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Haythorn Ranch Co., named AQHA-Bayer Best Remuda winner

Haythorn Ranch Co. of Maxwell, Neb., has been named the 2009 winner of the AQHA-Bayer Best Remuda Award, which honors working ranches that have top remudas of saddle horses. The honor puts them in the company of some of America's most historic and heritage-rich ranches--including a ranch operated by another set of related Haythorns.

Howard Haythorn came to Maxwell on horseback at age 13, helping his father trail in a herd of cattle and horses to their new home. He stayed in the Nebraska Sandhills to raise his own family and continue the legacy started by his grandfather: raising cattle and well-conformed, cowy American Quarter Horses with which to work them. Today, Howard and his son, Harry Byron Haythorn, run a 1,500-head cow-calf operation on 20,000 acres.

"The only way to handle cattle is on horseback," Howard said, "and if you have horses, you may as well own good ones. We breed 20 to 30 mares a year. We don't follow the whims of the market. We raise horses to suit our needs, which translates into horses that can be used by a wide variety of people for a wide variety of activities."

The ranch stallions are Rusty Gun 876, by AQHA World Show Superhorse Real Gun; Peppy San Kai, by a son of Senor George; Snickelfritz Mickey by Snickelfritz Chex; and Mickey 612, a 3-year-old by Snickelfritz Mickey. Most of the mares are homebred, and many of them trace back to horses owned by Howard's father, Harry Jr., and his uncle, Walter.

Walter's grandson Craig and his sons run Haythorn Land and Cattle Co., which received the first Best Remuda Award in 1992.

Both ranches share a common heritage. Howard's grandfather was born Harry Haythornwaite in England in 1861, and he stowed away on a ship bound for America when he was 16. When he was discovered on board, he was put to work caring for a shipment of Hereford bulls. When the ship docked in Galveston, Texas, Harry went to work for the Texas rancher who owned them. He later shortened his name to Haythorn and became a hand on the boss' ranch. He went to Nebraska on cattle drives and on his second trip there, he stayed and began building his holdings.

From that foundation, Howard has built his own legacy, breeding American Quarter Horses for half a century. He'll be featured in the October issue of The American Quarter Horse Journal with other 50-year consecutive breeders.

The Best Remuda Award is presented each year by the American Quarter Horse Association and Bayer Animal Health¬  to honor the contributions that ranch horses have made to the heritage of the American Quarter Horse. The term remuda means a group of working horses bred by the ranch specifically to work and pen cattle.

Any ranch that has five or more American Quarter Horse mares used to produce horses for ranch work and is a member of AQHA is eligible for this award.

For more information about the Best Remuda award or to request an application, visit AQHA's website at www.aqha.com/association/benefits/awards.html. AQHA will be accepting applications for the 2010 AQHA-Bayer Best Remuda Award until Dec. 1.

AQHA/Bayer Best Remuda Award Winners:

2009 Haythorn Ranch Co.--Maxwell, Nebraska

2008 Moorhouse Ranch Co.--Benjamin, Texas

2007 S Ranch--Billings, Montana

2006 Tule Ranch--Tulia, Texas

2005 Babbitt Ranches--Flagstaff, Arizona

2004 Douglas Lake Cattle Co.--Douglas Lake, British Columbia

2003 Lacey Livestock Co.--Paso Robles, California

2002 W.H. Green Cattle Co.--Albany, Texas

2001 Van Norman Ranches Inc.--Tuscarora, Nevada

2000 CS Cattle Co.--Cimarron, New Mexico

1999 Bogle LTD--Dexter, New Mexico

1998 Pitchfork Land & Cattle Co.--Guthrie, Texas

1997 R.A. Brown Ranch--Throckmorton, Texas

1996 Bar B Ranch--Beaver, Oklahoma

1995 Stuart Ranch--Caddo, Oklahoma

1994 Waggoner Ranch--Vernon, Texas

1993 6666 Ranch--Guthrie, Texas

1992 Haythorn Land & Cattle Co.--Arthur, Nebraska

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