Welcome to Hawthorn Hill Foxtrotters
Thanks for visiting my site! Updated 10/01/2024
The goal of Hawthorn Hill Foxtrotters is to promote usefulness and versatility in order to restore the breed’s credibility as a true working horse that quite frankly, it lacks these days. Gaited horses were the first choice of mount for cowboys “back in the day” when they needed a comfortable horse with a good worth ethic that was capable of going all day long. Now, all you see in the working pens are Quarter Horses. Achieving a change in perception toward our breed requires producing safe, athletic horses with naturally good dispositions, conformation, correct gait, and substantial size. A range of horses are offered for sale from weanlings to finished riding horses, ready for the trail, show ring, and everything in between. These horses are loved and handled daily from birth, and it shows in their love and trust toward humans.
Training: Our Philosophy
We are extremely excited to announce that we will now be offering training services for horses of all ages and disciplines! It takes a good foundation to create a solid, reliable horse and at Hawthorn Hill Foxtrotters, we believe in starting with the basics to find any “holes” in the horse’s training. Starting basic doesn’t necessarily mean slow progress; it means creating an understanding so that your horse moves forward with an understanding of their partnership with you.
We are unique in that we are a team- Claire and Trent Burch both have backgrounds in colt starting and working with a wide range of breeds but of course, the Missouri Fox Trotter is our specialty. We work with all ages, from halter breaking and ground work with weanlings and yearlings, to starting 2 and 3 year olds under saddle, to finding and fixing the root cause of your discontent with your older horses.
Another aspect of our program that really sets us apart is the careful research that goes into the well being of the horses in our care. We invest in quality tack and equipment so that your horse has the best experience possible. We educate ourselves as much as possible in equine biomechanics, saddle fit, and nutrition so that your horse comes home their absolute best both mentally and physically. We don’t do what we can to cut costs but instead give your horses all the best and hope that you see the difference that we do.
Weanlings and Yearlings: Respect from the Ground
$1500/30 days
Weanlings and Yearlings: Respect from the Ground-Get your young ones leading, trailer loading, standing tied, standing for hoof trimming, bathing, a fluent understanding of ground work, and so much more!
Colt Starting and Beyond
$2,750/6 weeks
Let us create a willing partner both on the ground and under saddle with a solid foundation in the arena and on the trail! Whether you have a performance show prospect, versatility prospect, or trail prospect, we believe in starting them all the same. We will put a good foundation on your horses as well as lead you through having the same success with them yourself once they’re ready to come home.
Foals
Born 09/22/2024
HHF Final Play’s first foal, sired by HHF Bentley, is a gorgeous black (possibly homozygous, possibly smoky) colt that is already showing signs of being special at just one day old. I’m so grateful to have this foal after losing Bentley so suddenly. Lila and Bentley are both horses that we bred and raised & this foal checks every box- perfect gait, both sire and dam have lovely canters, conformation, disposition, naturally brave and curious, Lila has natural cow sense and a fantastic work ethic, and the foal should be a perfect 15-15.2 hand height based on parentage. You also can’t go wrong with a set of papers like this, with names including Cardinal’s MVP, The Cardinal M., Playboy Remedy, Time To Tango, Jester’s Charming Legend, and Sunrise Tradition.
Coming April 2025
After seeing the quality Maddie is capable of producing, we are excitedly anticipating the arrival of her 2025 Bentley foal! We couldn’t ask for a nicer mare to carry his last offspring.
Coming April 2025
After the passing of HHF Bentley, we’re extremely thankful to have this nice foal out of Misty on the way. If this cross is anything like the last, it will be shockingly gorgeous, solidly built, and one of the kindest “in your pocket” dispositions that we are consistently seeing in Bentley foals. The last cross resulted in a stocky colt that should mature 14.3-15 hands and is homozygous black, though his owner was searching for a gelding when she found him.
HORSES
Horses range in price due to their natural abilities, training level, future potential, and ability to reproduce. Prices on young horses will be updated every few weeks to reflect their training.
HHF Bentley
In loving memory 09/02/2019-09/05/2024
Bentley was a September 2019 colt by Time To Tango and out of a Sunrise Tradition mare. He has a World Grand Champion title in the Open Weanling Model division, Reserve Champion Yearling at the National Breeder’s Championship show, and Reserve World Grand Champion in the Amateur division in 2021. I have many videos of his amazing gait that he inherited from some of the legendary names on his papers, including some really strong maternal lines. These include Time To Tango, Jester’s Charming Legend, Spitfire’s Golden Sunrise, Patriot’s Traveling Spitfire, Sunrise Tradition, and Perfection’s Baron Star. I believe he is an ideal representation of the breed, with phenomenal gait, thick bone, and a quiet, people oriented disposition that he passes on to his foals. He has the traits of a true working horse that I want to preserve in this breed, built to get the job done, and built to last! Being smoky black, he can produce black, bay, smoky black, buckskin, palomino, and chestnut with a “plain” chestnut mare, though he was not bred for color. We were absolutely thrilled with his fall 2023 foals and have many more on the way.
