The ranch in Hachinohe city of Aomori Prefecture is the only farm in Japan breeding Ahalteke horses. At the moment, there are already 12 horses here, and the farm, known under the AhalTeke Affinity brand, has become a member of the International Association of Ahalteke Horse Breeding, headquarters office of which is located in Ashgabat, and the head of the organization is the President of Turkmenistan.

This ranch in the north of Honshu Island is owned by 71 years old Yuriko Hasegawa, who plays a leading role in the breeding of racehorses, with the help of five more employees.

Hasegawa established the horse farm here in the summer of 2019, having chosen this place after continuous travelling all around the country in search of a suitable landscape.

Hasegawa first rode a horse when she was 50 years old. “My doctor advised me to exercise because of my health issues, so I started riding,” she says. When she was 57, she already became obsessed with horses and opened a riding club in Hamamatsu city.

The Ahalteke horses struck her heart with their grace, intelligence, and temper, high athletic abilities and historical value as a representative of the oldest breed in the world, originating from Turkmenistan, which is far away from Japan.

By 2018, Hasegawa brought seven Ahalteke from abroad. The riding club was closed and the ranch was put into operation instead. She was visiting Turkmenistan frequently, learning more about the subtleties of breeding “golden” horses in their homeland from colleagues in the Association.

To date, her seven purebred fosterlings have given birth to five colts (the first was born on May 31, 2019- and this was the first ever Ahalteke born in Japan!).

“I want lots of people to know the charm of this horse,” tells Hasegawa, adding, ”I would be happy if I could help pass on more of this opportunity to the future generations.”

Her ranch also has paid programs for horse riding, trekking, and other disciplines; you can come just to admire the beautiful horses, chat with them, take care of them, or take a photo. Those who are interested submit their applications on the “Golden Ahalteke Horse” web page. Visitors are limited to one group per day, so that there is no bustle and noise, and nothing interferes with farm’s measured life and reproductive activities.

Saparguly MAHTUMOV