posted on April 16, 2009 02:27:41 PM
It's a draft breed of some sort, but doesn't look mature to me, especially if it's a Clydesdale. There are dozens of large breed horses. While the Clydesdale is the most well known, thanks to Budweiser, it's also one of the rarest. What makes me suspicious of it being a Clydesdale are three things:
1, The photo's age. By just before WW2, the Clydesdale was almost extinct in Europe, and the pic appears to be taken sometime between 1900 and WW2 in Europe.
2. The horse does not appear to have much of the the characteristic "feather", or long hair from just above it's knees down to it's feet. The feather is part of the Clydesdale breed standard.
3. The animal's short length from withers to rump. Clydesdales are much longer than other draft breeds.
I vote for it being some sort of local draft breed, probably cross bred. Just call it a draft horse.
posted on April 16, 2009 03:56:53 PM
My first thought was Shetland Pony, but it seems larger than the ponies I've seen.
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posted on April 16, 2009 04:51:21 PM
Shire would work, it looks like a Shire of some sort. The Shire is shorter in length than the Clydesdale, but also has the feather on it's legs, so that one's in bad condition or cross bred... I don't know the history of the Shire very well, when the breed registry was established for example. What's the date on the card?
Roadsmith, for the record, Shetland Ponies are called ponies for a reason; they're SMALL
posted on April 16, 2009 10:02:15 PM
It's definitely not a pony, Shetland or otherwise. I don't think it's a Shire--Shires are HUGE, don't have flaxen manes and the proportion of horse to human isn't right for a Shire. Clydesdales don't have flaxen manes either, (though the amount of feather is right for a working horse of that era) and, again, compared to the humans it isn't big enough. Too heavily boned to be a Haflinger, I'd say it's a Belgian (flaxen and feathered, right size) but it could be some other draft breed--there are many--or draft cross.
I'd play it safe and just call it a draft/draught horse.
[ edited by pixiamom on Apr 16, 2009 01:34 PM ]
