Canadian Breeder Steps Up to International Board
Canadian Chris Gould recently became the first North American to be elected to the World Breeding Federation of Sport Horses (WBFSH) board of directors and offers new incite into sport horse breeding.
By Patti Schofler
founding in 1988 to 2013. During his leadership, the CWHBA was one of the first studbooks to join the WBFSH, and Chris has participated in the organization’s yearly General Assem- blies since 1997. He has also served on the organization’s audit committee for several years. A breeder since the early 1970s, Chris and his family (his
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mother, a sister, and a brother and his family) have operated Touchstone Farm in Mayerthorpe, Alberta for forty years. “I have been a horse person all my life,” Chris says. “I rode
on my uncle’s ranch and then worked at stables and rode while at university in Edmonton. Warmbloods and breed- ing came into my life when the Hanoverian stallion Abrupt (Abglanz x Anfechter) arrived in Canada. I acquired a half- Thoroughbred mare and bred her to Abrupt.” Chris and his family bought the stallion in 1975. The
breeding operation peaked in 2006 with over 200 Warm- blood horses on the ranch. And then the economy tanked. “Now, along with the rest of the industry, we are downsizing, but looking forward to the positive trends we are seeing.” Chris credits Canadian Hall of Fame trainer and mentor
Bill Collins with inspiring his breeding philosophy. “First, if your horses are not rideable or not sound, it doesn’t matter how good they look or how athletic they are. If they cannot do the job, why breed them? Our priorities in order are ride- ability, then soundness, then performance. As the majority of people own horses to enjoy them, we aim for horses to be a pleasure to work with. We want the people who own horses we have bred to be proud of their beauty and ability. With these priorities we have produced competitive horses for all disciplines.” We invited Chris to share his thoughts about his new posi- tion and the world of international sport horse breeding.
Q: Why is the WBFSH important to the sport horse world? A: The horse community, particularly in North America, is very fragmented, being divided by discipline, breed and geography. As an international organization, the WBFSH has successfully bridged some of these gaps within the sport
Chris Gould of Touchstone Farm in Alberta, Canada.
horse breeding industry. It advocates for our common inter- ests. It brings us together to share knowledge and ideas, to make practical connections, and it enhances the recognition and value of the sport horse breeding industry to the general public, businesses and governments, and to our fellow horse enthusiasts. Maybe 25 years ago, there was free-for-all competition
between studbooks. From a North American perspective, promotion was based on one’s studbook. You had a Dutch Warmblood or a Hanoverian. Then we came to recognize that pedigrees of those two horses could be identical. As a result, the geographic location of the studbook became less and less important. Generally the marketplace today looks at the performance of the horse instead of a particular stud- book. Today, breeders recognize common goals and the value of sharing information. As an organization that looks after the interest of the
breeders, the WBFSH works closely with the FEI, particu- larly regarding the young horse championships. One of our major initiatives was the universal equine life number (UELN) which ensures that every horse can be identified with one number. With this system, a breeder or an organization can easily find correct data on a specific horse, say breeding information on a stallion. If I sell a horse I bred to someone
Warmbloods Today 75
hris is no a stranger to firsts. He was a founding member of the Canadian Warmblood Horse Breeders Association (CWHBA) and its national chair since its
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