Blog Hop

My friend Aarene Storms has suggested a ‘Blog Hop’ for these lovely, NW winter days (read: gloomy, muddy, drizzly, extra barn work days) to get to know each other. So, as I’m nowhere near the trails, here goes:

* Introduce yourself!

I’m Cathy Leddy, and I’m a horseaholic. I’ve loved horses since I can remember and I’ve made my life’s work getting the Akhal-Teke breed recognized and popularized. Lots of blog posts about just that on my website! I’ve been owning, competing, breeding and promoting Tekes since 1986 and am very involved in our national organization, The Akhal-Teke Association of America. Oh, I also have ridden endurance (at a low level) since 2003, mostly with my trusty partner Galen.

Galen and I at Mt. Adams in 2015.

Galen and I at Celebrate the Horse in 2007? 2008? doing the War Horse Challenge. Karen Wegenhenkel photo.

Galen and I in 2011.

* Introduce your horse(s)!

So many horses! I breed, so introducing all my horses over the years would take a whole book. Of course, there is Galen (above), but at my farm right now, I have 3 retirees (aged 23, 25 and 26) who have all served me faithfully for over 20 years. 2 broodmares, both with foals at foot this year.

Aishet (also know as Aya) and her 2016 filly, Anahita (who is for sale)

Asalari and her 2016 colt Menze Khan (who is for sale). The photo of him is not very good, so here is a better one.

Menze Khan.

Then, I have the riding horses, Andymn and Arzuw, who I bred and are now used as lesson horses. Both boys are in their teens and are fantastic.

Ari and Andy at Horse N Around Days in 2007?

Then, I have the youngster, Alamet. She is such a special girl, I couldn’t sell her. I breed to sell, not to hoard and have been pretty successful in that over the years. We’ve had 40 or 50 foals born here (not all mine) and mine have all gone on to other loving homes, many competing. But Alamet! She is my miracle girl.

Alamet last year with my daughter Callie.

Then, there are the boarder’s horses, which come and go, except for Gus, who has been here for 23? years? He is 34 this year and looks better each year. His owner Alice has been a wonderful owner and friend for that long! That is why I board horses.

And, last but not least, Salam, my resident stallion. Salam was imported from Russia and I got him in 2009? I think. He is the kindest, calmest, sweetest boy you could meet. He is not rideable (why I have him) because he fractured his neck while running the fence and eyeing the girls. But, he’s able to do his job, so it’s all good. We’ve had about 10 foals by him now and their wonderful temperaments, athleticism and smooth, silky gaits are winning people over. His dance card is filling more and more each year.

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Salam and me from a 2009 photo shoot by Karen Wegenhenkel. For more info, go here.

I guess that is it, right now, but things can and do change!

* What’s your favorite horse sport? Do you cross train in other activities?

I started in Dressage and have been a working student with 3 different trainers in the area over the years. Then I took up Endurance, which satisfies my desire to whoop it up a bit. I’ve done a little jumping in years past, but bad ankles prohibit that now.

* Who else in your family rides?

Sadly, no one.

* What’s your proudest equestrian accomplishment?

Oh my, that requires thought. Let’s see…I think it’s that when I got into Akhal-Tekes, in 1986, there was one (yes, one) in the Pacific Northwest. Now there are over a 100 purebreds (maybe more) and lots of half breds. People no longer go “A what?” when I mention them, but almost always say something like “Oh, yes, I’ve heard of those!” or “Oh yes, I’ve seen one at a ride, or a show, or on a Dvd” I suspect I’m known as the crazy Teke lady, but that is ok. In N. America, we’ve gone from zero in 1978, to probably around 600 ish purebreds and thousands of partbreds since then. I’ve been a big part of that increase, being actively involved in the ATAA (Akhal-Teke Association of America), publishing newsletters, organizing conferences and film shoots and organizing and fundraising for breed booths at international events.

* What was your lowest moment as a horse owner/rider?

Oh, plenty of those. That comes with the territory. Maybe when a long awaited foal must be put down orwhen a treasured friend becomes very ill and you don’t know if they will survive. I’ve sort of become inured to those lows, I just know that they are offset by the lovely highs of completing a ride after a long recovery from an injury (me, too many times), the birth of a healthy foal after months of worrying her dam would abort (and months of medications, ultrasounds etc), watching a horse that I’ve bred and raised do wonderful things with their new owner and being able to just go to the barn and relax into the horsiness of it all.

* What’s the most important small thing you ever learned in a lesson?

Allow.

* Do you have any riding rituals or superstitions?

Don’t fall off.

* What are your short term goals for yourself/your horse?

This year, once again, I’m recovering from surgery (recurrent breast cancer) and going through radiation right now. Galen can’t quite understand WHY we’re not out on the trails. Obviously, this time I’m not on a scooter (2012 and 2015) so what is my excuse? So, I’m just looking forward to getting back in the saddle…whenever.

* Long term goals?

Competing again. I’ve gotten ok with the idea of only doing LDs, but who knows?

* If time and money were no object, what is your dream equestrian vacation?

Going to all the Akhal-Teke breeding facilities in Turkmenistan and Russia.

* What kind of horse activities were you doing 10 years ago?

I did 4 50s and was expecting to move up to doing 75s. Well, silly me. I was also going to expos with my kids, which was lots of fun.

Celebrate the Horse with 4 Cascade Gold Tekes and Monica, me, Callie and Callie’s friend Taylor.

* What kind of horse activities do you think you’ll be doing 10 years from now?

I know I’ll be breeding, the rest depends on my health.

* What is the quirk about your horse that you like most?

I will answer broadly. I love Akhal-Tekes for their intelligence, the way they bond with their person, how sensible they are and their smooth, smooth gaits. The quirk I guess in most of them, is that they don’t suffer fools. They are partner horses, not sports equipment, which I adore.

For more information on Akhal-Tekes and my farm (where I love to show off my ‘kids’), stay on my website and browse around. www.cgakhaltekes.com

And, if you’ve read this far, here are the directions to do the next step of the Blog Hop Challenge:

Here’s the directions:

Answer the questions (below) on your own blog, and leave a link to that post in the comments here.
In your post, invite readers to answer the questions on THEIR blogs, and link those blogs to yours AND to here.
Let’s see how far this can travel!
Pictures! Let’s see lots of pictures of people and horses!