‘Myterra Ranch is a family-based business owned and operated by Ed and Connie Masson and their son, Benjamin. Its core land base has been in the Masson family name for nearly 100 years.
Located in the rolling sand hills of east central Alberta, near the small towns of Cadogan and Metiskow, it is home to a Quarter Horse breeding program centered on the great stallion Pepinics Master.
The Masson’s strive to raise horses that are athletic, balanced, trainable, good looking and that have great dispositions. The horses grow up in native grass pastures developing their athletic ability as they run and play up and down the hills, dodging the occasional badger hole and buck brush patch.
Many of the horses the Masson’s raise are sold off the ranch as weanlings or yearlings. Those that aren’t sold at this age are sent out to be started by either Clifford Elliott or Clint Christianson. When they come back to the ranch they are used working cattle in the cow-calf or grass stocker enterprises that the Masson’s also operate.
Both Ed and Connie’s main ranch horses are products of their breeding program. Remy and Nita help make working cattle much easier and know exactly what to do when you cut one out of the bunch.
Ed started raising horses in the early 1980s when he purchased a mare called Saucy Rocket from the Art Busse dispersal sale. His main ranch horse, Remy, is a son of this mare and sired by Pepinics Master.
Over the years, the broodmare band has evolved to its present group of mares that represent the bloodlines of Trinas Lena and Docs Royal Lancer (both Doc O’Lena sons), Genuine Peppy, Doc Sug, Sonitas Last, San Bo Mico and Pepinics Master. All of their mares are friendly and will come up to see you in the pasture looking for a treat and a friendly scratching.
Their mares were purchased or raised to help them reach their goal of producing horses that will be champions in the disciplines of cutting, working cow horse, reining, and competitive working ranch horse.
One example of the success of Ed and Connie’s breeding program is MTR Anuthagenuinenic (Pepinics Master x Miss Genuine King), who was declared the champion at the 2006 Canada’s Greatest Cow Horse competition and champion of the ARCHA 2006 Canadian Open All Round Stock Horse class. MTR Anuthagenuinenic has also earned money in cutting and working cow horse competitions.
Another example would be MTR Isle of Rubies (Pepinics Master x MTR Jewelena). This beautiful sorrel filly was the champion of the 2006 Canadian Supreme Limited Open Snaffle Bit Futurity and reserve champion of the 2006 ARCHA Limited Open Snaffle Bit Futurity.
In the spring of 2007, Ed and Connie are eagerly awaiting future champions from eight mares bred to Pepinics Master and three Pepinics Master daughters bred to Lena Talks Cash, EF Pepi Kola and a son of Pepto Taz. All horses bred and raised at Myterra Ranch are given the prefix MTR as part of their registered name.
Because of Pepinics Master’s ability to produce championship quality horses from a wide range of mare bloodlines, the Masson’s also keep busy in the spring breeding mares for other owners. From 1999 to 2005, this work was contracted out to Olds College.
In 2006, Ed and Connie decided to keep Pepinics Master at home and offer artificial insemination and transported cooled semen services from the ranch. In addition to the outside mares that were bred at the ranch, semen was shipped to mare owners in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia.
Ed and Connie are the first ones to acknowledge that their success is based on the greatness of the stallion Pepinics Master. Since being purchased from Gary Cooper in 1996, the blood bay stallion has carved out a niche for himself in the Canadian western performance horse industry.
He did it by proving himself in the cutting arena (1998 Canadian Cutting Open Champion) and then by siring offspring, who have won championships in cutting, reining, snaffle bit, working cow horse, ranch horse, and barrel racing competitions. His AQHA records show his 48 performing offspring have won approximately $245,000 cutting (NCHA), $15,000 in working cow horse (NRCHA), and $2200 in reining (NRHA). Pepinics Master is also the number one sire in the Canadian Supreme combined events statistics.
Ed, Connie, and their son Benjamin, are looking forward to several more years of raising Pepinics Master offspring. And to the challenge of finding a stallion to breed to their Pepinics Master daughters, producing offspring that will carry forward the Myterra championship banner.
The Masson’s welcome visitors to the ranch and can be contacted at office ph: (780) 857-2744, email ranchboss@myterraranch.com or visit their website at www.myterraranch.com.
