An Interview With Mimi Busk-Downey
My first experiences with gaited horses were with crosses of Arabians with saddlebreds and standardbreds. Many of these would single-foot with proper training. I also owned several horses which gaited but were of undetermined origin. In the early 1900’s my father had owned a descendant of the now-extinct Naragansett Pacer. His stories had instilled in me a quest for a naturally smooth riding horse, and I investigated many gaited breeds. After extensive research I chose the Peruvian Paso.
The Peruvian Horse had the fire I was looking for combined with great tractablilty and the best “locked-in” gait of any breed I have experienced before or since. I liked the fact that the Peruvian comes from a small gene pool which has been kept quite pure for centuries.
My first mares were purchased in 1974, based on what I knew of other breeds rather than Peruvians. Fortunately, a few of them turned out to be pretty good. Early on I purchased a stallion named *Su Senoria, a son of Sol de Oro (Viejo), one of the most famous producing sires in the breed. Three years into the breeding program I imported my true foundation mares from Peru. These mares were from the Hacienda Cayalti in Northern Peru, which produced the best gaited horses in Peru and was known for having the strongest horses in the North. I made the first important crosses of the Crescent Moon Ranch program by breeding these mares to *Piloto, who was in his twenties at that time. SOBERANO++, our senior stallion, an outstanding example of that cross.
I was assisted in my study of the Peruvian Horse by Verne Albright, who answered my questions during monthly phone calls I made to him for several years. Angie DeLozier (Schmidt) and John DeLozier owned *Piloto and they gave me honest opinions and shared their knowledge. All of the breeders I visited in Peru were very helpful. Sr. Antonio Grana kindly gave me lessons about riding and breeding these horses. I was fascinated by Pepe Musante Sr., who had created his own “type” of Peruvian Horse and explained to me how this could be accomplished.
My husband Dale Downey became involved with Peruvians after we met and has developed a strong love for the breed. Together we have selected bloodlines to add to the breeding program in the past ten years. An important criteria in adding a bloodline is diposition. We also look for horses with pedigrees which contain no questionable ancestors. We have acquired mares from the line of *AEV Oro Negro, and their contribution is in size, muscle and bone. Several of our mares combine the SOBERANO++ line with the blood of Coral and Sol de Oro Joven, both having had outstanding gait. We have several exciting young stallions from our program, one of them sired by *NVG Glorioso in Peru. When we have visited Peru in both ‘95 and ‘97, our choice of Glorioso as an outcross was confirmed as we watched several sons win their incredibly large classes. We have recently added some influence of the bloodlines of *Mantequilla, known for gait, and Antares and *Lancero, both known for strength.
SOBERANO++, with his gateado gait, short back and strong legs is close to our ideal for a stallion. He is twenty years old, strong, sound and energetic. He is a proven sire who passes his traits consistently, including his smoothness and tractability. He has sired a large list of prize winning offspring, including many which compete successfully in more than one division. Due to very natural gaits and good dispostions, numerous offspring have made winning Youth Horses. He has also sired horses which are succesful at competitive trail riding and ranch work.
The horses of Crescent Moon Ranch have become known for their outstanding gaits, deep bodies and short backs. Many of our horses are on the larger side, up to 15.1 hands. Our foals are imprinted at birth and ground work is done at weaning. They are started under saddle at three.
We employ a professional trainer from Peru and have done so since 1982. At this time [1999] it is Milciades Alvarado. He has over 30 years of experience and is a master reinsman (Maestro Enfrenador). His quiet, natural way of riding is perfect for bringing out the inborn quality of gait and temperament.
Our whole family rides: Dale and I and our two sons Shannon and Dan MacLeod all are involved in our ranch. We participate in the shows along with our trainer and are active in the Peruvian Horse Association of Canada and the Southern Alberta Club. Trail riding - be it an organized Cabalgata or just a family afternoon ride, is foremost on our list of enjoyable activities.
We invite you to visit us, see and ride our Peruvians. We really enjoy introducing newcomers to the breed.
Email:cresmoon@supergait.com
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