My dream of raising miniature horses was realized in 1999 when a friend mentioned that he knew of someone who might have some minis for sale. When I called about the horses, the owner said that yes, she had three mares for sale, but they were a little bit foundered. I decided to pursue my interest, and found my first three mares: Princess Jan, Maybelline (I renamed her Cassie), and Cherokee. PJ was foundered badly enough that she seemed to prefer walking backwards. Cherokee just paddled back and forth trying to get the weight off of her sore feet. Cassie had enough spunk that her feet didn’t bother her much; they just seemed overgrown. So, for $100 each, I found myself in the miniature horse business.

Learning about the different registries, bloodlines, colors, conformation, and what seems to be popular at the moment has been an ongoing process. As I am learning, I am hoping to achieve what I want in a miniature horse by incorporating the foundation lines that I like, along with the color and conformation of the horses that I want in my breeding herd. Through that, I hope to produce miniature horses that are able to compete in the rigorous show world, as well as horses who will be a benefit to a breeding program. And, of course, there will always be the mini that will be the perfect pet or companion horse...just for fun.

All of our horses are now both AMHA and AMHR registered. As I have chosen not to show my horses, none of them have show titles to go with their name. My hope is that my horses will be able to stand on the names in their pedigree and will show their winning ways in the offspring they create.

Our farm name, “Gentle Spirit” is taken from a Bible verse found in 1st Corinthians:

“What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a whip, or in love and with a gentle spirit?” 1st Corinthians 4:21

We have found that, although a horse needs to respect us as being “in charge”, using a soft touch and a gentle voice is the best way to earn the respect and trust of our horses.

Our farm is located in northern Illinois, about 100 miles west of Chicago or 30 miles southwest of Rockford.

For inquiries, please email Cindy

tcslc5@mwci.net