WAIKATO Stud
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aikato Stud’s Chittick family have been sitting on the top shelf of thoroughbred breeding for thirty years. In that time, Waikato Stud has been awarded Champion New Zealand Breeder ten times, Savabeel has been Champion Sire on eight occasions, and now young gun Super Seth is flying from the gates with his first juveniles. Waikato Stud consistently leads New Zealand as a producer of Gr1 winners. When Waikato Stud present a draft at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Sale, they bear close watching. The results speak for themselves with their 2021 sales graduates including Gr.1 winner Major Beel, Listed winner Avebury, and stakes placed city winner Hoops. Waikato Stud’s silks have been prominent in the winner’s circle with Gr1 TJ Smith Stakes winner I Wish I Win, Gr1 winner Skew Wiff, and Gr1 winner Never Been Kissed, and in 2024, Waikato Stud will present eight yearlings at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. What makes Waikato Stud so successful? The underlying principle of raising horses at Waikato Stud is to be as natural as possible. Mark and his father Garry both believe that a major asset is the land the horses are raised on in the Waikato region of New Zealand. “Waikato Stud, and probably other properties in these parts, is made up of volcanic ash on top of sand, so the subsoil is very free draining,” Garry
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said. “It’s a big thing to rear horses on ground where they are never cold through the winter as it reduces their energy requirements. The protein levels in the grass here would never be below 20 per cent.” It’s a rare luxury in farming, where the natural elements are so good and healthy that human intervention isn’t needed, or even wanted. “We’re forever asking, what would they be doing in the wild?” Mark says. “What would they be doing if they were rearing themselves? We leave all our colts together right until we start the yearling prep basically, and they fight and scrap and carry on and they get bumps and bruises, but I think it’s good for them. Likewise, we love running our young horses in eight to 10-acre paddocks in groups of six or so, keeping everything as natural as possible.” I Wish I Win’s tale is emblematic of Waikato’s ethos. Born with deformed limbs, I Wish I Win was not subjected to corrective surgery a testament to the ‘less is more’ philosophy. But that doesn’t mean the horses are left entirely to themselves - far from it, in fact. There are many management options that can be taken to assist in correction, with the stud focusing on natural management strategies. “Each foal is under the vigilant care of experienced hands,” explains Chittick. The stud’s team, seasoned in nurturing foals, embraces patience and natural growth, eschewing