Perfect Tango
$14,000
Cricket is a WIDE 14.3 hand fall 2018 mare by Time To Tango and out of Twilight Tradition (by Sunrise Tradition). She is a full sibling to our stallion, HHF Bentley. She was bred to be a performance quality show horse and that’s exactly what she is and then some. Her stride length at her breathtaking fox trot is absolutely unreal and she has a beautiful, correct lope. She eats up the distance on the trail, excels in all aspects of ranch work, and has really turned into an all around safe, useful horse. She performs well for timid riders as well and has been used for lessons. She has so much try & is an absolute joy to work with. On top of her promising career under saddle, she is also the 2022 Open Junior Model Reserve World Grand Champion. She has proved her worth time and time again, being used in real world scenarios on ranches and out performing Quarter Horses when gathering cattle, sorting, and roping. She is my go-to horse to grab when I get a call that someone needs help with their cows. She is exactly the type of horse I wish to continue to produce. She produced one of the nicest fillies I’ve ever seen in September 2023.
Mouse’s Magic Misty Grey
Not for sale
Misty is a 14.3 hand 2004 mare by the late, great stallion of the 80s, Grey’s Stud Mouse. She was shown in her younger years, used to check cattle, and was a good, solid trail horse. She has such a quiet, calming presence that is just amazing to be around and so willing under saddle. She really out produced herself with a gorgeous colt in September 2023 by HHF Bentley and in foal with another Bentley foal due March 2025. Due to her age, I do not think it is fair to sell her.
Little Birdie
Not for sale
Birdie is a February 2022 filly raised by Susan and Gary Thomlinson. I have immense respect for their breeding program and jumped on the opportunity to own this filly. She has the disposition that their herd is famous for and is as gaited as it gets. She will be an amazing model, versatility, ranch horse, and beginner friendly trail prospect. She is a Chocolatier granddaughter out of a Gone N Dun It daughter. She is homozygous for black with one copy of the silver gene. I bought her knowing that she would cross extremely well with Bentley someday to produce some seriously stocky offspring and perfect all around prospects. She is currently 14.3 hands and her heart girth measurement puts her at over 1,000 lbs at 2 1/2 yrs old. I would expect her to mature at 15-15.1 hands with an extremely wide frame. She will make a fantastic trail/versatility/ranch horse prospect and we look forward to keeping her as our daughter’s first horse.
HHF Final Play
Available after foaling/weaning $9,000
This April 2021 filly is everything I dreamed she would be. Photos do her no justice; she is extremely well built with kind eyes and Katie’s beautiful arched neck, shows absolutely amazing rhythm in her flat foot walk and fox trot, and is so smart and easy to work with. She is on track to mature at a wide framed 15.1. She is fluent in the Fundamentals on the ground and under saddle. You never have to worry about what gait she’ll give you- she is geared to flat foot walk, fox trot, and canter, and will walk slower at “Quarter Horse speed.” She even has a gorgeous, correct slow lope with lovely, low headed self carriage. She is in foal to HHF Bentley and due in September 2024!
Sheza Whole Lot Of Chocolate “Maddie”
Not for sale.
Maddie is a stunning 14 hand, 2013 daughter of the world famous Chocolatier, who was purchased and shipped to stand at stud in Austria, and out of a very nice performance mare with greats on her papers such as The Cardinal M., Cast Iron Willy, and Traveler’s Jester. She has really stood out in the show ring, being one of the few horses of rare color in the performance ring to really hold their own and place well, even at Ava and the NAB show. I’m excited to see what she produces- she is such a high quality mare, regardless of color, and will produce great performance prospects with bright futures, color or no color. She has been bred to C.I.A. this spring and will be bred to Bentley in the future. She is not for sale due to the fact that a friend entrusted me with her in hopes that I would keep and appreciate her, not turn around and sell her for profit.
HHF Old Money
Born 10/10/2023 This colt is absolutely breathtaking! The quality in the conformation, disposition, and gait bred into him have come from inheriting the best possible combination of traits from both Katie and Bentley. I am so smitten with this big guy! He’s the biggest foal I’ve ever seen, has that “born broke” disposition that Bentley and Southern Playboy are known for, soft, loose gait, and is just stunning to look at on top of it all. He stands at 14 hands already at 10 months old, is projected to mature at 15.2-15.3, and is so solidly built! He is a phenomenal example of the quality Bentley produces and will remain intact. He is a color tested cremello (ee/aa/CrCr).
HHF Mayhem
Not for sale
This Sept 2023 filly by C.I.A and out of Perfect Tango is going to be an absolute powerhouse. She is a big, flashy mover expected to mature at 13.3-14 hands. Unlike our other foals, she is on the hotter side, yet she is still very intelligent and engaging to work with. We’re excited about making her Claire’s personal mount rather than trying to sell her. She’ll be a phenomenal all around horse in the right hands.
Blue Jeans Only
Not for sale
We are incredibly excited to welcome home this 4 month old filly by Tri-Mi Off To See The Wizard and out of a Sensation’s Southern Gentleman bred mare. She checks absolutely every box for us, from her wife build and solid conformation to her intelligent, trainable disposition, her pretty little head, soft gait, and she’s homozygous for black as well as homozygous for roan. She should mature to a very solid 15 hands and will have a career both under saddle and as a brood mare. She will have a bright future here with us.
HHF Miss USA
At 4 months old, this filly has some serious presence. With a sire like C.I.A. and a dam like Maddie, I suppose it shouldn’t be a surprise! She has major show potential with some really impressive rhythm and shake. She is on track to be significantly taller than her sire and dam, in the 15-15.2 hand range. l
Sold Horses
Elinor’s Southern Rhythm
