Annabelle (left) and Sarah Milne with horses Briar and Kate.
Annabelle (left) and Sarah Milne with horses Briar and Kate.
Clydesdales and other heavy horses now have an event of their own to look forward to.
Taupō will play host to the very first Clydesdale and Heavy Horse Show on April 1, thanks to the efforts of third-generation Clydesdale enthusiast and Taupō farmer Hillary Milne.
She said many heavy horse working-class events are not suitable for A&P Shows because smaller horses get spooked when their big cousins start towing wagons, sledges and logs around.
“We wanted to run our own show and be able to offer all of those opportunities, but also we have aimed to [have it be] a bit of a grassroots show to try to get more new competitors coming out.”
She said a lot of people own Clydesdales but they didn’t bring them to shows because they were not confident about leading their horse, and there was also a big step up from doing in-hand classes to doing the work classes, so there would be events for every level of ability.
The event is being held at the Ōruanui Pony Club grounds and Western Club Grounds and is already proving popular, with people and horses coming from all over the North Island.
Hillary is the third generation of her family to be involved with Clydesdales, and her daughter Annabelle is now learning the ropes too.
“I grew up on a farm where we used our horses every day, and so we used to feed out to the cows – take a team of three horses out and take all the hay out to the horses.
Hillary Milne drives Ashburn King Alfred at the Cambridge Show.
“As us kids got older, my brother and I used to drive two horses in the big sledge, and we used to use the bale hooks to roll the big square bales on to the sledge and pitchfork that out to the cows.
“Mum used to do a lot of ploughing and discing with the horses.
“My granddad had a team of six horses that he used to work, and then he bought a tractor for his boys. He sat on the tractor, had his photo taken and then went back to working his horses.”
Nowadays, there are only a couple of farms that use Clydesdales and heavy horses as part of the day-to-day operation of the farm.
Milne said she originally just wanted to run a “simple show in a paddock”, but it turned out to be a lot bigger than that.
“Everyone’s support has been amazing. We have sponsorship for every single class and people are entered from all over the show, so it will be fantastic to have a good turnout at the show.”
So, what makes a good Clydesdale?
Well, they should be a good size - over 16 hands - and have a good body for pulling heavy weights, and “clean, flat bones”.
“The head is always the first place you look because that’s where you put your halter on. The other thing to look at is the feet. If they don’t have a good foot, you have no horse. No foot - no horse.”
They also had to be docile because they needed to pull wagons and walk in a harness.
She said the wet weather of the past year meant some horses couldn’t come to the show because of lameness due to the soggy conditions and their owners trying to keep their feet healthy.
