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Appaloosa History
Les Sauer Appaloosa Legacy
Loose in the Palouse

Story and photos by Alen Bell

[Reprint from the Cascade Horseman, November, 1988]
My thanks to the author, Alen Bell, for writing this; to Bonnie Newitt for sharing the article;
and to Les Sauer and his spotted horses - an inspiration to all of us with "spotted fever".

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Foreword:
The following is a brief annotated pictorial description of the love of Les Sauer for the foundation Appaloosa. He developed, over four decades, one of the largest gene pools of foundation appaloosas in the United States. My interest in sharing Les’ passion is a result of his foresight. He sold to me young stock that was considered not for sale, perhaps because he came to see I shared and appreciated his passion. Now, 20 years later, I can repay his generosity in part by sharing his labor of love with others.

It should be noted that I have tried to capture a full picture of Les Sauer’s endeavor from a limited viewpoint. Almost all of the photos were taken by me in 1988 and 1989 and placed in two large photo Albums with attached notation, page by page and animal by animal. I closely coordinated with Les to document as accurately as possible the lineage and dates of birth out of admiration for his wonderful herd of horses without consideration any future impact the photos might make. I also was trying to decide which horses I might want to purchase and to insure that each could be registered with the ApHC. Perhaps some minor errors remain due memory lapse or lack of facts. I wish only to share with others the appreciation I came to have for the labor of love that Les Sauer demonstrated for the “spotted horse of the Palouse”.

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One man keeping ... Spots on the Horses

Where is the Appaloosa in the Appaloosa of today? Sad to say a genuine Appaloosa in modern Appaloosas is almost as hard to find as a real silver dollar. “Out-crossing for conformation” has become the standard cry of most modern Appaloosa breeders. A check on many pedigrees reveals often very little Appaloosa background. Most modern out-crossings are with thoroughbreds or Quarter horse. Such out-crosses have become the rule rather than the exception.

Take a look at the winners in almost any recent Appaloosa show and try to pick out which are Appaloosas by sight—no cheating—don’t look at the pedigrees (as if that will be much help in many cases). Blood tests are now often required as many Appaloosas have no recognizable markings, i.e., spot, blanket, visible eye schlera [sic] or striped hoofs.

Contrary to popular belief, the Appaloosa is alive and well. There are two large Appaloosa-to-Appaloosa herds in Wyoming. The fledgling Toby Breeders’ Association is also attempting to maintain a relatively pure line of Appaloosa foundation breeding stock. These T.B.A. breeders have been using the well-known “Toby” line as a true breeding Appaloosa line. Outcrosses to other breeds as Quarter horses or Thoroughbreds are discouraged by members. There remains still one large relatively untapped pool of registerable foundation Appaloosa breed stock.

Scattered throughout eastern Washington and northern Idaho remains one of the largest reservoirs of pure Appaloosa stock existing west of the Rockies. It originated in and radiates from a small town in the Palouse Hills of southeastern Washington. The fact it still exists is no accident, it is due to the love of one man for “the spotted horse.”

Three miles east of Dusty, along Washington Highway 26 enroute to Colfax, lies a narrow valley nestled between the rolling Palouse Hills. In this valley and on the surrounding hillsides, too steep for dryland farming, roam several bands of foundation Appaloosa. For the most part, they run unfettered, having never been under saddle nor rope. No one who knows anything about Appaloosas—the spotted horse of the Palouse—has to ask what kind of horse are these. Here spots are the rule rather than the exception.

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Due to infighting in the registry in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, few of these horses found their way into the mainstream of the appaloosa breeders.

Casual caustic comments from unknowledgable skeptics aside, this is not a rag-tag band of rejects and scrubs. Through the blood of these horses course the bloodline of such Appaloosa studs as Toby II, Polkadott Toby, Blue Bear, Stormcloud F and Red Eagle. Champions can indeed come from foundation Appaloosa stock.

Mere chance did not place this herd in the Palouse Hills. This is the result of much hard work and planning of one man. For over 25 years Les Sauer has developed a true, stable breeding line through careful, systematic breeding to select lines. Les has developed a rare, uplifting love affair with “the spotted horse” as he often refers to his Appaloosas. The main difference with Les is that he has acted on his dreams and desires until he has one of the largest herds of foundation Appaloosa stock in the west.

Les, himself, is a rare breed indeed----just ask any of his many friends and neighbors around the Northwest. His horses are his hobby and his love, but not his livelihood.

Les and his son, John, farm some 1,300 plus acres near Dusty. He also farms other wheatlands from Endicott, Washington to Lapwai, Idaho. Though he is busy from early morning until late at night with his farming, he still manages to squeeze in time for his horses with the help of several informal horse partners and hired hands.

