Looking back a number of years, Todd Michael Show Horses began back when Todd was a youth. It all began with his mother who worked on the family farm in order to save enough money to buy her own horse. A horse that she rode everywhere and then began showing in barrels at any local shows she could find. Upon meeting her husband, Richard, she immediately decided to share this passion with him. Eventually Richard's whole family became involved with horses. His father and mother, Philip and Eileen Michael, began to build a breeding program. They purchased an AQHA stallion, hauled home in the back end of a pickup truck and then traveled out west to Texas and Montana to begin collecting broodmares. Oh what they didn't know then (not knowing that they had purchased full sisters to NCHA cutting champion, Hollywood Joanie, to name a few). Philip and Eileen raised numerous futurity champions, several NRHA reining champions, and AQHA Superior award winners in their limited breeding operation over the years.

It was in Todd's heritage to be into the horses. His father had purchased a pony before he was old enough to walk and his father had transferred his own love of horses to Todd while he was just a toddler. Sadly, Todd's father had his life cut short in a fatal horse accident. While this may have stopped Todd's mother from pursuing anything more with horses, his family continued on. It was much later that Todd began to take an interest in show horses, traveling along with his grandparents back in 1979 to attend the All American Quarter Horse Congress. It all began right there and then. The rest is history...

While showing at the 4-H level, Todd went on to win numerous awards at the local and state level. He finally moved into showing at the breed shows and it was only natural for him to follow his Aunt and Uncle's children's success while showing with Rusty Miller Show Horses. It was there that Todd really began taking an interest in how winners were bred. It became his desire to not only show champion pleasure horses but to breed them too, only "in color." It would be his focus, specializing in producing pleasure prospects that would be either Appaloosa or Paint horses.

To reach his breeding program goals, Todd has been taking his time to select only the best bred broodmares that he could acquire. Please take a look at the Broodmares page to see which mares he has chosen to bred to either the APHA stallion, Three Chips whom he purchased earlier in 2010 with partners with Double L Paint Horses (Lyle and Lori Hansen),or to the best Quarter Horse stallions available that he believes will be the “cross” he is looking for. In a short time, he has bred ApHC World and National Champions along with an AQHA Congress Champion with hopes of expanding his limited success in the near future. In 2010, Todd will be promoting his ApHC stallion, The Goods (see more information on “Cowboy” on the Show String page). “Cowboy" will be showing with Brian and Dawn Baker in several NSBA futurities as well as the 2010 Appaloosa World Show.

Todd's story wouldn't be complete without mentioning his late grandmother, Viola Bundenthal, whom supported him in his dream. On most days, she would say, "Don't you have enough" or "do you really need another" (haven't we all heard that at some point in our lives by one or several others)? However, in the end, she always supported him in his endeavor, if only to say, "that one is sure pretty, what's her name"? He can still see her smile after hearing a new name and ask with a smirk on her face, "when did you get that one?"