Akhal-Teke Foundation

Managed the adoption and ongoing support of 13 Akhal-Teke (AT) horses from the closure of historic Shenadoah Farm in Virginia, home of the first-ever Akhal-Tekes in North America, including five important breeding stallions. Provided extensive veterinary care for prior conditions. Presented four of the adopted stallions at stud in Virginia, Tennessee, and Oregon, with breedings in Virgina, Tennessee, Texas, and Oregon. The 13 adopted horses bred in 2021 collectively made up one or both parents for five new purebred AT foals in 2022, representing half of the total new AT foals in the United States.

The Akhal-Teke Foundation excelled in the education & outreach part of our mission in 2021, developing several social media channels to inspire appreciation and support for the rare Akhal-Teke horses, while sharing best practices and important Akhal-Teke research with the global horse community. Our Facebook page following grew by thousands as we expanded our social media posting reach into the hundreds of thousands this year, primarily through organic social sharing, with some small test advertising runs promoting popular postings.

Rescued and maintained the priceless archive of frozen semen form Shenandoah Farm, representing seven historic Akhal-Teke stallions, including Senetir (Sektor x Altyn, 1976), the first Akhal-Teke stallion in the U.S., and Sengar (Senetir x Oliva, 1984) long listed for the U.S. Olympic Team in eventing in 1996. This invaluable resource, with an appraised value of $268,600, will be safeguarded for careful future use in maintaining long term genetic diversity in this rare and ancient breed.