HAVING recently returned from a successful trip to Hickstead, and preparing to face the ‘Big Wall’ at the Dublin Horse Show in August, Co Waterford-based producer Paddy O’Donnell is open about the way things have improved, but also disimproved in show jumping in Ireland.

“Both my parents have been heavily involved in horses my whole life, that’s how they made a living. I grew up here in our home place Kilfarissey, Co Waterford and was always surrounded by horses,” O’Donnell told The Irish Field.

“In more recent years, my father broke such horses as Clover Flush, Flexible and Harristown Princess; they would probably be the best known, but he produced many, many more.

“Flexible was bred by Edward Doyle and went on to have superb international results with American rider, Rich Fellers. Clover Flush was bred by Dermott and Carmel Ryan and had a fantastic career and Harristown Princess was the horse that put me on the road.

“Daddy and Edward [Doyle] were doing a good bit of business together and, when I was 15 years old, I went up to Edward and he’s been good to me ever since.

“I won the Golden Saddle bursary and used it to go over to Michael Whitaker. After that, I travelled to America and worked for Eamonn Hughes for a while. But I knew it wasn’t for me. You are surrounded by the same people, at the same shows, day in, day out. You have no interest outside of horses and I didn’t like that. Horses are an intense way of life, but for me there was no life outside of it and it wouldn’t be for me.

“I have two girls aged five and three and my wife Maria will say to me ‘I hope they like horses because there are so many about the place here’, but it will be up to them if they want to be involved or not, I’d just like them to enjoy being around animals.”

Better and worse

“Life with horses has got better, and has got worse in Ireland. Some conditions may be better, but the days have gotten longer.

"Our show days go on way too long, an early start and a late finish; in my opinion, we are going to get into a good bit of trouble with that.

“For example, the recent RDS qualifier; even if you live beside the venue, you are starting at 4am and are not home until 11pm. Not to mention the ones that live three and four hours away. That is going to cause problems.

“We have to try something. Maybe bring 60 horses to Dublin and let them jump on the Monday, or 70 and let them jump on Monday and Tuesday. I don’t have all the answers, but I know we need to do something. We are getting to the point where, when the qualifiers are over, there is just a sigh of relief, everyone is just so tired.

“There needs to be structures put into place. We have to put a plan into action. We need to manage the numbers somehow. Everyone feels strongly about it now, and it will just be forgotten after a while.

"We all know there’s an issue, we just need to talk about how we can improve things,” he said candidly.

“These days, I have some great students and I don’t really have horses to break in apart from my own. I have four or five mares that I breed from. I have Harristown Gold by Clover Flush, she has a five-year-old and a seven-year-old that look like they could be nice.

“I also have my Grand Prix mare Harristown Princess, and Shannondale Tia, whose foal I sold to the Army Equitation School, as well as Lucy Penny, who jumped up to 1.45m – she has what looks to be a very good three-year-old.

“I built my first sand arena in 2008, at the height of the recession. I wanted the place to be nice so that was an interesting journey for four years. Things change and progress, we now have two indoor arenas and a good grass ring.

“I’m always about finding the right horse for the client. Not every horse is going to jump 1.60m, but you can find the right job for most of them.

“Some of the successful horses that came through here include Inlaws Orinoco, Orla Queally’s Kilnamac Maud and Little Tyson, who I sold to the States.

“We are just back from Hickstead, where Kilcorig Elysium was brilliant earning a top-10 finish in the Derby. He is a very big horse and he took a lot of time. His owner, Damien Conway of Alberta Capital, was very patient and let me take my time with him.

“He qualified for the Puissance in Dublin at Mullingar, and a student of mine, Yelena O’Keeffe, is also on her way to the RDS; she earned her place in the Children on Horses with Kilfarissey Krystal last Sunday.

Biomechanics

“Interestingly, I won the four-year-old qualifier with Kilfarissey Krystal back in 2019, and took fourth place with another horse Tullogher Lady Liberty.

“Krystal, it turned out, is a very unlucky animal, in that she has picked up a lot of minor injuries and illnesses over the years, nothing major but the horse that took fourth went on to jump 1.60m. That’s the point, they all don’t go on to the same things, but if we are patient, and they are a nice horse, they will find the right job for them.

“We have to figure out the way to get the best from each horse. If we produce them the right way, there is going to be a job for them.

“That mare (Krystal) looked, as a four-year-old, like she was going to be a superstar but then, with one thing and another, she missed out with little injuries and illnesses, but she found another path; if you saw the smile on Yelena’s face the other day after she qualified... she was absolutely delighted, the horse has found another way to be a superstar.

“I like to produce nice horses and sell them to the right customer. All our horses are ridden on the road and ridden on the beach. Nice, easy horses, taught the correct way will always have a job. They must be well-rounded individuals, which are happy to go on their own.

“I think our job, as riders, is to know the biomechanics of the horse. To know why and when something hurts, to be able to identify it. You should be able to feel that and be aware of the animal.

“Your job is to make the horse’s life as easy and as pleasurable as possible. They would rather be eating grass in the field than going in circles in the arena, so educate yourself about them.”