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Quarter Horse history stretches back to the days of the Spanish
conquest when settlers brought horses to the New World. These first horses also roamed and flourished in the South
Texas plains known as the “Wild Horse Desert.” South Texas served as a gateway to bring Spanish horses to North
America. Throughout time, these horses known also as mustangs were bred with European thoroughbreds and shaped into
our modern American Quarter Horse. Since they possessed heavy muscling and quickness on the quarter mile track, hence
the name Quarter Horse, they became a favorite breed among many American farmers and ranchers. For a more detailed
chronology and ranch horse history, please go to our
horse history
section.
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The pedigrees of many McAllen Ranch horses primarily consist of old
King Ranch
breeding lines. Because
of the proximity and history of the King Ranch to other ranches in South Texas, their horse herd operations have
had a profound impact on many neighboring ranches. Given the substantial size of the King Ranch and its ongoing
breeding programs established in the early 1900’s, almost every nearby ranch has incorporated some King Ranch
breeding. Throughout the century, horses have been traded, bought, and sold between South Texas ranching neighbors.
Today, these old lines of horses originating at the King Ranch serve as the foundation and building blocks for the
new generation of ranch horse.
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| With lines of old ranch horse breeding, we like to think of our mares at McAllen Ranch
as “antiques.” They provide a solid foundation in which to work from. We also breed to modern lines of horses, which
serve as an outcross to our foundation mares. Breeding to newer lines of horses include pedigrees of horses such as:
Smart Little Lena, Haidas Little Pep, and Playgun. Our goal is to build a superior ranch horse with a combination of
speed, agility, and “cow sense” that is also docile and fun to ride.
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