LETTERS
EDITOR’ S NOTE: We prim the follow ing letter from Mr. Gordon H. Wilder of Lexington. Kentucky. Mr. Wilder is highly respected for his theories about breeding and we fell his opinions would be of value and interest to our readers.
Dear Bruce:
I was especially interested in your article, " A Lot to Talk About,” in the April VOICE. I think it was very timely. However, I am unable to go along with you in the order and emphasis you place in breeding, nor can I agree with the advice you gave, and I quote: " If a colt has the
ability and the conformation, regardless of his breeding, he should definitely be given a chance at showring stardom.”
I firmly believe Walking Horse breeding should be approached in this order, but not necessarily the order of importance:( 1) Pedigree;( 2) Natural inherited walking ability;
and( 3) Conformation and bloom.
( 1) We have to have a starting point in breeding, and this should be the pedigree, the official ancestral history of the animal. A further study and investigation of this ancestral history can give us what we should expect in inherited natural walking ability in breeding this strain and these individuals.
( 2) From this breeding and from these crosses we can select for future breeding those individuals which show the most natural inherited walking ability. As a consequence, we can then expect the best results in showring competition, especially under the new rules of training and showing and judging, which finally brings in proper prospective natural inherited walking ability.
( 3) We have now reached the point in our selective breeding where we can choose from( 2) for future breeding those individuals that show the best conformation and bloom. The Irish Setter people have approached their breeding from the point of conformation by greatly emphasizing Bench Show winners in their crosses. As a consequence, they have developed a bunch of dogs with
76 practically no field ability any more. My foxhound friends are following somewhat along the same lines in putting emphasis on Bench Show winners( conformation), and could well end up with foxhounds that can’ t follow a fox scent. By overemphasis in our breeding to Walking Horse stallions that have made their showring stardom from man-made gaits alone, we could end up with horses that have had their inherited natural walking ability bred out of them.
Getting back to your " advice.” In the history of all breeding it is an established fact that ' freaks’ do occur. The ' freaks’ in our Walking Horse breeding are those horses with good conformation and apparent ability, but without background inheritance for natural walking ability. With manmade gaits these ' freaks’ canbecome champions. Breeders fall over backwards to breed to a champion without due concern for the ancestral record as to inherited natural walking ability. Naturally, disappointment and frustration follow. It is hard enough to breed champions in any field under the best proven scientific and heredity programs, which certainly behooves us in the Walking Horse field to limit and upgrade our
breeding.
I am a firm believer in selective line-breeding, limited to superior animals and proven bloodlines. I chose MIDNIGHT SUN as the proven prepotent sire whose blood I wanted to concentrate on and around. I am breeding carefully chosen MID NIGHT SUN mares to top sons of MIDNIGHT SUN.
" The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” My proof, which I offer with
pardonable pride as exhibit 1, is the good 3-year-old mare, DELIGHT’ S ELKHORN ANN, that I bred and sold to Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Gracy of Fayetteville, Tenn. as a two-yearold. Bob Reid has shown her very successfully as a 2- and 3-year-old under the nameofDELIGHT’ S ANN. You speak highly of her under Barnstorming in May VOICE. Emma Gray also refers to her in May VOICE. This fine young mare is by SUN’ S DELIGHT and out of my top young line-bred MIDNIGHT SUN mare, SUN’ S MARY MILLER with 62 */ 2 % MIDNIGHT SUN blood. I like her so well I gave her my wife’ s name.
Exhibit 2 is a beautiful two-yearold stallion I recently turned over to Wallace Brandon to bring along slowly in training. His name is ELK- HORN’ S DUKE. He is by my young breeding stallion SUN’ S MIDNIGHT DUKE out of my fme young MID NIGHT SUN mare, SUN’ S CHOICE LADY E. Her dam is line-bred SAM
ALLEN. This colt was bred to walk, he came here walking, and he continues to walk. He is a model colt, and is said by many to be the best looking and most natural walking colt in the country. He is the epitome
of what I started out to accomplish in a small way a short few years ago.
Bruce, I have gone into much detail in my effort to put over to you a
theory of breeding I believe to be logical and sound, as I know you are in position to exert great influence with our breeders. We are both dedicated to the betterment of the breed, that is for sure, tho we may approach it from different viewpoints.
Very sincerely, GORDON H. WILDER Lexington, Kentucky
EDITOR’ S NOTE: The following letterwas so informative and interesting that we thought our readers would be pleased to read it also. Mr. Pfister expres ses a keen interest in the breed and his efforts to maintain top stock and participate on a high levc are inspirational. Thank you, Mr. Pfister!
Gentlemen:
You will be happy to hear that Louisiana Walking Horse Associ; tion has been formed in order to e; courage the increasing interest i the breed in this state. It is the ir tention of our group to furnish ir formation about the breed and L. make magazines such as yours available to those who have been exposed to it. We will also have on file in the Association office information about each stallion, its owner or owners
and the facilities offered by them. We also hope to have surveys made as to what stallions are crossing good with what mares. These and many other ideas which we have
will all tend to promote the best idea yet, " Breed the best you have to the best you can find.”
You will also be happy to hear that I have recently purchased the World’ s Champion mare, SHADOW’ S DANCER, for a brood mare. She presently has a SUN’ S BLACK LA BEL colt by her side and is safe in foal to CARBON COPY. She has the most natural back end of any Walking Horse I have ever seen and, fortunately, she passes it on to her colt. Jimmy Waddell is breaking a full sister to the BLACK LABEL colt this fall. I also have recently purchased a full sister to SUN’ S JET PARADE by MIDNIGHT SUN and out of MERRY SUE by MERRY BOY, second dam by GIOVANNI. This big, black mare has the most beautiful SUN’ S DELIGHT filly I have ever seen in my life and she is bred back to SUN’ S DELIGHT.
I also have in my stables an excellent yearling GO BOY filly out of
( Continued on page 81) Voice of the Tennessee Walking Horse