Irish draughts

[kunama]

Yes another one for the melting pot!;)
So let me pick you'r brains, tell me all about the pros and cons of irish draught's, comman defects, conformation and temperment flaws, what are the best blood lines for pure irish draughts? What are good stallions that are about in the uk? just tell me all you know!

And! how much would a colt cost roughly with those lines at weaning?

thanks:p

[nutkin]

My boy is ISH but when looking up information on stallions I came across this chap.He is lovely and UK based and from good bloodlines.
http://www.stallions-online.net/stallion_/9036

[carthorse]

I've got an ID gelding & have always liked the breed.

They vary a lot in size & temprement. I've ridden some that are so quite that you could safely send your granny out on them but my lad is definately not a novice ride - not a nasty bone in his body but opinionated, sharp & needs tactful yet positive riding. They are very powerful horses though & as such may not suit a complete novice.

The good ones are very athletic all rounders. They nearly all jump well, have proved themselves time & again on the hunting field, do a lot better at dressage than people expect & I know of a few that are driven.

I've never known a nasty ID in over 25 years. As a rule they are very kind genuine horses although some don't suffer fools gladly. They can be very clever - I sometimes suspect mine is the brains of the partnership
:eek:! Possibly the commonest fault I've found in the breed is a tendancy to be bargy - this may not sound like a problem until you realise just how strong an ID is when it decides to go somewhere!

If you do a google search for irish draught horse society GB you should find the breed society website which will give you lots of information on them. Be warned, if you get one you'll be hooked :D The site also has a list of registered stallions, studs & horses for sale. Some of the studs don't advertise but if you call them they'll tell you what youngstock & foals they have for sale.

[Rips]

I kept my mare at a hunting yard with over 40horses, ID's and ISH's.
Docile, genuine, athletic they have no 'trait' conformational fault but there are some lines were long backs are prominent.

They mature very slowly mentally. An 8yr old will have the mentality of a 6yr old 'regular horse but ours were still happily working, hunting and loving it well into their 20's.

Over 90% of pure ID's are related either to King of Diamonds or Pride of shaunlara (sp) both equally fantastic sires, so as regards to good/bad lines there isn't much choice! One thing to note though is that there are some lines with a high percentage of TB lineage (Clover Hill being an example) that are a lighter type. These lighter types produce good sporthorses when originally outcrossed to TB/warmblood, but when their sporthorse progeny are bred they get more 'dilute' and start to lose the good ID qualities.

[nutkin]

[QUOTE=carthorse]
They vary a lot in size & temprement. I've ridden some that are so quite that you could safely send your granny out on them but my lad is definately not a novice ride - not a nasty bone in his body but opinionated, sharp & needs tactful yet positive riding. They are very powerful horses though & as such may not suit a complete novice.

The good ones are very athletic all rounders. They nearly all jump well, have proved themselves time & again on the hunting field, do a lot better at dressage than people expect & I know of a few that are driven.

I've never known a nasty ID in over 25 years. As a rule they are very kind genuine horses although some don't suffer fools gladly. They can be very clever - I sometimes suspect mine is the brains of the partnership
:eek:! Possibly the commonest fault I've found in the breed is a tendancy to be bargy - this may not sound like a problem until you realise just how strong an ID is when it decides to go somewhere!

QUOTE]

That above description describes my ISH perfectly.He can be sharp and is not a novice ride,doesn't suffer fools gladly,can be bolshy occassionally but is generally a very kind and loving horse and jumps like a stag.My horse is definitely more draft build than tb build so I guess he must have mostly draft personality.

[Bay Mare]

Over 90% of pure ID's are related either to King of Diamonds or Pride of shaunlara (sp) both equally fantastic sires, so as regards to good/bad lines there isn't much choice!

Saff is ISH but has Pride of Shaunlara in her lineage (he's the gorgeous 'white' grey stallion in my avatar, Saff is the gorgeous steel grey :)).

