EDGAR HOGG bought his first show jumper almost 30 years ago. Since then he has gone on to own several successful Grand Prix level and award-winning young horses.

With years of experience, and an accumulation of knowledge that comes with investing in an animal’s potential, the northern man told how it all began and what he thinks could be done to improve the sport.

“My father farmed and also dealt in working horses when I was very young. I was often brought along in the car to look at a horse that was for sale and if purchased, I was put on top and asked to ride it home, often some 10 miles. I would have been just eight years at the time and often the problem was remembering the directions home.

“I never had the opportunity to ride ponies as a child and as an adult, went into management in industry.

“After a couple of years of working, I was in a position to purchase my own horse, a three-year-old gelding by the TB Hill Tarquin in the fair at Kilrush, Co. Clare.

“By the following spring I had him riding and jumping a small fence and Brian McEntee from Clones brought some clients from Belgium to see him, a deal was done and that’s when my passion for owning horses began.

“In the beginning, because most of my time was spent at work, the horses I purchased were all sold as youngsters. The first time I qualified for the Dublin Horse Show was with a gelding named Concorde, by Snuff Matter. Harold Lusk had customers from Iran at the show and he made a very good judgement in buying him for them; he was a very genuine horse and proved to be very suitable for his clients.

HOOKED

“Not long after that, while on a family holiday, we stopped off at the SJAI National Championships in Salthill, Co. Galway. My son James was just eight years old at the time but once he saw the jumping, he was hooked and it was after that when I bought him his first 128cms pony.

“James competed on the ponies successfully for a few years, and then I bought an unbroken three-year-old grey gelding called Irish Rock.

“He was out of the mare that won the Millstreet Young Irelander class and James, who was 14 years old at the time, took over jumping him. They got on well together and qualified for the five-year-olds in Dublin that year. They then went on to represent Ireland that September in Lanaken, winning the last day consolation Final.

“As a six-year-old in 1998, they were selected to represent Ireland at the Junior European Championships in Lisbon, Portugal, where they jumped two clear rounds as members of the bronze medal-winning team.

“In addition to buying and producing youngsters we have also bred a number of horses.

“In 2005 I bought a five-year-old grey mare called Sandiamo. She is by Andiamo and I took my first embryo from her while she was competing; James’ current Grand Prix mount Always on My Mind is the result.

“When we decided to retire her and breed, her first direct foal, which is by Beach Ball is our seven-year-old gelding Intuitive. He has a lot of ability and looks like he may be the best jumper I have ever owned.

“Sandiamo also has a two-year-old filly and, at 18 years of age, is in foal this year, both by Beach Ball.

BUYING AND BREEDING

“When buying a foal I think it is important that it appears athletic and be a correct type because if it turns out not to be an exceptional performer, at least it is a saleable type.

“When buying an older horse with a lot of ability, I think you can be less demanding on appearance providing it is sound.

“I didn’t breed a foal in 2015 so I decided to buy a filly foal off the internet at a live Belgian auction. She is three this year, she has a very good pedigree and is a great model. The plan is to compete her and if she is good enough we will take an embryo while she’s jumping.

“I don’t think that there is any point in breeding from mares that are not good enough to sell. It is expensive to breed and no mare is too good to breed from.

“I think it’s better to keep the numbers down and the quality high. Breeders need to go to shows and look at the horses and study their type from different sires and even ask the owners what type of mares they are bred from.

“With regard to buying outside of Ireland, one of the advantages on the Continent is that, because of their big numbers, they have a good idea of what mares suit certain stallions in terms of both type and performance.

“On the positive side for Ireland, we have the advantage in land and climate. I also believe young stock here have more human contact while wintered. I feel this rewards them with more personality for later life.

“I have been lucky enough to have been an owner and breeder of show jumpers for some years now and with regard to improvements which I feel the governing bodies could introduce to improve the sport for owners; I think that the main Grand Prix class at a show should commence at a premium fixed time.

GRAND AID NEEDED

“I also think some of the venues urgently need government grant aid to improve jumping surfaces, some continental surfaces are two generations ahead of us.

“Sport horses in Ireland do suffer from the fact that horse racing is such a big sport here and a lot of money from government and business travels that way. I often say you do not go to Holland or Belgium to buy a racehorse.

“I believe it would be advantageous if the Association’s jumping ticket which shows owner and breeding details should, if the animal is Irish-bred, show the breeder’s name. I now notice that the breeders name is acknowledged on the internet for Continental European shows.

“I also think it is a poor reflection on Ireland that we do not have a winter International Horse Show, preferably with a World Cup leg.

HIND BOOTS

“As an owner, I feel strongly about the new hind boot rule and think that it will allow the genuine, naturally gifted horses to properly show their full potential and talent.

“For example, it was a real pleasure to have seen the mare Corradina, ridden by Karsten Otto Nagel for Germany, win the Dublin Grand Prix a few years ago without performance-enhancing hind boots.

“I feel that the international ruling body for sport horses, the FEI, have a serious responsibility to police good practice for the protection of the horse.

“I believe that it is essential if the sport wants to attract the interest of the wider general public who genuinely have affection for horses.

“On the plus side however, one of the positives that our sport does promote is equality; there are not too many sports where females can, and do, compete equally with males, let it be the rider or the horse.”