Draft Horses
A draft horse or dray horse (from the Anglo-Saxon dragan meaning to draw or haul) is a large horse bred for hard, heavy tasks such as plowing, logging, mining, and hauling freight. There are a number of different draft horse breeds with varying characteristics but they all share common traits of strength, patience and a willing temperament that made them indispensable to generations of pre-industrial farmers. Draft horses are considered "cold blooded" due to their typically calm disposition and tendency to move slowly. They weigh more than a ton and stand between 16 and19 hands high.
Interesting information: The Shire horse holds the record for the world's biggest horse; Sampson, foaled in 1846 in Bedfordshire, England, stood 21.2 1/2 hands high (7ft 21/2inches at his withers) and weighed approx 3,300lb or over 1.5 tons.
By 500 to 1,000 AD a particular type of heavy horse, who became known as the "Black Horse of Flanders" was developed and settled in the European low country in what is presently Belgium and Northern France. A larger horse than the Asian or desert type horse in Western Europe at the time of the Roman invasion, the wild black horse of Flanders was the forerunner of the British War Horse of the Middle Ages, otherwise known as the Destrier or the Great Horse of Britain. The Destrier, in turn, fathered the draft horse breeds.
It's a common misunderstanding that the Destrier that carried the armored knight of the Middle Ages and a draft horse are one in the same. Though he sired the modern draft breeds, the high-spirited, quick-moving Destrier was closer to the size, build, and temperament of a modern Andalusian or Friesian.
Every War Horse underwent special training. They had to be responsive to leg and voice and they had to overcome their natural adversity to walking on people as they were often asked to trample enemies on the battlefield. Thus not only were the horses bred for size and stamina but also for intelligence.
Both the Black Horse of Flanders and the Destrier are now extinct. In times of peace, farmers needed good solid work animals with a more placid, amenable temperament. While size remained desirable, only the more biddable animals were bred. Hence the Destrier and the Black Horse of Flanders faded away, giving birth to the gentler giants, the Clydesdale, the Shire, the Suffolk Punch, the Percheron, the Belgian and many others. They owe their strength to their forbearers and their patience to those who selectively bred the trait into them.
There are a number of short, sturdy breeds that are considered draft ponies. These include Fell, Fjord, Haflinger, and Welsh ponies.
By the nineteenth century, the draft horse was a source of "horsepower" for farming, hauling freight, moving passengers, and pulling boats down canals, particularly before railroads came on the scene. Even in the 20th century, draft horses were used for practical work, including over half a million used during World War I to support the military effort.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, thousands of draft horses were imported from Western Europe into the United States. Percherons came from France, Belgians from Belgium, Shires from England, Clydesdales from Scotland. A breed developed exclusively in the U.S. was the American Cream Draft, which had a stud book established by the 1930s.
After World War II, the popularity of the internal combustion engine, and particularly the tractor, reduced the need for the draft horse. Many breeds went into significant decline.
Today draft horses are most often seen at shows, pulling competition or as exhibition animals pulling large wagons. The most famous are probably the Budweiser Clydesdales. The Belgian, however, is America's most popular draft horse outnumbering all the other breeds combined. Draft horses are still seen on some smaller farms in the USA and Europe. They are particularly popular with groups such as Amish and Mennonite farmers, as well as those individuals who wish to farm with a renewable source of power. While most draft horses are used for driving, they can be ridden and some of the lighter draft breeds are popular as riding horses.
Crossbred draft horses also played a significant role in the development of a number of warmblood breeds. By crossing "hot blooded" animals like the Thoroughbred or Arabian to the draft horse, breeders added size and increased the power and "scope" of the offspring. Warmbloods are popular today in ever discipline of international FEI competition up to the Olympic Equestrian level.
Draft Horse Breeds