I have to agree with the personality traits of:

I've never known a nasty ID in over 25 years. As a rule they are very kind genuine horses although some don't suffer fools gladly. They can be very clever - I sometimes suspect mine is the brains of the partnership

my lad is definately not a novice ride - not a nasty bone in his body but opinionated, sharp & needs tactful yet positive riding. They are very powerful horses though & as such may not suit a complete novice.


Although Saff isn't full ID (she's IDxTB with the TB Bassompierre in her background) she loves jumping especially over natural fences. She's very brave, very opinionated but equally very kind.

I like how IDs and IDx have substance without being too chunky. They can also have excellent paces, that is one of the things that drew me to Saff. Although she's only wee (15.1 hh) she has some lovely 'horsey' paces.

As far as I know I have never heard of ID/IDx being 'known' for any particular conformational problems.

[chickflick1066]

I just wanted to add, I never used to like ID but recently I've become a convert to the breed ;)

[kunama]

well i think i've picked this stallion to be my colt's sire, what do you think?

http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/ladys+tralee+raj

[lindz]

Anyone got a link to the ID society?

[Tots N Dots]

I have an ID x TB, he has a rough time in his past and was awfull when I 1st took him on, but he is the most genuine horse I have ever met, even though we believe some of his past treatment probably hasnt been that nice, he is so ready to trust. I would say he is a bit bargy and he is opinionated, but his manners have improved no end since I have had him. i am used to full TB's and I am not a huge fan. but he has none of the TB traits that I dislike, I did at one time "try" to help with a friends ID many years ago, I valued my bones too much! he was 18hh and gosh could he buck! but he was only young and had been able to get away with it. but thats my only experience with them :D

[carthorse]

Lindz hopefully this link will work www.irishdraughthorsesociety.com

[RachelBraz]

Oooooh I like this thread... I *might* be buying an ID X at the weekend! If she passes the vet... anyhow, she is lovely! She's meant to be ID X TB but she looks more Irish, she has the patience of a saint, is very responsive, lovely to handle, and IS a novice ride (totally bombproof and easy to ride, even when useless me jumped her and mucked it up, and she hasn't jumped much either). If all IDs were like her I would highly reccommend them! Of course, like any breed, it depends on the individual horse etc. Conformationally she has a long back and upright limbs, and looks to be quite weak through the loins. Once muscled up I'm sure she'll look 100% better. I don't know of any specific breed problems/ predispositions.
I know a pure ID by Kensons Aragorn, a lovely chap but quite boisterous (sp?) and bargy, very strong, and does seem to be behind his age in maturity, but he has lovely paces and a fab jump, and he's quite well built and good looking.

[kunama]

here's a link to my favorite stallion so far, if i have to pick holes he is a little upright in the shoulder and a touch short in the neck, but i LOVE his bottom:p what do you think of him, any one know him or the stud?

http://www.irish-draught.net/stallion.htm

[horsein around]

i have a ID hes a gem to own a real gent:p i never thought of owning one before but now i think i will stick to the breed.hes sooooo laid back and would stand for hours being groomed and stuff.hes very gentle with my other ponies too.fantastic horses.

[carrieh]

here's a link to my favorite stallion so far, if i have to pick holes he is a little upright in the shoulder and a touch short in the neck, but i LOVE his bottom:p what do you think of him, any one know him or the stud?

http://www.irish-draught.net/stallion.htm

I used to breed Irish Draughts in days gone by, some years ago, and I knew this stallion's sire - Touch Of The Blues. TOTB was very much a modern-day performance horse and quite spirited, rather than the traditional 'old style' Irish Draught that was originally bred to do a day's work on the farm, take the farmer hunting, and pull a trap in the evenings. I also remember Lady's Tralee Raj when he was just a 5 year old. Irish Draughts tend to mature very late in life, and I often found that they went through a silly stage between 5 and 8 years old, then settled down.

