Tiffany Mottesheard has cultivated strong relationships in the horse industry to develop TC Barrel Horses
ELKLAND, MO. – Tiffany Mottesheard was raised on a hobby farm, where she developed a love for animals – namely horses. The farm was modest in size and comprised of different creatures over time, including hogs and cattle, but the horses were purely for the sake of enjoyment.
“The ongoing joke with farmers is that horses are ‘hay burners,’ and there is no room for them to actually be profitable,” Mottesheard said. Regardless, she spent years on horseback, competing in and traveling for barrel racing competitions.
Throughout her adolescence, Mottesheard worked numerous odd jobs, but it was a local veterinarian named Jim Lybyer who introduced the young woman to her calling.
Lybyer served as the veterinary doctor for two Missouri sale barns – the Norwood Producers Auction Yard and the Ozarks Regional Stockyards – where Mottesheard crossed his path. Eventually, she was hired by Lybyer and began absorbing animal husbandry and healthcare like a sponge.
“I learned quite a bit about large animal care that later came in handy for the horses,” she said.
During this time, Mottesheard supplemented her income with other jobs in and around the sale barns; she processed cattle for entry, performed administrative tasks, and served as a pen caller behind the auctioneer booth.
“I was exposed to many different aspects of ag business at those two sale barns,” she said.
After nearly two decades of employment in sale barns, Mottesheard relocated to Elkland in Webster County, Mo., where she married her husband, Cody, whose family’s roots lie in the dairy heifer industry. Working with her husband and father-in-law, Curt, provided Mottesheard with valuable experience in the cattle business, laying the groundwork for what would become a horse breeding program.
Mottesheard’s equine experience gave her an advantage when it came to working with horses; her years on horseback provided her with invaluable knowledge.
“This was a great opportunity to see many other horses and study how each worked and learn more about pedigrees,” she said. “As I learned more about pedigrees, I became more and more interested in the breeding side of horses.”
In 2014, Mottesheard stepped out of her comfort zone and parlayed her interest and knowledge of equine husbandry and reproduction into a horse breeding enterprise. Thus, TC Barrel Horses was formed.
Prior to this move, her experience with professional breeding was limited to a small number of personal-use mares.
To aid her in this endeavor, Mottesheard acquired the help of a veterinarian named Jason Salchow.
“Jason made it easy for me to ask lots of questions and was always extremely knowledgeable and willingly helpful,” she said.
After a few years, however, Salchow entrusted the horse breeding side of his practice to veterinarian Cody Dalton.
The partnership between Dalton and Mottesheard turned out to be one of serendipity, as the duo proved a particularly effective team. Both took an interest in modern technology’s place in the world of horse breeding.
“Breeding has advanced a lot since I started,” Mottesheard said.
All of the reproduction she oversees is completed via Artificial Insemination (AI). Since its inception in 2014, Mottesheard’s operation has raised approximately 100 foals (as of the publication of this article).
“Selling foals has opened up so many doors with countless great buyers and relationships,” Mottesheard said.
Many buyers have turned their purchased horses into barrel racing winners and countless more have become repeat customers.
“The success of my customers with horses out of my program is very rewarding,” Mottesheard said, “and made me want to try to make some winners for myself.”
This mindset motivated her to reach out to Jolene Montgomery, a prominent futurity barrel horse rider. Upon connecting with Montgomery, Mottesheard became involved with barrel racing futurities.
“My relationship with her [Montgomery] has been a huge blessing,” Mottesheard said.
Using her breeding expertise, Mottesheard has selected five horses (so far) to place in Montgomery’s futurity program — three of those five have exceeded expectations at futurity events.
“With my horse business growing, I was able to start doing a couple other things that go very well with my business,” Mottesheard said.
She became a horse feed distributor for Dove Nutrition and even purchased a headstall business. Mottesheard emphasized that such opportunities don’t materialize overnight; they are a product of years of thought and hard work.
Paramount to success (both business and personal), though, is the cultivation of healthy relationships. Mottesheard said that, in her time as a horse breeder, she has forged strong relationships with a multitude of great men and women, some of whom have become her close friends.
She said that young women interested in agriculture must do nothing if not follow this advice: go for it.
“You have to take some chances. You have to work hard. And you are going to need good relationships with people that will teach you so much, and you will teach them something too,” Mottesheard said. “I am thankful that I was able to make a business out of a bunch of ‘hay burners.’”
