Brad’s Take

Thanks, Rodney, for asking.

Do not see as many posts as last year at this time.

Background

In one form or another, I have been running a “chat” board at DraftResource.com since August of 1998. Rodney is a gentleman from Texas, who owns and uses one of the heavy horse breeds common in America – the Suffolk or Suffolk Punch, as they are know in England. Heavy horse breeds were mainly developed to pull loads (draft), and are often known as draft breeds or draft horses, even though ponies and light horse breeds can be used for draft work, and many enjoy riding heavy horse breeds. The other for common draft breeds in the US are the great English Shire and the best-recognized Clydesdale, the Belgian Draft, the Percheron from France.

Feathers

Most draft horse breeds were developed to pull. Often for farm use, where field work needs to proceed even if the ground is a bit damp – or even wet. So most draft breeds have “feathers”, heavy growths of hair forming a protective brush about the feet and lower legs. Some other breeds of horse also have feathers, while the Suffolk Punch stands out as being clean legged – without the feathers that make such a sharp display of a Clydesdale or Shire hitch stepping out in a parade or around the corner of the barn.

About the chat board

I can think of several factors for the slow down.

I didn’t chase away the saddle folk. That offended a number of folk that know that heavy horse breeds are meant for harness work only. Possibly they believe that saddle work delays and distracts from harness training. And some very good people found other places to visit.

I haven’t been very active lately with draft horses. So I don’t have a lot of new experiences to contribute, I have fallen out of touch with the J R Johnston’s Tack and 4-State Draft Horse Sale (Missouri) and Kingman Sale (Kansas), etc. I try to keep my answers complete while encouraging visitors to double check everything. Ahem. Except the added fats diet, of course. That still makes a lot of sense to me.

Perhaps people are finding many of their questions already answered. There have been a bunch of questions asked, and answered.

I don’t follow the other draft horse sites – if you have some to recommend I would be glad of the information – so I haven’t kept up on trends around the community.

Of all the aspects of owning a draft horse, the one I feel most competent with – is getting started. Getting a reasonable horse, keeping it fit and well, getting started training. Depending on the vet for advice and help. And that is why the emphasis here at Draft Resource is to make it easy for the new owner to get information. You still don’t need to register to post a question.

The respected experienced hands often prefer an environment with more seasoned questions, ignorant questions – and more old friends. It doesn’t surprise me that the more experienced of my regular visitors often move on to another web site, or magazine, or organization – even though I don’t like losing friends.

Draft Horses vs. the economy

One area concerns me greatly – the rapidly rising cost of feed and supplies. In less than a year, vegetable oil and grains have nearly doubled. This is causing a lot of horse owners a lot of pain and anguish, and in some cases means the end of their horse ownership. People are losing jobs even here in north central Oklahoma – which means that money to keep horses often dries up. Where the horses are used for recreational riding I think there could be a lot of sad stories coming out this winter and coming spring.

I am afraid sponsor funds for national hitches, parades, and product promotions may dwindle a bit. The show circuits may feel a pinch as some competitors face mounting costs and dwindling resources. As competing activities dwindle

Opportunity for growth

At the same time, I think the horse loggers need to get really busy, making a case for logging for charcoal and for firewood, as well as for lumber. There is a role for sustainable grove management today, but the story isn’t getting told well.

Thanks, again, for asking!

At least, this is what I think is going on, on the DraftResource.com chat board!