That Les works too hard for a man three-score plus is a gross understatement. In his schedule he still takes time to talk to friends and tell tales of farming, horses and old friendships. To know Les is to love him. Here is an example of that rare endangered species, the real western man, energetic and enterprising to a fault. He still works hard well beyond an age when most of us look forward to retirement. Bad-mouth Les to his many neighbors and friends and you will soon have a fight on your hands. Les has many friends and his chief enemies are time and age. Here is a man who loves to live and lives to give.

Color with conformation is no accident in the Les Sauer herd. Les started years ago purchasing a few choice animals with the guidance of an old friend, Palmer Wagner. From a few horses came a herd produced by studs like Polkadott Bear, Simcoe’s Pataha and Pretty Boy. Les has three separate bands at Dusty, and he and his friends, John Yearout and Erv Waters share two herds at Lapwai, Idaho.

Several choice horses from Les Sauer’s herd dot the Northwest. Joseph Plains [363557], owned by Carol Boyko of Boring, Oregon, is a product of this herd. Ken Blivens of Bend, Oregon, owns Keuten's Toby, also a Sauer bred stud. Several of his horses have been sold to people as far away as Canada and California.

Les has young horses for sale but treats each horse with special care. A filly may not have a name, but Les will quickly fill you in on her background from memory with few moments of hesitation. Les is generally reluctant to just sell a horse. As a buyer looks at a horse, he is perhaps given closer scrutiny than the buyer gives the horse. Since Les knows his young animals almost like children, one is not just sold to anyone. First one must pass Les’ test.

Experience shows these are not wild horses; they quickly gentle down to be dependable saddle stock and excellent breeding animals. Some of the animals can be purchased and gelded early for inexpensive registration. Most of the horses can be registered in the ApHC.

Owning one of Les’ fine animals is only part of the experience. Getting to meet this special man is also an unforgettable experience. With the horse also goes a special background that only can be provided by a man who knows and loves his Horses.

Fortunately for horse lovers of the Northwest, there still remains a pool of foundation Appaloosa stock just waiting for a new home. Each spring brings with it a new and different crop of spotted horses on the Les Sauer farm.

Even if you have no facility for a new horse, the visit is well worth a side trip. Seldom will you be given such a treat as to view 20 to 30 young, spotted colts frolicking by their mothers, often right next to the highway. Such a trip will prove to be a rewarding experience.

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[authors note: This article is revealing about the Les Sauer legacy and is therefore included even though it is now somewhat outdated after the death of Les Sauer and the dispersal of the herd.]

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The Les Sauer Appaloosa Legacy, Loose in the Palouse
Development of the Les Sauer foundation Appaloosa Herd

Les Sauer was a Palouse grain producer who lived on his family farm in the hills and valley East of Dusty, Washington. Les and his son, John, farmed over 1.300 acres near Dusty, Washington. He also farmed other wheat lands from Endicott, Washington to Lapwai, Idaho. While wheat faming was his livelihood, raising appaloosas was his passion. His herds of horses roamed the rolling Palouse hills and the lush sub-irrigated valley floor of the tiny Alkali Flat Creek.

During the 1950’s and 1960’s, Les developed a horse herd using selected appaloosas to gather a fairly pure gene pool. No small part of his pool gathering was due to the influence of Palmer Wagner, a notable appaloosa breeder of the time. Palmer Wagner notes the background of the Les Sauer breeding program on pages 134 to 135 in his book, The American Appaloosa Anthology.

Mr. Wagner mentioned Les’ early stallions, Doc Nelson [F-2531], Simcoe's Pataha 8824 (1960) and his own chosen breeding of Polkadott Bear from Rustee Blue purchased by Les from Palmer Wagner in foal to Polkadott Toby [F-3973]. Les also owned Pretty Boy [F-2258]. He acquired, in partnership with Dave Messerschmitt, Eagle’s Yodeler [161230], a Canadian bred stud (not related to Red Eagle). Eagle’s Yodeler was extensively used for breeding by Les during the 1980’s until Eagle’s Yodeler’s death during the winter of 1986-1987.

He also acquired early several notable brood mares including Rustee Blue 67539 which he purchased from Palmer Wagner. He purchased Ralstin’s Silver LeLanie [F-4063] from Chub Ralstin’s herd. He bought three Blue Bear [F-3696] daughters. Two of these daughters, including Snowcap Sis W [34323] and Prontita Chic [54928] were also purchased from Palmer Wagner. He acquired Chico’s Birdwoman [T-2151] from a source unknown to me. [Richard Stanger?]

Les also raised and bred several of his own stallions, including Pretty Boy Too, Polkadott Cochise, Polkadott Snuffy, Pretty Bear and Bear Boy Too. Most of his brood mares during the 1980’s were from his own breeding program.

