December 27, 2008
Hi everyone,
Paul and I have moved back to
the Valley! We began renovating a 130 year-old barn at the
farm in August 2006. As some of you know, we had to evacuate the farm
in 1993 during the 500-year Midwest flood, so we moved into our office
in Wamego, where we could at least "camp" and keep working until the
flood subsided.
So, this has been a hectic
period for us, and I apologize for not keeping in better touch.
It was all I could do to stay on top of our many resources at
HorsesOnly. "Nose to the grindstone" doesn't begin to describe what we
have been through. But, we are making progress a little every
day.
None of our contact information has changed ... we
moved only a half
mile south, hardly more than the length of the Kansas River bridge in
between. But what a wonderful change of scenery that has been
:-)
I am very happy to finally get
back to my roots as a pedigree researcher. I have missed
having the time to share 40 years worth of "stuff" I have gathered and
documented on foundation horses and their ancestors. There are stories
to be told and photos I have collected over the years.
The 2009 breeding season is at
hand!
It is extrmely important to go in and
check your pages at Horses Only, Stallion Finder and the Futurity
Guide. Be sure everything is up to date or updated for 2009:
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Send me any modifications or photo changes
you want at StallionFinder.com via email to:
hoofnote@gmail.com.
You can update your classified page by logging
in at
http://buyhorsesonly.com/login.php (If you have forgotten
your password,
send me an email and I will email it to you.)
We now have free photo galleries for our
StallionFinder members. If you haven't used that feature
yet, you are missing a great opportunity.
View the site HERE (http://horsesonly.net)
and contact me to set up your gallery.
If you have not renewed your Stallion Finder
pages in the past 12 months, you can do that online now
By CLICKING HERE (http://horsesonly.com/finder/renew.htm)
We are setting these up for automatic annual reminders, so they
will run for 12 or 6 months from today, and you will receive an
invoice from PayPal 30 days before it is due again.
Note: We do not like surprises, and I'm sure you do not, either,
so all our online payments require your specific authorization before
any payment is triggered. We NEVER set up automatic payments
that take place without your consent and approval.
You must click a button to open an invoice, then click to
actually make the transaction happen.
Updates
on your stallion Finder pages will be made
in the order in which renewals are received. You can mail a payment if
you prefer to use a check, but the online transactions are faster.
(These things are explained in detail on the renewal page.) |
Be sure your stallion pages do not run out,
because I am in the process of deactivating outdated pages and removing
them. If for any reason, you know you will not
be with us this year, please call or send a reply to this note so I
can take the page down.
On the enrollment page, you will see that we have NOT increased
prices, but we do have more options than in the past. You can remain a
part of StallionFinder for as little as $85 to renew for 6 months. We also have
an array of "add-on" features
to enhance your stallion promotion.
If your stallion is Incentive Fund or
Breeders Trust nominated for 2009, don't forget the
Futurity Guide! These stallion
lists are free, but you must opt-in
or let me know so I can add them
to our public lists. Please double-check to see that I have your
stallion on the list for your state. These lists are done by hand, and
I got a late start updating for this year, so let me know if you are
not there yet.
We are in the process of automating the stallion lists, and soon, as the 2009
season stallions are nominated, it will be much easier and faster to
post these lists for public viewing.
I think most of you have set
up your complimentary companion full page ad at our
classified site. If so, your stallion is on the master index at
www.thinkStallions.com.
These pages are unlimited in the amount of information you can add
below the photo and pedigree chart. Perfect for pasting in an extended
performance pedigree, get and produce records of your stallion's
ancestors. These pages are also linked from our equine link directory
at www.ThinkHorses.com.
And ... they are automatically posted at our
equine classified site. These included perks greatly enhance
your internet visibility, as well as putting your stallions in
other places where mare owners are searching for stallions,
including our Futurity Guide
stallion lists, and online
stallion service catalogs!
From the beginning, we
have done things like this to make your exposure on the web as
powerful as possible and drive maximum TARGETED traffic to your
stallion pages. True potential customers looking for your particular
stallion's bloodlines and performance potential, not just
"tire-kickers." This is the difference we deliver, and it
happens on purpose, not by chance.
Probably the most exciting
upcoming feature is the addition of a pedigree database to our
online classified ads and catalog building service.
We have been
planning this for years while building our other breeder
resources, and we are doing the groundwork now for an entirely
new, publicly available, ACCURATE online database. Quarter Horses,
Paints and Appaloosas will be seeded with a database I have
built over many years while offering my pedigree and catalog services,
and includes quite a few performance, get and produce records.
As time
goes on, the volume of records will grow as they are quality checked
and become a permanent part of the database. I will let you know how
to submit records of interest to you in the near future. Once
pedigrees and other data are added to the database of 160,000 horses I
have already compiled, pedigree charts will self-propagate whenever
those ancestors are encountered. I am very excited about this
feature! It will give owners, breeders, buyers, sellers and trainers a
much needed, reliable source of information. Pedigree matters,
it just hasn't been very easy to analyze. That will change.
Also on the HORIZON:
what do you think of
being able to
upload videos directly to our
site?
They would
display on your HorsesOnly, StallionFinder, classifieds and catalog
pages. It will handle high definition (up to 300 megabyte files)
capable of displaying full screen. This means up to 20 to 45 minute
beautiful videos, not just small fuzzy clips!
We are thrilled at the thought of adding this quality option to you.
It is a no-hassle uploading and easy management option for you that is
also ad-free and simple to use for your visitors. We are extremely
happy about this impressive marketing enhancement which will save you
a lot of money producing and mailing tapes and CD/DVD's. Let me
know if you would like to upload a few high quality test videos
as we set this up. Are you not happy with free ad-supported video
hosting sites that bombard your video page with links to look at other
horse videos? From your point of view, what are the pros and cons with
currently available video hosting.
Email me here.
Let me know how you are doing! Between the weather, hay
shortages, economy, and the horse market challenges triggered by a
well-meaning, but misinformed public, this has been a tough year for
many horse owners, including us. To me, it looks like reality is
setting in and people are adjusting in ways that are moving things in
a better direction.
As things change and people adjust, things will seek a balance. The horse market
is handing us challenges for sure, but these changes beyond our
control are also slipping in real opportunities. We need to recognize
them as they arrive, and plan ahead, starting now, to be
ready for a predictable demand for young performance prospects in 3 to
4 years. I want you to be
well positioned at the head of the pack.
Paul and I are pretty much "homebodies" ... which is probably a good
thing because there's a lot to keep us busy this year on the home
front. As always, I will be here to help whenever you need it.
Let me know if you have questions or suggestions about anything.
The very best to you and yours,
Andrea
Andrea Mattson, owner/webmaster
www.HorsesOnly.com
PO Box 148
Wamego KS 66547-0148
Office phone: 785-456-8600
Email: hoofnote@wamego.net
or hoofnote@gmail.com
(especially good for sending photos.)
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