About Baroque Farm

About us

We have been breeding horses for over 25 years. We began with PRE (Andalusian) and Lusitano horses. We now focus our breeding program on rare breeds such as the Highland pony, and the Dales pony. The Highland pony is our main focus, but we still have a few Dales ponies here on the farm.

We have been importing new lines of Highland ponies from Scotland for the last 8 years with emphasis on temperament, type, and movement. We stray away from breeding grey ponies due to melanoma; but would never turn down a heterozygous grey pony if it were the best available. All of our adult ponies are broken to ride and drive. They can be used in any environment. We also still breed a few PRE (Andalusian) horses, and an occasional Warlander every once in a while.

Our love of the UK native breeds comes from years of travel and education in the UK. Our love of the Baroque frame of horses also made our love for these breeds very easy. When we first started researching Highland ponies in 1997 on my trip to the Perth stallion show. I had 2 guides around Scotland, Mr. Cameron Ormiston and Ms. Audrey Barron to introduce me to the breeders and take me on stud visits. When I finally found exactly what we were looking for, we began importing Highland ponies, the first Highland pony we imported was in 2017. Our last import of Highland ponies was in winter of 2021 when we imported 3 new ponies to the US. All with new bloodlines.

We encourage anyone interested in the Highland pony, Dales pony, PRE or Warlander breeds to contact us via email or thru facebook: www.facebook.com/baroquefarm. We are willing to answer any inquiries or to mail out any information regarding our breeds . We also encourage anyone interested in our breeds to visit our links page for links to their home societies. Joining the home studbook societies gives you the best, most accurate information on the breed.

Home of the Highland pony, Dales pony, and PRE horse

Here at Baroque Farm, our primary goal is temperament. We want to breed horses that are suitable for any level of rider/owner. We have hand selected our horses in consideration of their bloodlines, type, and movement after making sure they have a great temperament to go along with all of the necessary requirements for good conformation.

Our main focus is our Highland ponies, but we also breed Dales ponies (and have done so for 20yrs), PRE (Andalusian)horses(for 30+yrs), and a Warlander once in a while. We have been breeding horses for over 30 years. We have traveled the world in search of the best bloodlines for our herd, and we take what we do seriously and with great pride.

When we looked into purchasing Highland ponies in 1997 we traveled to Scotland to the Perth Stallion show. We were unable to purchase the animals we liked, so we began breeding Dales ponies. It took us several years to find adequate Dales pony stock as well. We were lucky and found Dan who became a favorite everywhere he went. At one time we had 12 Dales broodmares, but we decided to thin our Dales herd in hopes of finding good, solid Highlands with new lines for the USA.

We imported our first 2 Highland ponies in 2017 when we acquired a yearling colt and filly. Since then we have imported several Highland ponies from different bloodlines, the last 3 came in November 2021. We are on our 7th year of breeding Highland ponies. We thoroughly enjoy working with this hardy,easy going, laid back breed, and willing breed. Our local vets and farriers love their demeanors as well.

Our ultimate goal in breeding the Highland pony and the Dales pony is to continue to expand the gene pool here in the US while upgrading the quality of the ponies here in America. We have a very broad selection of bloodlines, and have tried to stay away from the lines already here in the US, and to encourage the diversification of the bloodlines here in the USA. All of our Highland ponies are broke to ride and drive as soon as they come of age. We DO NOT condone breaking in of ponies at 2 years old in any form. Not even just to sit on them. Highland ponies and Dales ponies take years to mature and should not be put to work until their 5th year. We lightly back our 4 years for 6 weeks, in 15 to 20 min sessions, then turn them out for the remainder of that year to mature fully.

Temperament is the foremost quality we look for in our ponies. Conformation and movement are equally second. We prefer to stay away from the grey bloodlines due to melanoma, as continuing to breed grey to grey has increased the instances of malignant melanomas. We have used a heterozygous grey in our program, and we have kept colored offspring. But we will only breed heterozygous grey to ponies/horses of color to continue to try to remove melanoma from the lines as we can. We do not breed for a certain color, just color which does not include grey.

