Our goal has been, and will continue to be, to produce all-around performance horses with style and eye appeal.

Treffer Quarter & Paint Horses

The AQHA Membership, in the name of Mike and Bruce Treffer, was started when they were teenagers and has always been with the support of their parents. Horses are part of their family history. From the draft horses Loren farmed with to the grade quarter-type horses they bought, trained and resold. Keeping a few to ride in 4-H and open shows. AQHA came into their lives in 1967 when they found a palomino three-year-old mare 30 miles down the road that was for sale. Toy Ace was very well broke, a granddaughter of AQHA Champion Spade Ace and was purchased for the lofty sum of $200. Since then, they have focused on building their operation and added paint horses when Bruce met Christy. Bruce’s bride, Christy, brought 2 owner made APHA champion mares into the family operation.  A number of their foals went on to be winners for others and after Leah, Greg and Sarah arrived they were mounted well with their offspring and grand offspring. One named Cowboy was well-known. He had points in 7 events and Rom’s in two. Winning pleasure and then calmly walking in to run 22’s in poles showed his versatility. Zans Butterfinger was another. She was the first horse Leah trained on her own. All 3 kids rode her and by the time she was done she had competed in 14 different events at the state 4-H horse expo, was a 2-time state halter champion and was a go-to on the ranch.

 

The Treffer horses have predominately been sold as ranch horses being versatile enough to go into a number of different disciplines. They have been sold across the United States from Utah to New York and Montana to Texas. Good ones have also been kept back to be used on the ranch for work with their Registered Angus herd and mounts for kids and grandkids. Bigger than the 50 years of breeding has been the 50-year challenge of trying to raise quality horses and doing it as a family. Those two then teenage boys don’t start the two-year-olds anymore but the excitement in the spring and the pride in offering quality AQHA horses continues.

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Bloodlines

Early on, the more notable bloodlines included Pat Star Jr., Magnolia Dunny, Coys Bonanza, Pacific Bailey, Sugar Bars and Two Eyed Jack. Toy Ace was bred to a couple of his stallion offspring. Produce making a big impact were Smokys Bonanza, a stallion and Chick Bonanza, a mare. More mares were added after a move to Broken Bow, Nebraska. Breedings to Watch Joe Jack, Zippo Pine Bar, Jack Eyed, Candi Man, Many Moons and The Barnburner added top quality bloodlines to the program. One, Zip Strip Bonanza, was the most successful show horse, and was started by Bruce’s then fiancé, Christy Jensen. He was sold and earned superiors in Western Pleasure, Trail and Western Horsemanship as well as being named an AQHA Performance Champion.

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Later, stallion ZB Pine (Zanza Bee X Zippo Pat Bars) was added to the herd. A one-year lease of a Miss N Cash son, Genuine Credit, brought more top quality genetics to the program and led to the purchase of Zans Last Parr. He was Zan Parr Bar X Diamonds Nifty Lady, a superior halter mare that was also a leading futurity producer for Reiner Craig Johnson. Zans Last Parr was part of his sires last foal crop. He was put down at age 30, possibly making him the last living son of Zan Parr Bar.