other breeds, and by very important people that we look up to. That makes all of the "blood, sweat and tears" worth it. And better than any trophy that could ever be won.

Q:  Where can I read more about your Ranch?
A: Articles can be found in the following magazines:
Appaloosa News, page 6 of July 1976
Appaloosa Journal, "Broodmares", page 12 of March 1983
Horse And Horseman, page 24 of September 1987
Appaloosa Journal, 1991 Annual Report, page 102 of October 1991
Appaloosa Journal, "Foundations", page 19 of October 1993
Appaloosa Journal, "Common Sense Foaling" page 16 February 2002
and making history being featured in the January 2000 issue of Western Horseman magazine!
Western Horseman, "Broodmare for Sale", page 92, May 2006