JOE Burke is one of the best exhibitors showing today - he has won every Championship in Ireland and many in the UK.

Burke is immensely popular and a true expert in what he does, having been asked to judge at Balmoral and abroad. He specialises in stallions, many with the foundation breed handed down by his father Eamon. His most outstanding pony is the stallion Currachmore Cashel who was virtually unbeaten in the show ring.

Joe will never be out of place in the fashion stakes or on how to handle a pony - his one trademark being that he wears golf shoes when showing to give him good grip in our wet climate.

HEALTHY COAT

“I’m very much focused on the role nutrition has to play in the turnout of horses. A healthy coat will always look well and the horse’s diet is very important when it comes to maintaining good condition and a shiny, healthy looking coat,” Burke explained.

“The horses all winter out but at the beginning of the breeding and show season we stable the horses at night. When the horses are in work, they are groomed daily and this helps maintain their coat and keep them relatively clean. It is good though to have the horses out as much as possible, if they’re not in the stable they can’t get stable stains.

“When it comes to preparing for a show the next day the horses are washed with blue shampoo and I use conditioner in the tails - I never use spray conditioner - I find this enhances the colour of grey and white coats. I’m not a fan of chalk or any other whitening products because I find they don’t produce a shine.

“When it comes to washing it’s good old fashioned elbow grease followed by a thorough drying. I spend as much time drying the horses as I do washing them. This is to prevent bedding or dust sticking to the coat after the horses have been cleaned.

WORKS LIKE MAGIC

“I am a huge advocate of the Rambo Dry Rug – they are magic. Fifteen minutes and the horse is dry, then you just leave the rug out to dry for a few minutes and it is ready to go on the next horse. Once dry, the horses are groomed to bring up a shine and their tails plaited so that they don’t get marked during the night. To stay true to the breed, the tails are never cut straight across and we don’t trim around the fetlocks.

“The horses are well covered up with their Snuggy Hoods so that they stay clean throughout the night. I don’t put plaits in the mane as I prefer to leave them as neat and natural as possible.

“On the day of the show, my main piece of advice is give yourself plenty of time to get ready and make sure that your tack is clean and that all the leather straps are in their keepers. That’s a little pet hate of mine seeing straps out of the keepers. After all the effort you will have put in it would be a shame to let yourself down on the finishing touches.

“Supreme Sparkle is an excellent product. I use this as the finishing touch on the horse’s mane, tail and legs to highlight these points. A sponge, cloth and good hoof oil are my grooming kit essentials.