Our prefix is Lagniappe. Lagniappe is a phrase taken from our French origins in south Louisiana, a term that means " a little something extra". We try to breed and select ponies with that extra bit of something special. It is our desire to breed each of our equines, Highland pony, Dales pony, or PRE horses to be a little something more than average equine of their breed. We travel to determine what lines we like, and have an intricate computer program to keep bloodlines in check and keep the best pairings for the future.

We only sell our ponies to approved, vetted homes. We have learned a lot in the horse business, and to us it is more important to us to have ponies with forever homes rather than show homes, or to be passed from one person to another. We love to talk ponies, and love to hear from people wanting to inquire or visit them.

Our Breeds

Highland Pony

The Highland Pony is a breed native to Scotland. The Highland pony is one of the breeds on the Rare Breeds Survival Trust list. The Highland is from the Highlands of Scotland, it was originally bred to be a crofter's pony. The Highland pony was originally used on small farms (aka crofts) to do any and all task necessary from plowing, to bring in crops, to feeding other livestock, herding, and general riding purposes. They are a sure footed, large pony; often thought of as a horse by those unaware of what they are.

Today the Highlands are bred for trekking (trail riding), carrying stag and grouse down from the mountains after a hunt, and as an all around using pony. They have Highland ponies competing in all sorts of riding including eventing, endurance, dressage, native ridden pony, competitive driving, and competitive trail. The Highland ponies are fabulous trail ponies; sure footed, and agile. The Highland is known for its kind nature, hardy stature, and ease of training. They come in all colors with exception of dilute colors (cream based), but include the silver gene. They are a great all around ponies for the entire family. They are also like a potato chip, you cannot have just one. We have imported 6 Highland ponies to date, and have 4 more we have kept from our own breeding program.

There is link below for more info on the Highland Pony from the Highland Pony Society of Scotland. They are the best source for information on the Highand Pony. There are various books available thru the Scottish breed society (HPS), and there is also a magazine, The Native Pony, that gives details not just on Highlands, but all UK native breeds. We have a few Highland Pony books and magazines for sale for those that are interested in buying one of these great ponies. Highland ponies can come in many colors including yellow dun, mouse dun, fox dun (red dun), grey, black, bay, and even chestnut. The cream gene does not exist in the Highland pony though the silver gene does. So those that carry silver can have a change to their base coat, diluting it somewhat.

** ALL of our Highlands are registered with the Highland Pony Society of Scotland**

There is a link to the Highland Pony Society below. They are the registering body for Highland ponies all over the world.

The Dales Pony

The Dales Pony is a critically rare breed native to the Northeast of England in Yorksire. The Dales pony is listed as critically endangered by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. Originally bred to carry lead from the mines to the shores to be sold. They were also used around the small farms to plow, carry hay to other livestock up in the hills, etc. Today, they are used for riding and driving. They have very good movement, very powerfully moving off of all 4 limbs. They have a powerful drive from their hind ends. The Dales pony is a lively breed, forward pony, very striking to the eye in looks and motion. The Dales pony is better suited for the larger, or more experienced child, but and most adults. The Dales ponies comes in a variety of colour to include black, bay, grey, bay roan, and blue roan.

Known as the " Great Allrounder", the Dales is used for many jobs today. They are used for driving, dressage, mountain and moorland classes, hacking, jumping, and even timber removal (called snigging).

Our Dales pony stallion, Thornville Dan was imported a coming yearling. He is well known in the US as he has traveled all over the US as a Dales ambassador. Today, Dan is retired, breeding a couple of mares a year, and spending time relaxing and enjoying his older years.

** All of our ponies are registered with the Dales Pony Society in the UK.

There is a link below for the Dales Pony Society, UK. They are the premier source of Dales info.

PRE (Andalusian) Horse

The PRE (Pura Raza Espanol) aka Andalusian, is the " Royal Horse of Europe". It was a breed used by the knights and Kings of Europe. It is the foundation of MANY breeds today both in the US, and around the wor;d. We have had PRE horses for 25+ years. The Spanish horse is an athletic, forward moving horses that adores their owners, and excels in many disciplines. They are fantastic, have great temperaments, and today, they are the horses of movies as well as dressage, and also they are still used in the bullrings of Spain.

** All of our PRE horses are registered with ANCCE in Spain