My friend still has one of our original-type Irish Draughts, a purebred mare, who is now 17 years old. She's always been fairly laid back about life, and is much smaller than many of today's ID mares at 15.2hh. And that bottom of hers would indeed pull a plough! :) Her main aim in life is to eat, and can munch her way through a bale of hay before you've had a chance to blink.

We used to use a beautiful black traditional type stallion by the name of Attwood Black Laughton who produced some great stock. And also the famous Embla George, but again he was much sharper than ABL. Mountain Prince used to produce some lovely stock with great friendly temperaments, but I'm not sure if he's still around as he was an old boy then.

[kunama]

Hummm, i looked at a picy of touch of the blues and you she he is the type i'd like to breed, but in order to do that i recon i'm going to need a heavier stallion wich is why i liked Raji, what did you think of him was he just lively or nasty? did he did he dish wildly or anything like that?

[chev]

If you toddle over to www.saddle-up.org.uk forums, you'll find at least one member who has a filly by Raj and Janet George who owns the forums is Raj's owner...

and he is an amazing looking stallion :D

[carrieh]

Raj was a lovely boy when I knew him, so I presume that he still is! :D Most ID's have wonderfully friendly temperaments, but some can be on the sharp side because they have been bred more towards competition than farmwork in recent years. That's where the market is for the breeders of course. They all need plenty of work because they have boundless energy and can also put on weight at the sight of a blade of grass! But there was only ever one ID that I avoided at all costs, and that was Colman. He could be really dodgy temperament-wise - but a sire of some fantastic competition horses.

I'm a bit out of the ID world nowadays I'm afraid so I'm probably not the best person to advise. But they are beautiful horses and crossing the ID with a Thoroughbred has always produced some fantastic performance horses.

[carthorse]

Carrieh it's no wonder I've had a few "interesting" moments with my lad, on the dam's side there is Embla George & Colman while his sire is an Irish bred stallion called Western Sun who is very much a performance type (several people in the past have immediately asked what my boy's temperament is like when they hear his breeding!)

I remember seeing Colman when I was a kid & I really liked him - much more fire & character than the other ID stallions that were around. The breeder I knew used to use him a lot & she always got lovely stock, maybe not the quietest but they were always lovely natured.

"Irish Draughts tend to mature very late in life, and I often found that they went through a silly stage between 5 and 8 years old, then settled down" I so agree with this - mine was a fairly easy chap until the summer he was 5, at which point he developed a real attitude :( He finally seems to be growing out of this but there are still some things I won't do with him & in general it's a better idea to ask than demand, or at the very least to demand tactfully!!

"They all need plenty of work because they have boundless energy" Again I've found this to be very true, it's only recently that he's ok if left unworked for a couple of days & it seems impossible to tire him out. I've found the best bet is to try & tire him mentally because physically I collapse before he starts to flag :p. Keep his mind busy though & he's an absolute poppet - loves to work & will try his heart out to please.

I don't know anything about Lady's Tralee Raj but always thought he looked lovely. The people at the breed society are lovely so why not give them a call, say you're interested in using him, describe your mare & ask if he's likely to throw the type you want? Or call the stud for a chat?

[carrieh]

ID's are indeed beautiful horses and most of them have wonderful temperaments. My only word of caution would be to remember that they are all tremendously strong and powerful animals, and can be bargy if they aren't taught manners at a young age! :) That stringy-looking leggy gelding that hasn't yet grown into his legs [!] that you buy at 3 years old, will mature into a massively strong, full bodied barrel of energy come 8 years old who will shake the ground at a flat out gallop. But if you want a horse who will be your friend and become very attached to you, you can't go wrong with an ID. They are also normally very sound.

I'm just a little sad that the old type of ID is being bred out, in favour of more competition-style animals. I've always preferred the older type as they were more placid, but the market demands competition stock rather than farming stock so you cannot blame the breeders for taking that route I guess. Our wonderful old-style ID mare once ended up in a ditch, flat on her back, with the lunge reins wrapped round her legs [I was long-reining her, long story] and all she did was lie there and look at me as if to say: "Get me out of this then. I'll just wait here . . . " !! :)