Life Began at Forty for Warmblood Breeder Augustin Walch
By Patti Schofler
W
hen Augustin Walch hit the shores of Canada, he was a 40 year old
German farmer’s son with fifteen horses and a determination to see his four sons did not experience the horrors of war. Today Augustin is 70, his children have families of their own and he is cutting back his herd, a group of horses that has had a profound and lasting impact on the hunter-jumper world throughout the United States and Canada. A six-time winner of the USEF Hunter Breeder of the Year (2004–2009) and winner of many national and international championships, Augustin estimates that in his lifetime he has bred more than 480 horses and his stallions, including the renowned Rio Grande, have achieved international success in the jumping arena as well as the breeding shed.
THE EARLY DAYS
The journey began on the family farm outside of Munich, which became young Augustin’s inheritance when he turned 28. His mother declared it was time for him to pay the bills, which he did quite well with income from prize dairy cows. In 1968 he added horses to his breeding operation.
“I was always horse crazy. I have pictures of me sitting bareback on working horses,” he explains. As his breeding success grew,
Europe and Bavaria began to feel too small. “I was always a hardworking, eager person. I can only say that small town jealousies make your life harder,” he recalls with a sigh. He decided it was time to move. His choice for a new home had to serve his love of the land and animals.
40 March/April 2010
It had to also serve his family. “I arrived in Canada on April 2, 1980, making a once in a lifetime change that I never regret. When in 1979 Russia invaded Afghanistan, I said that is enough. I love my four boys and I hate fighting. I didn’t want them to go somewhere and get shot. Canada is very peaceful with a military of peacekeepers,” he explains. Though his new farm also housed 125 cows, arrival in
Canada let him focus on his beloved horses. The 230- acre property outside of Stratford, Ontario, was perfect for a breeding operation and soon became the home of W. Charlot Farms, named after an aunt. The pastures are shaped by rolling hills and stately pine trees. The Avon River rambles through the farm. “We have an arena and several barns, but this is not a show place; it is a working farm,” reminds Augustin’s wife, Christine.
THE BREEDING BUSINESS
Augustin bought his first foundation mare from Matthias Baumann (German eventing team gold medalist at the 1988 Olympics). “She was a Hanoverian mare bred to an Irish Thoroughbred. She had the ugliest foal I’d seen in my life. Then I bred her to the Trakehner stallion Kassio and she gave me three state premium mares, one after another.” From day one, bloodlines have
always driven Augustin’s choices, even on a new continent where recordkeeping was not at its best. “When I came to North America, I thought I would start with American horses. Americans were dominating jumping in the 1980s. They were bringing in
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