The Kerry Bog Pony is a
mountain and moorland breed of
pony
A pony is a type of small horse ('' Equus ferus caballus''). Depending on the context, a pony may be a horse that is under an approximate or exact height at the withers, or a small horse with a specific conformation and temperament. Compared ...
that originated in Ireland. Possibly descended from the
Irish Hobby
The Irish Hobby is an extinct breed of horse developed in Ireland prior to the 13th century. The breed provided foundation bloodlines for several modern horse breeds, including breeds as diverse as the Connemara pony and the Irish Draught. Pa ...
horse, it originally lived a mainly
feral
A feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some ...
existence in the
peat bog
A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...
s of what is now
County Kerry in southwestern Ireland. Local inhabitants used the ponies as pack and cart horses for transporting
peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient ...
and
kelp
Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera. Despite its appearance, kelp is not a plant - it is a heterokont, a completely unrelated group of organisms.
Kelp grows in "underwa ...
to the villages. The breed developed physical characteristics including a low weight-to-height ratio and an unusual footfall pattern, which helped it move on soft ground such as peat bogs. The ponies were known for hardiness and an ability to survive in harsh conditions.
War, increasing mechanisation and declines in the local small-farm population almost resulted in the breed's
extinction
Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...
. In 1994, a local man found and genetically tested a herd of 20 ponies he used as the
foundation stock
Foundation bloodstock or foundation stock refers to animals that are the progenitors, or foundation, of a breed or of a given bloodline within such. Many modern breeds can be traced to specific, named foundation animals, but a group of animals ma ...
for rebuilding of the breed. In the early 2000s, the breed was recognised by the
Irish Department of Agriculture and Food and the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
;
equine passports began to be issued for members of the breed, and small numbers of ponies were exported to the United States. At the same time, Irish and American
breed registries were formed. As of 2011, the registered population is more than 300 ponies.
Characteristics
![Kerry Bog Pony head](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Kerry_Bog_Pony_head.jpg)
Kerry Bog Ponies generally stand high. The Irish breed standard calls for
mare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than fo ...
s to stand 10–11 hands and
stallions and
geldings to stand 11–12 hands. Their low weight-to-height ratio enables them to walk on wet ground. Their hind feet tend to track outside their front feet, allowing better progress on soft ground. They exhibit a relatively upright
pastern
The is a part of the leg of a horse between the fetlock and the top of the hoof. It incorporates the long pastern bone (proximal phalanx) and the short pastern bone (middle phalanx), which are held together by two sets of paired ligaments to fo ...
and steep hoof angle compared to other breeds, possibly another characteristic that aids their movement in peat bogs. Kerry Bog Ponies are
easy keeper
Easy may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Easy'' (film), a 2003 American romantic comedy film
*'' Easy!'', or ''Scialla!'', a 2011 Italian comedy film
* ''Easy'' (TV series), a 2016–2019 American comedy-drama anthology ...
s, and when feral they lived on low-nutrient
heather,
sphagnum moss
''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store w ...
and possibly
kelp
Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera. Despite its appearance, kelp is not a plant - it is a heterokont, a completely unrelated group of organisms.
Kelp grows in "underwa ...
from the shoreline. Overall, they are muscular and strong and their heads have concave profiles, small ears and large eyes. Their winter coat is long and dense, serving as protection from harsh weather. All solid
coat colours are found, including dilute colours such as
palomino, and
white markings are common.
Pinto
Pinto is a Portuguese language, Portuguese, Spanish language, Spanish, Sephardi Jews, Jewish (Sephardic), and Italian language, Italian surname. It is a high-frequency surname in all List of countries and territories where Portuguese is an officia ...
-coloured animals are not accepted by the Irish registry. The breed is known by enthusiasts for strength, intelligence and athleticism, and generally used for
driving
Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to f ...
, as
companion animal
A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive appearances, intelligence, ...
s and for
therapeutic riding
Equine-assisted therapy (EAT) encompasses a range of treatments that involve activities with horses and other equines to promote human physical and mental health. The use of EAT has roots in antiquity, and EAT applies to physical health issues i ...
programs.
Kerry Bog Ponies were historically known in Ireland as "hobbies", possibly derived from the Gaelic practice of ''obaireacht'', or the calling out of "Hup, Hup" to attract a pony back to the farmyard.
It is considered one of the
mountain and moorland pony breeds
Mountain and moorland ponies form a group of several breeds of ponies and small horses native to the British Isles. Many of these breeds are derived from semiferal ponies kept on moorland or heathland, and some of them still live in this way, ...
from Britain and Ireland.
