New Zealand Horses.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13532, 29 February 1908, Page 1 (Supplement)

New Zealand Horses.

COMPARISION WITH ENGLISH. At the Maslerton Show on Wednesday Mr. E. D. 0' Rorke, of Auckland, who lias judging the thoroughbreds and light horses and the jumping events, was asked be the Wairarapa representative of the " Dominion" to express his opinion on New Zealand hacks compared with those of England. The fact that Mr. O'Rorke practically spends several months every year in Great Britain, and that he is one of the recognised judges of horses wherever he is known, entitles his opinions on the subject to more than ordinary interest. " To compare the English and New Zealand hacks is rather a difficult proceeding," said Mr. O'Rorke. " You see, the animals, speaking generally, are on a different footing. For instance, the New Zealand hack is far more of the utility class than its brother in England, who is used to a great extend for pleasure only. Out here in the Dominion a. hack used for station work <fr journeys probably covers more ground in three months than the English hack covers in a year. As we all know, it is not by any means an uncommon thing in New Zealand for a hack to be ridden forty or fifty miles a day, whereas the English hack is perhaps ridden by its owner, if a farmer, to a couple of markets during the week, a few miles from his stable. On other days he may be slowly ridden about the farm for an hour or so, but where kept for pleasure only perhaps half the distance is traversed. The New Zealand hack leads a more strenuous life, gets whatever there may, or may not be in his field for feed, whereas the English horse is well fed, groomed, and looked after, on all accasions. I'his is easily accounted for when we consider the better prices horses command in England than in the colonies; in other woms, he is so valuable in England that he is worth looking after from the money point of view alone. I have ridden a great number of horses both in England and in New Zealand, and have come to the conclusion that in manners the English hack undoubtedly holds pride of place, and is pleasanter to ride than the average colonial horse. More care is taken in the breaking, and the result is a better-paced and better-mannered animal. The ordinary hack in New Zealand, however, is a harder animal than the English one,due, 1 believe 1 , partly to climatic influence, and a great deal to the good stallions imported years ago of the Traducer and Riddlesworth type, and being, wo far at any rate, free from hackney strain—a strain that has done more to injure the English horse than anything else. HOW TO BREED. "I do not wish to diverge from my subject, but I think I may here draw the attention of breeders in New Zealand to the reports of the Horse Breeding Commission in India, which went exhaustively into the subjeet by order of the Indian Government. I could quote largely from the report of the Commission I have before me, but consider that one or two extracts will be sufrieieut to show how conclusively it was proved by the evidence that the hackney should not be used as a. stallion on any account. On page 37, dealing with the disposal of unsuitable stallions by the Government, it advises that they might bo used for breeding mules, and goes on to say : 'The hackney should be disposed of in the same way. They would prove serviceable for keeping up the size and room in the brood mares devoted to mule breeding, and defects which render their progeny useless as horses would not affect the mule progeny bred from these mares.' Again, on page 44, dealing with the success of the Bengal Lancer Stud, it says: 'lt is needkes to say that with the success that has bean attained, anything approaching a hackney sire has been rigorously excluded.' In dealing with the results of the Commission which went to England and concluded its investigations there, on page 2 will be found the following:— 'While in England the Commission has been able to obtain a good deal of valuable evidence on the vexed hunter sire question, and written evidence from the hackney breeders has been received which goes to show that hackneys are no longer considered suitable sires for riding horses.' " In England and Ireland the verdict now is the same, and I therefore hope that New Zealand breeders will profit by the sad experience of those who have bred from hackneys, and not taint the blood of the colonial horse with the soft hackney strain. I know several gentlemen, who are heads of the remount departments and others who have been on horse-breed-ing Commissions, and one and all condemn the hackney. Some of the biggest dealers in England, with whom I have talked over this subject, are of the same opinion. NEW ZEALAND HORSES DETERTO RATING. "During the last few years I am inclined to think, from general observation and from the animals I have had before me when judging at various 6hows, that the- New Zealand horse has deteriorated, or one does not come across many of the big upstanding class like these in the Wanganui district twenty years ago. Those horses were a splendid class, with good hard bone, legs, and feet, up to weight, and with fine courage. It is now becoming more and more difficult to procure, that type. This, I think, is due to I the export of some of our best mares; the lack of encouragement given to those peo--1 pie who have good stallions, and the use oi unsuitable sires. "I feel quite convinced that an importation of really good Arab stallions would no far to help the improvement of the New Zealand horse, as their value has been proved on the remount breeding farms in India and elsewhere. INSPECTION BY VETERINARIANS. " While I am on the importation of stallions, I should like to make the fol-k-win"- suggestion to the New Zealand Government: that they should establish a veterinarv department in England to examine all'stock and pass it. before it is wnt ot the Dominion. I am absolutely certain that this would to a great extent prevent animals with hereditary disease being shipped, and would save both money and anxiety to the New Zealand buyer and breeder. For instance, at the present time there are numbers of animals from England in quaranteen in the Argentina which have shown tuberculosis since arrival. Had they been kept at a Government veterinary department and under .supervision for some time before departure from Britain, and tested before being shipped, disease would not have occurred because it is a well-known fact that- animals with tuberculosis react with groater certainty if fresh and not tested for some. time. I have it on the best authority that animals which were listed in England have shown tubercular development shortly after arrival when retested here. If stallions and mares intended for export to New Zealand were treated in the way I su"-m*rt, animals showing hereditary diseases 0 like spavin, ringbone, and so on. could be better observed and kept out ot the Dominion. In the same way tuberculosis etc., in cattle could be dealt with mere effectively, and it would cause no inconvenience to buyers, as animals could always be purchased subject to them passing the Government examination. I also believe that the Government should offer premuinis on the lines the King's premiums are awarded in Britain. ABOUT STALLIONS. "Manv stallions which have hereditary diseases'are allowed to travel tills country and serve mares. This should be stepped, and I think it is quite time the

breeders combined with the Government to stop it. I am inclined to believe that the time has arrived when stallions advertised for public use should be licensed after being examined and passed by a Board, composed of practical breeders—who know the class of horses required—and veterinary surgeons.