|
Kate Triplett |
|
|
|
|
My Journey to the Irish Draught Horse Kate Justet Triplett Homesick Angels Farm ~ Monroe, Washington
I met my first Irish Draught in 1994, in our first year of showing in the sporthorse venue. We had taken a very nice colt out of our best mare to the Northwest Sporthorse Breeders Association Breeders Classic, entering him in Dressage Suitability for Weanling Colts.
While there, I ran into my old and dear friend Ann Cummings. What a surprise! Ann and her family had moved out of our neighborhood, and it had been a couple years since I’d seen her. She had brought in her new horse, the then-three year old stud colt Snowford O’Donnell. He was the very first Irish Draught I’d ever seen – up til that time, I had barely even heard of the breed.
This boy was such a sweet horse, and despite being in the bratty prime of young stallion-ness, still a dream to work with and to handle. I was completely sold on the breed. We booked the dam of our Reserve Champion colt to him, hoping to get our first Irish Sporthorse baby the next spring. This was not to be, as our beloved mare had given us her best and last with RK Paratrooper, the colt we showed that year.
We schemed and plotted for years, waiting for the opportunity to get into the Irish Draught horses. Finally, after the move to our new place outside Monroe, we made the decision to “go Irish”, and to breed all our mares to Irish Draught stallions. I believed that O’Donnell was still in New Mexico at the time, so went stallion shopping on the internet. My “other” favorite pick was a horse named Touch of the Blues, but I could not find him anyplace! The owner’s website was gone, and no trace of the horse remained.
Finally, reading the For Sale listings on the website of the Irish Horse Society of North America (IDHS(NA)), I came across an ad for a colt sired by Touch of the Blues. I went immediately to his owners’ website, and looked at his pictures and description. I knew that we had finally found our Irish Draught! I printed out the pictures and information to show my husband. We looked at each other and simultaneously said, “we can’t afford this horse”, then said, “what the heck, it costs nothing to ask”. The deal was struck within a week. After doing a LOT of juggling, selling off and just plain scraping together, we were able to come up with the price, and then waited anxiously as our colt made the long journey from eastern Kansas to our yard. In early November, Manu Forti’s Touch Down, aka Ollie, walked down the ramp of Cathi Bunker’s trailer and onto our place. He settled right in, and has become a huge part of our lives.
I found out that Ann had just gotten Snowford O’Donnell back to the Northwest, and was showing him in dressage. He had already competed extensively in eventing and done some jumping, and was doing great at his new job, with Asia Thayer in the irons. In his first year of open showing in dressage, OD did pretty well – with a median score of 65.798, he won the USDF All Breeds Award for First Level, Irish Draught! We booked three of our mares to him for breeding, and are now awaiting next spring with bated breath – our first Irish Draught Sporthorse foal crop!
For those who want to find out more about this breed, I urge you to check out the website of the Irish Draught Horse Society of North America, at
THE IRISH DRAUGHT HORSE
The history of the Irish Draught goes back many hundreds of years, descending in part from the Spanish or Moroccan Barb which was introduced back in the sixteenth century, when Ireland would regularly trade with Spain. However, there is some evidence that the oriental influence was present in Ireland prior to direct trade with Spain. These earliest importations, crossed on the native Irish mares, produced the descendant Irish Hobby. This unique horse was renowned for its sensibility and ease of travel, making it so highly sought after that it was exported nearly to extinction in Ireland. Bred up for soundness, common sense and thriftiness, Irish farmers were very selective in keeping a horse they could use for all purposes on the farm and on their leisure days in the hunting field, and to take the family to church on Sundays. The Irish Draught throughout history has been used in many wars as artillery teams, hence the word Draught. Over a century of selection has produced substantial, very sound, sensible animals with good bone, substance and quality. The Irish Draught is neither as massive nor as heavily feathered as its name implies and has movement that is smooth and free, without exaggeration, and not heavy nor ponderous. Standing over a lot of ground, the Draught has an exceptionally strong and sound constitution, great stamina and an uncanny jumping ability. In addition, this breed possesses a fabulous temperament made up of willingness, intelligence, docility and common sense.
In the early part of the 20th century, seeing the horse they so admired quickly passing toward extinction, there was begun a movement to locate and preserve those horses left that still carried the traditional Irish Draught type and qualities. Still, in 1951, there were fewer than 400 horses identified in Ireland as meeting the qualifying phenotype. The Irish Draught Horse Society (IDHS) Limited was formed in Ireland in 1976. The IDHS was created with the sole intention of preventing the breed from becoming extinct. Dedicated enthusiasts of the breed saved it from its almost certain demise. Today, we celebrate the growing popularity of the breed as well as its success in the performance arena. There are Branches of the Society in every corner of Ireland, and affiliated groups in Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, the U.S.A. and Canada.
Foals born of the mating of two Registered Irish Draught horses which have been inspected and approved for breeding are termed ID, or Irish Draught, and are eligible for entry into the Progeny Record. At the age of three years (for colts) and two years (for fillies and geldings), young stock may be presented for inspection before a panel of Irish inspectors, who make the annual trip to North America for the purpose. Only those horses which are passed and approved are eligible for registration as RID – Registered Irish Draught – and are then approved for breeding. Horses that are not approved at inspection, or are not presented for inspection, remain registered as ID only.
