When Hottish hit the cutting pen in 2011 and went on to accumulate more than $300,000 in just more than three years, it was clear he was a strong force in the industry.
Owners Dustin and Deena Adams began breeding Hottish in 2013 with hopes that the stallion would pass his talents on to his babies. The stallion has already exceeded all of their expectations. He has just one performing foal crop, but his offspring have already made a huge impression.
At the 2017 National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Futurity, Hottish not only sired Futurity Open Champion Dual Reyish (out of A Little Reylena x Dual Rey) and Limited Non-Pro Co-Champion Sneakish (out of Smooth Sneakin x Smooth As A Cat), he also had nine finalists among all divisions at the event. His offspring earned $382,649 at the show, and that success has only continued after the premier event.
Lloyd Cox piloted Blackish (out of SS Blacks Lil Kitty x Bayou Boon) to the 4-Year-Old Open Championship at The Ike, and at the Bonanza, Cool N Hot (out of Donas Cool Cat x High Brow Cat) picked up the 4-Year-Old Open and Non-Pro championships. Several of Hottish’s offspring advanced to finals at those two events and the Abilene Spectacular, and his sire record already exceeds $620,000.
“I just feel really blessed,” Deena said. “I think he is a once-in-a-lifetime horse. He has exceeded my expectations and has continued to bless my family, and I am just honored. The idea that there are so many [of Hottish’s offspring] that are doing well has just blown us away.”
In addition to the fact that Hottish’s superior athletic ability is clearly being passed on to the next generation, Dustin thinks the mind and trainability of the stallion’s offspring have given them an edge.
“One thing I think people are seeing is what I saw in Hottish in the first few rides put on him. He is the most trainable horse that I have ever ridden,” Dustin said. “I see that in his babies. A lot of different styles of trainers are getting along with him. Everyone talked about how much of a freak athlete Hottish was, and he absolutely was, but my favorite part about that horse was the fact that he was like a big teddy bear. He was a lover. You could hurt his feelings, and he loved his job. He had charisma on a cow, and I see that in some of his babies a lot.”
With elite performers all over Hottish’s pedigree, it’s no surprise he has made an impact in both the performance pen and breeding shed. He is the leading money-earner by 2004 NCHA Futurity Open Champion Spots Hot (Chula Dual x Sweet Shorty Lena x Shorty Lena), who produced 2016 Futurity Open Champion Second Spot (out of Reycy Moon x Cats Moonshine).
Hottish is one of the leading earners out of the great Docs Stylish Oak mare Stylish Play Lena, who earned $289,623 in her performance career. The 1997 mare recently landed herself a spot among the top five dams of all time, with an offspring record of more than $1.6 million. The Adames think that diverse bloodline has helped make the stallion so popular from the start.
“I think it is really exciting for the industry to have something new in there,” Deena said.
“We are excited about the fact that he has some different blood,” Dustin agreed. “Mare owners can really breed anything to him.”
The Adames know the success of Hottish wouldn’t be possible without the steadfast support of the cutting industry, and they are humbled by the amount of riders and owners who took a chance on the stallion.
“Our feeling is one of complete gratitude,” Dustin said. “It is kind of like a dream right now, how everything has been going. We are grateful for the horse trainers and mare owners. We are thankful for the people who trusted in him even when they didn’t know what they were going to get. The trainers have done a great job promoting those horses. We know our success couldn’t be had without them, and we are very mindful of that.”
