Spotlight on Our Member!

Joe and Joyce Youngker Perkins, Perkins, Oklahoma

Youngker Quarter Horse Ranch was originally formed in the late 1960's as a partnership between two brothers, Joe and Billy Youngker and their uncle, Jessie Youngker. This partnership was later dissolved in the early 1980's with Joe L. Youngker acquiring sole ownership of Youngker Quarter Horse Ranch in Perkins, Oklahoma.

Joe grew up helping his Dad, Lorin Youngker, break horses to ride with many a spill out in the plowed ground, where they often rode green broke horses. One of the first Skipper-bred quarter horse stallions owned by Youngker was purchased from Monte Reger of Woodward, Oklahoma. He was by a son of Skipper W, Skip Em Bar. Skip Em Bar was out of a daughter of Three Bars, one of three daughters of Three Bars that Hank Wiescamp used with Skipper W. Other early stallions owned and used were: Tough Times, '69 palomino by Skips Crown by Bar Mount x a Cody Bar mare; Skip N Gold, palomino by Skips Bartender by Skippers King; Skips Approach, by Skipa Star x Skips Vexen; Skippa Air, sorrel stud by Skips Lark x a Skippers King mare; Skip One Skip by Skippers King and Social Skip by Skips Reward; Skips True Elm by Skips Chant and Elm's Rosalie; Skips Avengeance by Skips Bid and Skips Maiden; Skips Count by Skippers King.

One of the first stallions Joe purchased from Hank in 1979 was Skippa Sure Bar, one of seven stallions produced by Hank's great mare, Sure Bar and by Skippa Go by Skippa Lark. Joe originally purchased half-interest in Skippa Sure Bar and later purchased Hank's remaining interest. Skippa Sure Bar made a significant impact in the Youngker breeding program with a few own daughters remaining in the broodmare band today. He produced numerous world champions. Joe purchased, Something Classic, (Skippa Lark x a daughter of Skippers King) from Larry Wilcox in 1984. He was crossed on a daughter, Skip N Teeka, of Skip N Chant-the Wiescamp leased stallion, to produce Classical Skipper. The bottom side of this mare, Skip N Teeka, went back to Skip N Gold, a Skippers King-bred stallion, that Joe owned.

Classical Skipper was bred and raised on the Youngker Ranch and currently stands as the senior, premier breeder on the ranch today. Other Skipper W bred stallions standing at the Youngker Ranch are: Staint Sheen, sorrel by St. Dancer and daughter of Skippa On by Skippers King. Skip Perceptive, palomino, by Classical Skipper, and daughter of Obvious Conclusion. Skip To Tradition, palomino, by Classical Skipper and daughter of Super Half Time. Skippers Union, sorrel by Skip N Union and daughter of Skippers Ring. Skip Perspective, buckskin by Classical Skipper and daughter of Gold Fingers and Skips Bartender. Tender Legend, sorrel by Something Classic and daughter of Skips Bartender. Classical Tender, palomino by Something Classic and daughter of Skips Hostage. Skips Contention, sorrel by Classical Skipper and daughter of Skippa Air. Classical Skipper as senior sire on the Youngker Quarter Horse Ranch/Bar Y Ranch, which is primarily a horse breeding/cattle ranch, has currently sired between 300 and 400 horses, that have gone all over the US, Old Mexico and Venezuela. He sires both performance and halter horses that have won numerous awards in this and other countries.

The ranch currently consists of approximately 4,000 acres of bermuda and native grasses. Also, we raise approximately 400 acres of wheat. Eighty seven mares have foaled on the ranch this year, which consists of sorrels, buckskins, grays, and palominos. We start selling these foals for delivery as weanlings, as stallions, performance, and halter prospects. Some are retained as future stallion and broodmare replacements. The ranch is currently operated by Joe and Joyce Youngker and three full-time employees that live on the ranch. It's located approximately 60 miles from Oklahoma City on Highway 105, 20 miles east of Guthrie, Oklahoma. Joe is also currently using an outcross gray stallion in his breeding program, Be My Sierra, by Sierra Te and a daughter of Jackie Bee.

Joe is a firm believer that while he linebreeds  Skipper W/Wiescamp horses, he must also bring in an outcross stallion ever so often to interject additional beneficial traits to insure that he is keeping up with the ever-changing modern quarter horse type. However, Joe emphasizes that no matter how appealing an outcross stallion may look, the stallion may not work in improving his breeding program. The pedigrees and genetics of the Skippers and selected outcrosses may not compliment each other in which case, another outcross or partial outcross will have to be selected. He emphasizes that the breeding of quarter horses is a highly skilled, selective and competitive process that may not always achieve satisfactory results by the breeder. It entails the study of pedigrees, past histories of horses in those pedigrees, and the physical traits of the various horses being bred and produced.

Joe also believes very strongly that the quarter horse business is so highly competitive these days, that anyone going in to the business must specialize and not try to be a jack-of-all trades so to speak! More specifically, specialize in breeding, racing, training, or halter. Trying to diversify into more than one of these facets of the business could well spell disaster for the beginner. For example, Joe states, the showing and fitting of halter horses as one facet can be equated to that of a great artist - not all people have the necessary talent to do it. While on the other hand, they might do very well with performance horses. See Youngker Quarter Horse ads in the August 2000 issue of the QHJ.