About Us

Toni Pierce grew up near San Francisco, California. As a young girl, Toni was drawn to the beauty of horses, but her early experiences with them were not exactly positive. She became fearful and decided to admire them from afar. Yet, years later when Toni and her husband Dennis moved to Loomis, CA, she was intrigued with a sign she saw posted near by that said, “Miniature Horses For Sale”.  Toni visited the farm, fell in love, and bought a horse. Quintessa Farm was created with that first purchase in 2002.

Toni Pierce has a deep appreciation of beauty and an eye for quality. Their second Miniature Horse earned the title of National Champion. On their quest for other top Mini horses, Toni found a stallion she thought was exceptional; he looked exactly like a miniature Arabian horse and she had to have him! In his very first foal crop, Toni and Dennis’s Mini stallion sired a World Champion. It was the first of many championships for the Pierces. In ten short years, Quintessa Farm has grown and expanded into a breeding program recognized around the world for the beauty and quality of its horses.

Part of every successful business is communications and marketing, and today the most effective tool available is a first-class website. Toni and Dennis Pierce looked to the leader in equine website development, Knight Media and arabhorse.com to create a special website for Quintessa Farm. In May of 2011, Toni and Dennis made a trip to Scottsdale, Arizona where they met with owner Scott Bailey to discuss the website and they met with David Cains, owner of Stonewall Farm Arabians. David showed Toni and Dennis a few of his favorite horses and Toni was immediately impressed with a beautiful bay filly, Marissa Bey SWF, sired by the Marwan Al Shaqab son, Selket Marque and out of the Psyche daughter Natalia Bey. As Toni intently watched the filly, she became aware of a feeling, not just butterflies or goosebumps, it was something deeper. She felt her life being transformed – again – and she sensed that a new chapter in her life was about to unfold…

“It’s hard to describe the feeling I got when I saw Marissa Bey for the first time, but I think other breeders know and understand what I mean.  I rely on my instincts, that “gut feeling”, that tells me when something is right – or not. I believe in following my intuition whether that is in business or personal relationships, as well as with people and horses. My number one rule is: “Listen to your heart.” Sometimes when I follow this rule, it may seem like I am doing things backwards, but for some reason it works for me.

“Dennis and I are new to Arabian horses and we are enjoying them so much. We began our breeding program with a small group of really beautiful mares. Right now, they are in various stages of production; some were in foal when we bought them and others have been bred for 2013 foals. I think one of the things I love most about living with the horses is that every day is a new experience. There is so much history with this breed – we enjoy learning about the different bloodlines, the horses that have been influential, and also the people who are involved. Our breeding program is just starting and like all breeding programs – it is a work in progress. I think we are examples that show that you don’t have to know everything about Arabian horses to get started. If you have the desire to learn, you just make the decision to get involved on whatever level works for you – whatever feels right for you.

Our hope – our goal – is to breed the best Arabian horses we can. I am drawn to horses with beauty and style, as well as a kind spirit and natural athletic ability. Our dream is to breed that kind of horse for ourselves and others to enjoy. We feel fortunate to be under the umbrella of Stonewall Farm and to have the guidance of David Cains who assisted us in hand picking exquisite mares with the potential to produce high quality foals. Marissa Bey was our first Arabian horse and the first step to making that dream come true. Every day is exciting and we can’t wait to see how the next chapter unfolds.”