WHS student earns participation in unique horsemanship program

Wimberley High School 10th grade student, Leah Tate, earned a spot as a participant in the 2020 American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) Ranching Heritage Young Horse Development (YHD) Program. She is a member of the FFA and is presently taking an Equine Science Class.

According to the AQHA, “The Ranching Heritage YHD program showcases the horses bred and raised by AQHA Ranching Heritage members by matching weanlings with Youth Association members. In this program, students like Leah are engaged in the horse industry at a fundamental level that is both fun and educational.”

Tate received the 2019 Bay Gelding American Quarter Horse Hi Dollar Pistol from the AQHA Ranching Heritage Breeder Hal Bogle Estate in Dexter, New Mexico.

Through the YHD program, AQHYA members 12 years and older, gain handson horsemanship training and a unique opportunity to work with Ranching Heritage Breeders and AQHA Professional Horsemen. The program, an excellent educational experience, also opens up scholarship opportunities.

The program was created in 2011 to give AQHYA members an opportunity to learn the fundamentals of horsemanship. The horses used in the program were bred by AQHA Ranching Heritage Breeders, which are working cattle ranches with a remuda of at least five AQHA-registered mares that produce ranch horses. The participating Ranching Heritage Breeders donated weanlings for the program participants to evaluate, raise and train. Youth selected for the program participate by either receiving a donated Ranching Heritage Bred weanling or by purchasing a weanling from an AQHA Ranching Heritage Breeder.

To learn more about the AQHA Ranching Heritage Young Horse Development Program, visit www.aqha. com/yhd.