Also registered with the IDHS(NA): A Registered Irish Draught Sporthorse (RIDSH) is at least 1/4 RID, from approved parentage, and has been inspected and approved for breeding purposes, and is recorded in the RIDSH book of the IDHS(NA), the Irish Draught Horse Society of North America. A horse must have at least one approved parent to be entered into the Progeny Record of IDHS(NA). For terms of common use, an Irish Draught Sporthorse (IDSH) is a horse of any gender that is at least 1/8 RID, and is not approved for breeding.
As an interesting aside, H.M. the Queen of England has long admired the Irish Draught, and they are still regularly used by the different regiments. The light weight bays are used with King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, the Household Calvary use only black Irish Draughts and can be seen regularly at Whitehall, and Her Majesty’s own Windsor Greys can be seen pulling the royal coaches.
Not only is the Irish Draught a perfect companion mount for riders of all ages, but it possesses the ability and versatility to participate in various levels of jumping, eventing, dressage, hunting and driving events. It is all these exceptional qualities that make the Irish Draught an invaluable and irreplaceable element in the production of the highly successful Irish Draught Sport Horse.
THE IRISH DRAUGHT SPORTHORSE
Although a complete package in its purest form, the Irish Draught must also be acknowledged for its potent and unparalleled contribution in the creation of the magical cross; the Irish Draught Sport Horse.
The even temperament, durability and power of the Irish Draught, mixed with the speed and athleticism of the Thoroughbred, creates a potent mix which is well up to the demands of modern day competition. World famous for its jumping and cross-country ability, this Irish Draught/Thoroughbred cross is not only a top caliber international athlete, but can serve as a perfect novice mount, adeptly boosting the confidence of a lower level rider.
Although we have recently seen the introduction of crosses with other bloodlines such as top quality Warmbloods, Arabians and Quarter horses, which are showing great promise, it is still the RID x TB cross that has achieved world wide status as a top-flight performance animal.
Over the years, the Irish horse has been highly sought after for its amazing jumping ability, soundness, intelligence and marvelous temperament. The Irish horse has been mentioned right back to the Roman times when they were tall, heavy and had the capability to gallop through mud while pulling chariots. Since then, Irish horses have been sold throughout Europe to improve many Warmblood breeds. Irish Thoroughbreds Furioso, Lady killer and Cottage Son are found throughout many highly sought-after Jumper pedigrees.
Today the Irish Sporthorse really dominates the international arena, Show Jumping, Eventing and the Olympics. The bloodlines of King Of Diamonds, Clover Hill and Sea Crest, just to name a few, are bought and bred to produce the next super star in the ring. Many British Team members are mounted on Irishbreds and will ride nothing less. Custom Made, ridden by David O'Connor, took team gold for America at the 2000 Olympics. Supreme Rock (British rider) competed at the Olympics and other top venues such as Badminton and many others too numerous to mention here. Cruising by Sea Crest RID is ranked 10th leading show jumper as of '97 and second leading stallion in International Grand Prix Jumping. Sea Crest and Cruising's stock are always highly sought after and fetch high prices to go abroad. It is not only these lines that should take credit. There are many other Irish bloodlines that have continually produced outstanding jumpers and performers in the ring: Ginger Dick, Laughton, Pride of Shaunlara, Rakish Paddy, Enniskeane Prince.
Cruising, Cagney, El Campeon’s Ado Annie, Eezy, Carling King and Hopes are High are only some of the Irish Draught sporthorse stars of the Grand Prix showjumping circuit, and Custom Made, Supreme Rock, Giltedge and Sailing are but a few of the Irish Draught related horses that have thrilled us in the eventing world.
This magical cross is referred to as the Irish Draught Sport Horse in North America and the Irish Sport Horse in Europe. While it may seem confusing, there is a reason for the difference in names.
The Irish Draught Sport Horse is recognized in North America (IDHS-NA and IDHS-Can) as a crossbred animal with a portion of RID (Registered Irish Draught) blood.
The Irish Sport Horse is recognized by the Irish Horse Board (in Ireland), as an animal of ANY breeding, which may OR MAY NOT have Irish Draught blood in its pedigree. For example, an Arab x TB, TB x Connemara, Pure TB or RID x TB may all be classified as an Irish Sport Horse. But in North America, only the cross with RID blood is classified as an Irish Draught Sport Horse.
It should be understood that the IDSH is not a special breed or a product of an “American” breeding program. It is just a new moniker aimed at educating the public about the Irish Draught blood that is so prevalent in many of the top performance animals.
Whether the cross is known as an Irish Draught Sport Horse, an Irish Sport Horse or even as an Irish Hunter, if there is Irish Draught blood running in those veins, you have one great horse!
Credits to the Irish Draught Horse Society of North America, and to Simone Mackay of Manu Forti Farms, Whitewater, Kansas, for parts of this article.
Photo credits: Snowford O’Donnell photos by Scarlett Touch of the Blues thanks to Simone Mackay Ollie’s pictures by Kate Justet Triplett
|
