The North American Budenny Horse Society
 
Picture

First Edition: Volume 2 / June 1, 2009
                  When horses were first domesticated under the hand of man, they were used for draft work much like the ox. Upon the discovery of its potential, the horse, much like any great invention, became the ultimate war weapon. With chariots and in cavalry units, they gave kings and empires the upper hand in battle. The Budenny stands as a contemporary acknowledgement of that ancient past, bred to be the ultimate cavalry ‘machine’. In this issue, however, we step back to acknowledge two types of gentle giants that continue to fill that first niche as top-notch draft animals: the Suffolk Punch and the American Cream Draft.

                  The Suffolk Punch horse originated in England with the Foundation stallion, Crisp’s Horse of Ufford. It was bred specifically for farm use and has stayed very true to type due to the geography of the United Kingdom. Individuals of the breed are alluded to as medium-sized draft animals with very willing attitudes. There are an estimated 3,000 Suffolks worldwide. The transition from largely rural and agricultural lifestyles to urbanized city life was a hard hit to draft breeds as they fell out of use, and consequently the Suffolk, (along with others of its brethren, most notably the Shire), has been placed on the endangered species list. The work of dedicated supporters of the breed has helped to keep it going, however.

                  Even rarer than the Suffolk is its younger cousin, the American Cream Draft, with an estimated 350 individuals. Despite the tender age of the United States itself, there are quite a number of ‘native’ breeds bred for use on U.S. soil. They include the American Quarter Horse, American Paint, Appaloosa, Missouri Foxtrotter, and Morgan, among others. However, the American Cream is the only official American draft breed. Like the Suffolk, it is also referred to as a medium-sized draft. The foundation mare was a Belgian, but enough unique characteristics and DNA differences allowed it to be typed as a separate breed. The American Cream Draft Horse Association places much emphasis on both the preservation of the Cream Draft gene pool and the pink skin and amber eyes that is the ideal of the breed.

Picture
                 Lynne Howe has been involved in the horse business for twenty years. In the beginning, she and her family had a draft team of Belgians. Their second team was a pair of Percherons. Noting the origins of the horses, she commented “With teams from Belgium and France, I was teasing my husband that we needed a team that was ‘American’ and lo and behold he came home from an auction one day with a team of yearling American Creams!” They now have twelve Creams, with two foals recently born from their privately owned stallion.

                  Ms. Howe and her family also have twenty Suffolks. In her own words, “We were introduced to the Suffolks when we took a draft horse tour one summer, and really like the conformation of the breed and that they’d been bred specifically in England to be a farming horse.” They acquired their first Suffolk mare through a friend. While they didn’t initially like the looks of her, they were able to care for her out of her roughness and she became the reason why they have any Suffolks today.

                  They show their horses extensively at county fairs, draft horse pulls and plowing contests. Their horses have also been exhibited at the Great Circus Parade at Milwaukee, the Great Circus Parade at Baraboo, and the Quad Cities All Breeds Horse Fair. Ms. Howe’s youngest daughter also participated in their local county 4-H Animal Safety Day with one of her geldings. She recommends that if someone wants to see the Suffolk or Cream at its best, to “steer clear of the ‘showy’ shows, and try to find draft horse field days [to] see the animals working. If you can see them plowing, raking hay, whatever, you pretty much know that you’ll be able to train them for nearly anything else!” Visiting as many owners of the breed as possible and seeing the horses up close and personal also helps to get a feel for them.

                  For those interested in learning more about the American Cream or Suffolk Punch, Ms. Howe recommends the breed websites: the American Cream Draft Horse Association (www.acdha.org) and the American Suffolk Horse Association (www.suffolkpunch.com). ‘Rural Heritage’ is a magazine that is an excellent resource for draft horse enthusiasts, and Draft Horses and Mules: Harnessing Equine Power for Farm and Show is a great read for both beginners and experienced horsepeople alike. Listings of other books on draft horses can be found at the Rural Heritage (www.ruralheritage.com) and Mischka Press (www.mischka.com) websites.
Article by Karina Rapp  

Special thanks to Lynne Howe for providing valuable information for this piece, and to Kay Fellows for providing pictures.  
 


Comments




Leave a Reply