Sarasota Polo Club becomes home to leopard Appaloosas

Safari, who was foaled in March, galloped behind her mother, Pigpen, in a pasture at the Sarasota Polo Club. 

The two leopard Appaloosa horses could be seen from a distance because of their distinct spots. 

East County’s Margaux Buchanan, a polo player for the Sarasota Polo Club and the owner of Safari and Pigpen, loves watching the foal interact with her mother. 

Photo by Liz Ramos

While Pigpen has retired from polo action, Buchanan said Safari has the potential to be a polo competitor.

Now 20 years old, Pigpen was purchased by Buchanan from a horse trader in California eight years ago. Pigpen was one of the first horses Buchanan bought when she started learning how to play polo. 

“She was a good, dead broke horse for a beginner and when she got a little too old to play at the polo level that I was playing, she retired,” Buchanan said. “I realized she has some good bloodlines for polo, so I started breeding horses to try to keep polo alive. Horses are getting harder to come by as everything’s getting more industrial around here.”

Buchanan was introduced to polo in Long Island, New York, by her employer, a veterinarian who worked for the Black Watch Polo team. She watched her first polo match and was hooked.

She remembered thinking, "I’m going to do that someday,.” 

She went on to finish veterinary school and had her first internship in Vero Beach. While there, she also began polo lessons with the Vero Beach Polo Club in 2012. 

“It’s a grand addiction,” she said. “The moment I got on the horse and hit the ball for the first time, I was hooked.”

On March 19, Pigpen gave birth to Safari, her first foal and Buchanan’s first foal since she began breeding. She bred Pigpen hoping her offspring would have spots like both her parents (a 25% probability).

When Safari was born, Buchanan celebrated when she saw the spots. 

Photo by Liz Ramos

Now she is focused on training Safari to become a polo horse. Buchanan said the first step is getting Safari comfortable with the halter. She’s already been around mallets and balls for polo.

“It’s a hard thing to raise a horse because polo is very specific, so there’s a good chance that she might not have the aptitude or talent for it,” she said. “Hopefully with genetics and her mom doing it will help. We’re going to give her an all-around education so even if she doesn’t make it for polo, she’s going to be a really nice horse for somebody to ride and enjoy.”

By the time Safari turns 2, Buchanan expects to begin riding her and training her on the polo field. She said most horses will start competing in polo at 4 or 5 years old.