Yates Colby- 735 Martini Lane , Columbia Falls, MT 59912 - 406-892-4501
E-mail: welshjrt@hotmail.com
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Hey Y'all from Summit Welsh
Home to registered Section B Welsh Ponies HISTORY of Summit
Welsh :
Montana is not a likely place to start raising Welsh Ponies. Well, it was not a likely place for me to be either, yet we are all here now and loving it. Being raised in Virginia in prime foxhunting territory, I grew up around both Welsh Ponies and Jack Russell Terriers. The horse I did EVERYTHING on was a TB/Welsh gelding named Sandman. He even came to Montana with me and lived to the ripe old age of 33. Once in Montana, I got involved with 4-H and I also helped start and run the local club of the United States Pony Club. In working with kids and horses, I saw a need for a smaller animal that the kids could care for and tack up themselves. Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds, although well suited, were just too darn big for the younger children. So I started scouting around for quality ponies and there were very few to none within a 200 mile radius. I guess I heard my calling, and the rest is history-I went back to my roots and went back to the Welsh. They had EVERYTHING that I wanted in a quality pony-looks, brains, athleticism and a price tag that was not unattainable for a family with children. Now those of you horse people on the coasts may find it hard to believe that there could actually be ponies without Jack Russells or Corgis attached. (They are born that way, right?) My son solved that problem by announcing that he wanted a small dog. Everyone out here has Heelers or some other herding dog. Not for me. Naturally, I had to go back to my roots. I decided that it would be cruel to have a short-legged Corgi in a region where the snow stays feet deep for months at a time, so the hardy Jack Russell was the dog of choice.
Finding good JRTs was another matter. I pored through the dog magazines at the vet clinic I work at and talked to several breeders. I was finally impressed by a woman who seemed especially concerned about heritable diseases. Her dogs were proven sound and she hunted and showed them too. One of my males, Striker, came from her & the rest is history as I now have five of the little buggers-I mean, darlings. Oh yeah, how did I come up with the name, Summit? Okay, okay, it implies all those grand things that one wants to get across to impress and attract people to what you have created. There was incentive there, but the truth of it is that I live at the base of a tall mountain range and it inspired me. Now I never would have come up with Summit in Virginia, but I probably wouldn't be raising Welsh Ponies either. Come to think of it, Montana has been an inspiration all around! Thank you for visiting. Take care. YATES |