Shaffer Standardbreds is a family affair

Shaffer Standardbreds is a family affair.

The Pennsylvania-based breeding facility—located in the hamlet of McClellandtown, just 40 miles from The Meadows harness racing venue—is overseen by 21-year-old Jacob Shaffer and his brother Kolt, 27.

Jacob says his entire life has been “horses, horses, horses.”

“I went to Albert Gallatin High School,” Jacob said. “And I had a part-time job during school, but I’ve been with the horses since day one, and it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.

Now celebrating their 30^th year, Shaffer Standardbreds was founded in 1994 by Jacob and Kolt’s grandfather Alan Shaffer—who had spent 27 years working for Yankeeland Farms.

“My grandfather wanted to return to the area where he was born and start his own farm,” Jacob explained. “He and my dad (Wayne Shaffer) have both worked this farm all these years. We have two farms that comprise 150 acres total. Our main farm used to be an old dairy farm and my grandfather just fell in love with it. Our second farm is down the road about a mile.”

Grandpa Alan Shaffer, who recently turned 75, is still quite active with farm duties, handling the day-to-day feeding operations, while Jacob’s father Wayne oversees the breeding information during foaling season, and at the same time both mentor their sons and grandsons.

The Shaffer’s’ main focus is breeding broodmares, raising foals, and prepping yearlings for three major sales; the Ohio Select, Lexington, and Harrisburg. There is a 20-stall foaling barn, a separate breeding shed, ten small foal paddocks, and 22 larger pastures.

“This is Fayette County, and we’ve got a lot of rolling hills, so the foals and mares are walking up and down the hills all day long, which is great,” Jacob offered. “We really don’t need any kind of exercise machine for them because these foals are aways traveling, and it’s the perfect, natural muscle builder for them.”

While Jacobs says the family grows about half their own roughage, he says they do purchase hay, and prefer to feed all their horses the same grain.

“We feed all the horses—broodmares, babies, and turnouts—Purina strategy,” he said. “I feel like it’s the best as far as putting on weight on the yearlings. We’ve used it for years and it gives them, especially the yearlings, the right proteins that they need to grow properly.”

Having the two properties within a mile of one another also helps the Shaffer operation run smoothly, Jacob said.

“Our second farm is kind of our overload farm,” Jacob continued. “People send their broodmares here and we group them up, and also take a lot of turn outs since we’re so close to the Meadows. For instance, we take all of the turnouts for Anthony MacDonald’s The Stable horses, when they’re here in the US. We also have a lot of their broodmares who are PA eligibles. Our farm stays pretty full year-round.”

Timothy Twaddle, Bill Zendt, and the Altmeyer-Wilder family also send horses to Shaffer Standardbreds.

“I have been impressed with the professionalism and class that these young men have in business,” said family patriarch Dan Altmeyer. “I’m not surprised because they come from a wonderful family. I have dealt with their dad and granddad for years before them, and we are not only friends in the business but personally, I count them as some of the finest people I have met in the business.”

Trainer-driver Mike Wilder agrees with his father-in-law.

“Both Jacob and Kolt are reliable, hard-working men,” he stressed. “Their father raised them well. Two years ago, I was stuck loading yearlings by myself at Harrisburg. I’ve never been so happy to see those boys at 3 am! They were just arriving with a load of mares that were selling the next day. We were able to get my horses safely on the trailer and anyone who has done that knows that that can be quite a task.”

Some of the racehorses bred, born, and raised at Shaffer Standardbreds include Rough Tuff Tested (Muscle Mass) 3, 1:44.2s ($84,046); More Than Ya Know (Heston Blue Chip) p, 3, 1:50.4f ($119,782); and the brother-sister team of Tie One On (Bar Hopping) 3, 1:53.3s ($121,942) and Tailgate Buzz (Bar Hopping) 3, 1:55f ($93,255), among others.

The Shaffer broodmare band includes Graceful Kelly, an unraced daughter of Muscles Yankee and a full sister to Muscle Massive 3, 1:51 ($1,239,138) and Muscle Mass 2, 1:53.4 ($229,000); and a half-sister to Thatsnotmyname (Windsong’s Legacy) 2, 1:55 ($340,730); Mr Lucky Luke (Lucky Chucky) 4, 1:56.1f ($106,311); and Believer (Cantab Hall) 4, 1:53.4f ($262,238).

Jacob said that future plans include purchasing another farm to help with their ever-expanding band of broodmares—some 50 mares annually—as well as their increasing number of turnouts.

“Our main goal is to strive to keep the level of quality service here as best as possible moving forward,” Jacob admitted. “The foot stays on the gas pedal here, for sure.”

by Kimberly Rinker, for Harnesslink