In about 1872, the Furman family moved approximately 80 head of cattle and several hundred head of horses from their ranch in Baker, Oregon to an open range area near Olds, Alberta Canada. It is noteworthy that this was about five years prior to the Nez Perce war of 1877. The Furmans ran livestock on open range until the Canadian government opened the land up for homesteading in the 1930s to 1940s. The Furmans had been providing mounts for both the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the U.S Calvary. This change in market condition affected the Furmans. They sold most of their horses but kept some light carriage horses and a select few appaloosas.

Eagle’s Yodeler was a double registered, Canadian and U.S. ApHc, son (or even a possible grandson of Kenny’s Eagle, often referred to as Spencer Kennys old appy, or other names. Chief Justice Allen, the sire, was actually a registered Tennessee Walking Horse, TWA, # 3.and the dam was a Furman appaloosa mare. This means that Eagle’s Yodeler had no Red Eagle blood in him, contrary to popular belief.

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The Disenchantment

Unfortunately, during the early 1970’s, Les became disenchanted with the Appaloosa Horse Club’s move towards the Quarter Horse line. Few of his lines were thereafter registered. Joseph Plains was registered in the late 1970’s before being sold and moved to Montana. Keutan’s Toby was registered while being sold to Ken Bliven of Tumalo, Oregon. Les and I registered approximately a dozen dams and foals during my purchase of several of Les’s 1986, 1988 and 1989 foals. Perhaps several other horses were registered and sold unbeknownst to me. Unfortunately, most of this beautiful herd remained unregistered.

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The End of Les Sauer's herd

This tragedy was compounded when, after his death, I learned, too late, that most of his herd, without regard to registration, had been seized by his commercial Bank and sold at auction in Spokane. Other young stock had in the past been already sent to a lady friend of Les in the Spokane area to train and help sell. Perhaps a few scattered buyers will be helped to locate the background of their purchases, and perhaps a few will find their prize purchase was actually registered.

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Author’s special note: Prior to listing Les Sauer’s horses in general, a brief explanation of the problem posed to me is in order. How do I sort the horses? The most logical method would seem to be to list the horses by name. The fact remains that approximately 90% of Les’ horses were not registered and the names ascribed to them were names I personally ascribed to them (with a few notable exceptions that Les named such as, “The Blind Lady” or “Scrap Iron”) while trying to photograph them as I learned more about his horses. Most of my names came from significant features or coat patterns or ancestry. Names, therefore, lend no significance to any listing, except to me personally. Similarly, listing by Dam, Sire or birth date is fraught with the same difficulty.

If one were to visit Les and view his horses, he would usually state some thing like, “look at the young filly from the old black daughter of Bonnie on the ‘North Hill’”. I therefore came to the conclusion that listing the horses must be done in the same way Les, others and I have discussed, visited and sorted them for years, by Bands. Even though Les changed horses from band to band occasionally, Les always pointed out to me when I visited significant changes made in each band. He said on one occasion, “That is the Blue Roan qualified me as a frequent visitor mare in the West Pasture that was on the North hill the last time you were here”. I might add that six visits in 1988 and several more in the next two years, (a round trip of about 960 miles.)

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The North Hills Band

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The North Hills Band - Stallions

Palmer Wagner, in his book, The American Appaloosa Anthology, page 135, stated that Les came to Palmer’s ranch in 1965 looking for breeding stock. He purchased Rustee Blue from Palmer and requested that the filly be bred to Palmer’s stud Polkadott Toby. The resulting foal was Polkadott Bear, foaled in 1966. Polkadott Bear [232845] became a significant breeding stud for Lesfor over a decade in the 1970s and early 1980s. Les loaned Polkadott Bear to John Yearout and Erv Waters in Cottonwood Idaho in the mid-1980s. Unfortunately Polkadott Bear died during the winter of 1988-1989 before I could photograph him.

Polkadott Cochise was a beautiful leopard stud that ran on the North Hill for years. His sire was Polkadott Bear and his dam was Pretty Bonnie. He was destroyed in late 1988 after his Knee was disjointed while rounding up the band for purchase of the filly which came to be registered by Les and me under the name of Lacey Daze (I suspect that he may not have been listed by Les as sire for several north Hill Band foals because he was destroyed prior to registration of himself or the foals).

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The North Hills Band - Mares

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The East Valley Band

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The West Valley Band

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The South Hill Band

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The Yard Band

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The Les Sauer/John Yearout Band, Cottonwood, Idaho

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The Les Sauer/Erv Waters Band at Cottonwood, Idaho

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Yodies Appaloosas, Alen K. Bell

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This page last updated August 2015