Another fabulous mare

This is Kiltowra Glee. She is by Windgap Hero out of Blazer Girl Two by Knocknagow. She is definitely somewhere in the top ten. I would love to see more Windgap Hero in the background of today's Irish Draughts. I've never seen a photo of him but the bloodlines look to be worth seeking out.

Aoife

I haven't gotten any video of the 2009 crop. My video camera is on the fritz. My sister Pat helped my out with 2 of the babies this past weekend. We took Aoife and Calum to Wolf Ridge Farm and borrowed their arena for a short time.




Aoife is very traditional -- more like her Grandma Matilda than her Momma Grania.

Response to question from a reader - Part 2 of 2 parts

I've rewritten this post five times. I hope that the thoughts that I have put into written words are clear and coherent.

"Greetings, I have recently discovered the Irish Draught. My interest in the horse "To Be True" has led me to "Mountain Pearl" I watched his video and am smitten. I have been raising foundation bred quarter horses for almost 30 years and did not miss your comment on the "Irish Draught" being beyond saving. As a someone who has recently become aware of this obviously fantastic breed I say I sure hope not. I would like to know how tall "Tristan" is. And also how much his stud fee is and why you have chosen a smaller draught. (Also my interest)"

It’s very interesting that as a breeder of foundation bred quarter horses that you would also be attracted to the Irish draught. I much prefer the foundation Quarter Horse to the modern version. The current belief is that the quarter horse and the ID have a common ancestor in the Irish Hobby horse. I can see the similarities. I think that some of the old time quarter horses can easily be mistaken for IDs.

One of the main complaints of current ID preservationists is the fact that the breed is losing bone. I admit to being one of these people and have loudly lamented the loss. I have been thinking about this for a long time now and my viewpoint has evolved from the oversimplification of concerns about the homogenization of the breed.

As a child I remember some of the old timers (around here that means quarter horse folks), talking about the amount of bone necessary for the QH. The number bandied about the most was 8 inches. In thinking back on this, on the surface it seems like a very small number. However, if you take into consideration the usual smaller stature (14.3 to 15.1 or 15.2 hh) of the QH at that time, then 8 inches is a plausible number. Between the photos and actual horses I’ve seen the QH had shorter cannon bones in the good old days as well.

I’ve recently spent time looking at photos of the Irish Draughts before the modernization of the breed. These horses really don’t appear to have immense amounts of bone. What they do exhibit is good quality bone (clean and flat), short cannon bones and a smaller stature. My current theory about the destruction of the Irish Draught developed from what happened when the breed was “modernized”. The “modern” Irish Draught has a much different center of balance than the traditional Irish Draught. The legs are longer, the heart girth is smaller, the necks are warmbloody and the total height has exploded. BTW: I have modern in quotes because what folks call the modern Irish Draught isn’t really an Irish Draught IMO. As legs and horses get longer and taller the bone will in all probability remain the same. So in actuality, the bone is not shrinking but its substance most definitely is. A 15.1 hh horse with 8.5 inches of bone has lots more substance and strength than a 16.3 hh horse with 8.5 inches of bone. It also goes without saying that the cannon bones will increase in length as the horse gets taller which also reduces the support and strength of the legs.

Today, I looked at the breed standard on the Irish Draught Horse Society (Ireland) website and it currently states the following:
Stallions: 15.2 h.h. to 17 h.h. / 159 cms. to 174 cms.
Mares: 15.1 h.h. to 16.3 h.h. / 155.5 cms. to 171.5 cms.
This height variation is acceptable when Irish Draught type is evident

Our young RID mare Ellie (Padi’s Classic Elegance) measured 14.3 hh at her inspection. I haven’t measured her since then. If you stand back and look at her you would guess that she is much taller than that. This is no illusion however. She has short cannons bones and a large heart girth placing her low to the ground and she is extremely amiable.

Here at Fox Hollow Sport Horses we breed the traditional type of Irish Draught. This means that we select for the traits necessary to produce a smaller horse with a large heart girth, short cannon bones, strong constitution, and as the standard states “intelligent and gentle nature and is noted for its docile temperament, sense and trainability”. We select for all of these traits, but our priority has always been for the Irish Draught temperament. We strive to produce this intelligence, good sense and trainability in our sport horses as well, but in a more refined, and athletic package. The Irish Draught sport horse is the performance horse and the purebred Irish Draught is its foundation.

And finally, you inquired about Tristan. Our young RID stallion Regalia Prince Arthur (Tristan) is 15.3 hh with substantial bone, excellent temperament, large heart girth and as the inspectors noted, in a few years he will be a powerful animal exhibiting the traditional Irish Draught traits.