A 2006 study using
mitochondrial DNA found that the Kerry Bog Pony is not closely related to the other two native Irish breeds, the
Irish Draught
The Irish Draught horse is the national horse breed of Ireland which developed primarily for farm use. Today, they are especially popular for crossing with Thoroughbreds and warmbloods, producing the popular Irish Sport Horses (also called ...
and the
Connemara pony
The Connemara Pony ( Irish: ''Capaillín Chonamara'') is a pony breed originating in Ireland. They are known for their athleticism, versatility and good disposition. The breed makes excellent show ponies.
History
The Connemara region in C ...
. It has a rare
haplogroup
A haplotype is a group of alleles in an organism that are inherited together from a single parent, and a haplogroup (haploid from the el, ἁπλοῦς, ''haploûs'', "onefold, simple" and en, group) is a group of similar haplotypes that share ...
more closely related to other small horse breeds found in western Europe, including the
Shetland pony
The Shetland pony is a Scottish breed of pony originating in the Shetland Isles in the north of Scotland. It may stand up to at the withers. It has a heavy coat and short legs, is strong for its size, and is used for riding, driving, and p ...
and
Icelandic horse.
A 2012 study found relationships between the Kerry Bog Pony and the
Dartmoor Pony and
Exmoor Pony
The Exmoor pony is one of the mountain and moorland pony breeds native to the British Isles. Some still roam as semi-feral livestock on Exmoor, a large area of moorland in Devon and Somerset in southwest England. The Exmoor has been given "P ...
breeds, and a lack of common ancestry with the
Welsh Pony
The Welsh Pony and Cob is a group of four closelyrelated horse breeds including both pony and cob types, which originated in Wales in the United Kingdom. The four sections within the breed society for the Welsh breeds are primarily distingui ...
, as well as reinforcing the lack of relationship to the Connemara. The study also suggested that the Kerry Bog Pony population had some amount of
crossbreeding
A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. ''Crossbreeding'', sometimes called "designer crossbreeding", is the process of breeding such an organism, While crossbreeding is used to main ...
with other mountain and moorland breeds as part of the initial attempts to increase the population in the 1990s.
[ The Kerry Bog Pony may have been one of several breeds that contributed to the development of the Gypsy Vanner horse (also known as the Irish Cob).
]
History
The original ancestry of the Kerry Bog Pony is unknown, but there were horses living a feral
A feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some ...
existence in peat bogs in what is now County Kerry in southwestern Ireland since at least the 1600s. Some enthusiasts claim that the breed is a descendant of the ancient Irish Hobby
The Irish Hobby is an extinct breed of horse developed in Ireland prior to the 13th century. The breed provided foundation bloodlines for several modern horse breeds, including breeds as diverse as the Connemara pony and the Irish Draught. Pa ...
.[ In a 1617 book illustration, the horses pictured resemble both the Kerry Bog Pony of today and the original Irish Hobby, showing the two breeds' similar ]morphology
Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to:
Disciplines
* Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts
* Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...
.[ Originally, Kerry Bog Ponies were used to transport peat and kelp. They were known for their ability to navigate through the bogs, around soft spots and over rocks often in wet and windy weather, and for their strength relative to their small size. Some were trained to work in harness and used to pull carts. The ponies were turned loose into the peat bogs when they were not needed, then later re-caught for work. Few if any breeding programs existed; instead, they were left to reproduce in their feral setting.][ In 1720, ]Isaac Ware
Isaac Ware (1704—1766) was an English architect and translator of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio.
Early life
Ware was born to a life of poverty, living as a street urchin and working as a chimney sweep, until he was adopted by ...
travelled to County Kerry and observed that the horses resembled Asturcón ponies from Spain.[
The British cavalry became aware of the ponies in 1804, during the ]Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
, and used them as pack animals during the conflict; most did not return to Ireland. The famine of 1845–1852 furthered their decline, as farmers who previously utilised them died or emigrated. In addition, Spanish donkeys were brought to the island to replace the ponies, and when peat declined as a fuel source, pack animals were no longer needed. In the 1850s, farms began to be consolidated, and more machinery and large draft horse
A draft horse (US), draught horse (UK) or dray horse (from the Old English ''dragan'' meaning "to draw or haul"; compare Dutch ''dragen'' and German ''tragen'' meaning "to carry" and Danish ''drage'' meaning "to draw" or "to fare"), less oft ...
s were employed, further reducing the number of ponies needed. Consequently, the ponies were left to run feral, mostly ignored and sometimes shot at by locals.
