CLYDESDALES AND SHIRES AT HOME.

Otago Witness, Issue 3003, 4 October 1911, Page 17

CLYDESDALES AND SHIRES AT HOME.

| OPINIONS OF A N.Z. BREEDER. A well-known southern breeder, Mr J. Boag, juh., of Brcokside, has just returned from England, where he purchased/ th«' Olydesdalo stallion Black Douglas, lnartioulars of which have been publiohed in thia column. The stallion,- which is for the Middlerigg Stud, is dcocribed by !4r Boag as a thick, evenly-balanced horse, of excellent substance and quality, bred from the best strain in Scotland, and an animal that will be a distinct acquisition to New Zealand. Speaking of- his tour (says the Dominion), Mr Boag says he visited the Royal Show in Juno. The show was a very fine one, and. the exhibition much ahead of anything he had ever soon before. The entries of stock were numerous, and the prize-winning animals were of a high order of merit. The management of the big show was perfect. Mr Boag alec visited

the Highland Show "at Inverness in July. The Clydesdale entries were very fine. The classes were strong, and were almost invariably filled with first-class animals. Cattle and sheep were not so numerous, but they were of good standard and. quality.' Referring to English horses, Mr Boag says the most favoured breed in England to-day is the Shire of the large, beefy type, with a preponderance of coarse hair around its legs, . and - standing on small feet. The lighter class of Shire horses, which appeal most to the colonial visitor, is not regarded as being possessed' of much merit by English breeders. The Clydesdale mostly in favour in Scotland is an animal possessing a fine quality of bone, covered with" a moderate amount of. silky hair, and etandin_ on very Rood feet. They do not, says Mr Boag, place much, importance on the body. This is ■ exactly the opposite of what is favoured in Che Shire breed. In fact, he added-, the Englishman starts to judge his horses from the top, whilst the Scotsman starts to judge him from _ the feet upwards. In bis opinion the animal niust be possessed of very good legs—hard and clean, —and be of good quality, otherwise it is considered distinctly inferior. The general conformation of the body is" not considered very important by the Scotsman. In Mr Boag's opinion the Clydesdale breeders of Scotland are rather neglecting the ribs and general conformation of the body of the Clydesdale, and running too much to leg 9. Also> their horses are becoming somewhat undersized. The pick of the horses in Scotland, however, are excellent animals, and little fault can be found with them, but a lairge proportion of them below this class are rather light and small.