THE FULL STORY: A flashy chestnut blanket Appaloosa stallion, Impress Me Shanon is a successful show horse who has continued his winning ways as a sire. Though his fame is international, Shanon is a well-loved family horse and pampered favorite of Devon Farms in Purcell, Oklahoma. In 1992, Mark Akin was looking for an Appaloosa stallion for his breeding farm. He visited a friend’s barn in Lexington, Oklahoma, where he immediately took a liking to a stunning chestnut Appaloosa colt. All his friend could tell him was that the horse going to the Appaloosa World Show Sale. Though he knew little about the horse, Mark went home that day determined to bring that colt, Impress Me Shanon, home to his farm. At the World Show, Mark could not bring himself to bid on any of the other horses. Shanon was the right horse for him, and he was the one Mark wanted. Bidding quickly jumped past the reserve on Shanon. Mark held up his number, hoping the bidding would not go beyond his limit. No other bids surfaced. The auctioneer tried to wheedle higher bids one last time, and then Shanon was sold to Mark Akin. Shanon brought home World Championship and Reserve National Championship titles in halter before being retired from the show ring to start his breeding career. With multiple offspring winning in halter, hunter, and western, Impress Me Shanon is well on his way to becoming one of the top sires in the Appaloosa breed. He is also the first Appaloosa to be bred internationally with the aid of Select Breeders Service. Impress Me Shanon is owned by Mark and DeAnna Akin with their sons Cody, Cash, and Taylor.
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