Re-emergence
In 1994, John Mulvihill, who operated the Red Fox Inn at the Kerry Bog Village in Glenbeigh
Glenbeigh or Glanbehy () is a town and civil parish on the Iveragh peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The parish includes Rossbeigh beach, Coomasahran Lake and a number of important rock art sites. Owing to its natural heritage, history and i ...
, County Kerry, began a search for remnants of the Kerry Bog Pony population, despite reports that the breed was extinct. He eventually found 20 ponies that resembled those he remembered from his childhood, and removed them from the bog to his stables.[ In 1995, he had blood typing performed on the ponies by Weatherby's Ireland, which identified their DNA markers.] Subsequent DNA testing showed them to be a unique breed that formed a separate population from other local ponies and from other breeds in Ireland and Great Britain.[ Of these 20 ponies, only one was a stallion, named Flashy Fox. Between 1995 and 2012, he sired more than 140 foals, and played a significant role in repopulating the breed.
Mulvihill continued breeding and promoting the ponies, and in 2002, the breed was recognised by the Irish Government as the Irish Heritage Pony. The same year, the Kerry Bog Pony Society was formed. Also in 2002, Americans became interested in the breed, and the first ponies were exported from Ireland to the US in 2003, to a farm in ]Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
. In 2005, the American Kerry Bog Pony Society was founded, with 11 initial registrants.[ Also in 2005, the Irish Department of Agriculture and Food and the ]European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
recognised the Kerry Bog Pony as an official breed; the following year, the Irish Horse Board issued the first equine passports for members of the breed. Until 2009, there was an exception in place that allowed unrelated ponies that met the physical breed standards to be bred as Kerry Bog Ponies, with the offspring being registered and given passports certifying them as purebred Kerry Bog Ponies. This was in part due to a concern of inbreeding among the small number of ponies initially registered. Kerry Bog Ponies were also part of the Irish Rural Environment Protection Scheme (closed to new applicants in 2009), which financially rewarded farmers for using environmentally-friendly methods. The Kerry Bog Village, an open-air museum
An open-air museum (or open air museum) is a museum that exhibits collections of buildings and artifacts out-of-doors. It is also frequently known as a museum of buildings or a folk museum.
Definition
Open air is “the unconfined atmosphere ...
on the Ring of Kerry
The Ring of Kerry ( ga, Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passi ...
is one location that breeds and houses part of the existing Kerry Bog Pony population.
As of 2011, there were 335 mares and 51 stallions registered with the Irish registry, which included 59 new foals that year. Herd numbers have steadily increased since registrations began in 2005. These numbers make the Kerry Bog Pony third in population numbers among Irish breeds, behind the Connemara pony and the Irish Draught
The Irish Draught horse is the national horse breed of Ireland which developed primarily for farm use. Today, they are especially popular for crossing with Thoroughbreds and warmbloods, producing the popular Irish Sport Horses (also called ...
.[ Despite the increasing numbers, the breed is still considered to be critically endangered by the ]Equus Survival Trust The Equus Survival Trust is a United States nonprofit organisation dedicated to helping conservation efforts for over 25 horse breeds considered "endangered" by the organization due to their rarity and danger of dying out. It is dedicated to protec ...
. The horses are administered by the Kerry Bog Pony Co-Operative Society of Ireland (formerly the Kerry Bog Pony Society), which is based in Ireland with a branch in Great Britain. Inspections are required before ponies are allowed into the studbook
A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...
. The book is divided into four classes: Class 1 ponies meet all requirements, Class 2 ponies do not meet the height requirement, Class 3 ponies do not meet the color requirements, and Class 4 ponies have yet to submit to an official inspection. The breed association has hosted an annual breed show
A breed show is a broad term for exhibitions designed to showcase a single animal breed. In most cases, only purebred animals recorded with a breed registry are eligible to enter and compete. A judge or team of judges will evaluate individual ...
and sale in Glenbeigh
Glenbeigh or Glanbehy () is a town and civil parish on the Iveragh peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The parish includes Rossbeigh beach, Coomasahran Lake and a number of important rock art sites. Owing to its natural heritage, history and i ...
, County Kerry since 2007.
The first two ponies exported from Ireland went to a farm in Austria in August 2016. The International Kerry Bog Pony Association was formed around the same time in 2016 by a group of breeders from a small group of countries to create a registry to accommodate pony owners spanning multiple countries.
References
External links
Kerry Bog Pony Cooperative
American Kerry Bog Pony Society
International Kerry Bog Pony Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerry Bog Pony
Horse breeds originating in Ireland
Horse breeds
Horse landraces