DOUG LEADLEY

EQUINE CONSULTANT

Doug Leadley was born into a horse training family in 1953. Doug’s grandfather, Donald, simultaneously ran one of Chicago’s largest riding academies, a large Saddlebred training stable, and a Standard bred racing stable. Doug’s father, Richard, toured the country with an eight pony wagon show, promoting a large rubber manufacturing company. Richard then went on to manage and train at one of the premier Arabian farms in America, Heritage Hills Arabians in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Because Doug grew up in this multi faceted horse environment, he obtained a vast knowledge of the equine business.

Today, Doug lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he continues to be very active in the horse business. Doug consults for clients all over America, and throughout the World. In 2004 Doug showed 2 National Champions in South Africa.

MY SERVICES

As the abbreviated biography above shows, I have a vast knowledge in many subjects within the horse business. Below I have listed the services I have to offer.

HORSE MANAGEMENT

Depending on the size of your operation, horse management can be simple or very complex. Whatever your situation, my company has the expertise with 33 years of experience. We specialize in organizing farms and ranches to be user friendly. We can set up budgets and records so the details are easy to manage. Our company also sets up automated feeding, watering, and stall bedding systems saving thousands of dollars in employee wages.

BUYING ADVICE

Buying a horse should not be a simple decision. When I am the agent for a client, I spend a lot of time asking my client what they are trying to accomplish with their purchase. This may sound like a normal procedure but it is not. Most buyers get talked into something through a friend, agent, or breeder that wants them to buy their horse. Remember the horse you purchase becomes part of your family. Once the purpose is established, I guide my lients through all the necessary steps, i.e.Suitability, X Rays, Vet exams, Insurance, and Contracts. All of the listed categories are different for every horse depending on the horses intended use.

SELLING ADVICE

I help my clients evaluate their horse, and establish a plan for marketing that horse. Once the price is established, there are several mediums I help them explore. The options include, networking with other trainers and agents, trade magazines, internet sales companies, and/or attending horse events.

ESTABLISHING VALUE

There is no Kelly Blue Book for establishing value in the Equine business. This is one of the most difficult processes in the horse business. Some people base it on pedigree, some on competition record, or some base it on hear say. I look at several factors. If the horse is a show horse, or a race horse, I determine what level of ability this horse can compete at. If the horse is a breeding Stallion, I determine how much income the horse can generate. If the horse is a pleasure horse, then suitability and age come into play. There are several other categories I could cover, but this gives you an idea how I can properly establish value.

AUCTIONS (MANAGEMENT, BUYING, SELLING)

I have managed the two most successful public auctions in the Arabian horse business since 1990. Hosting a public auction is a monumental task. I can help you in all aspects concerning an auction, accept being the Auctioneer. If you are buying or selling horses at a public auction, this is completely different then the private treaty manner that we are accustom. I am very familiar with this buyer beware format.

FARM MANAGEMENT

Throughout my career, I have managed several farms and horse operations, including my own training stable and a consulting company. I have management experience in every aspect a large or small operation would need. This list includes farm budgets, organizing employees for the day to day operations, horse health, training, and running a breeding department. I insist that my farms are neat, clean and totally efficient.

BREEDING MANAGEMENT

Breeding management starts with selecting the various matings, to the birthing of the resulting foals. What happens in-between, however, takes a lot of knowledge, organizing and work. I can help with all this multi-tasking from setting up the lab, record keeping, billing, teasing schedules, and foaling. There are several more aspects to address in running a complete breeding operation. I can organize the entire breeding department, saving you time and frustration.

FARM AUTOMATION

Over the past couple of years, I have been working with a company that has developed automated equipment, such as automatic feeders and automatic stall bedding devises. I could set up a master plan ranch, that through automated machinery, a stall cleaning system, and pasture runs with automatic gates that could be maintained with a minimal number of employees. A ranch could also choose to add just one or two of these options, and still save countless hours of labor.

RANCH DESIGN

Most people purchase an existing ranch that is somewhat turn key. This puts the buyer in a good and bad situation all at the same time. On the one hand, the buyer saves time, on the other he inherits all the poor designs and mistakes the former owner wishes he did not make. A horse ranch should be user friendly. You should be able to move horses from barn to barn pasture to pasture without chasing them individually and leading them to a different location. Designing horse flow on a ranch is very important. Your ranch can be planned or retrofitted for easy operation and improved safety. I have several automated devices that can be added to make your ranch efficient, and a pleasure to work on saving hundreds of hours for you and your employees.

LEGAL EXPERT WITNESS

Over the past couple of years I have been asked to help resolve several legal disputes.

With over 33 years of horse experience, I know how a horse thinks and reacts. In many cases I have a better insight than even a Veterinarian because most Veterinarians do not specialize in only equine, and most did not grow up working with horses. Many times I have had Veterinarians ask me to help them because they had a horse they could not handle.