KILLOSSERY is a prefix that has earned its place amongst the elite of quality sport horses in Ireland.

Established and run by Laura Glynn, her husband and course builder, Frank and their son, event rider Ciaran, Killossery Lodge Stud has been in business for three decades.

Laura’s interest in horses began when her sister took riding lessons in Jerry O’Brien’s stables in Howth and she didn’t have the most auspicious of starts.

“I was always horse mad. My mum told me that our milkman used to deliver with a horse and cart when I was a toddler and I insisted on going out to pet the horse,” Laura said.

“When I rode in Jerry’s stables, we hacked over the hill in Howth and I fell off every time. On the 20th occasion even Jerry himself suggested that maybe this wasn’t the sport for me, but I wasn’t dissuaded.

“A couple of years later we began going to Alish Goodwin in Malahide for lessons and that was the first time I was told that you were meant to go up and down when trotting!

Her first pony was an unbroken three-year-old and from then on Laura was hooked.

“It was at that time that my father bought a small farm in Co Westmeath and myself and my sister went out and bought an unbroken three-year-old pony – not an ideal buy for inexperienced kids but we didn’t know any better.

“The pony was meant to be half Connemara and half Irish Draught, I don’t think he was really suited to a lot but we were very enthusiastic and we were delighted to spend hours getting him ready for the local show in Granard, only to go into the ring and the pony would canter into the first fence, stop three times and we’d be eliminated! But this didn’t dampen our passion.”

After school, Laura continued to persist with the horses, but it wasn’t without a few knock backs along the way. “When I left school all I wanted to do was work with horses so I applied to do my AI in Iris Kellett’s. The interview did not go well and they told me that my standard of riding wasn’t good enough and they suggested I take the summer to get some more experience.

“I then got a summer job in a yard in Dundalk and tried again. At my second interview they could see that my riding had improved but still I failed the entrance exam by just one point, once again on riding ability.

“But still I was not deterred. I applied again and with some pleading on my behalf by my mother and my own determination to get the place they accepted me. It took me a few years there to get my AI qualification but I eventually succeeded.

“Meanwhile, my dad had bought a broodmare back at home. She was called Clifton Lass and was by Chin Chin Chow. One of her foals, Jeannie, who was by Radical, and was actually named after my mother, turned out to be the foundation mare for a lot of the successful horses to come out of Killossery Lodge Stud.”

FOUNDATION MARE

“We originally planned to sell Jeannie, but as luck would have it she acted up whenever people looked at her so we decided to keep her and bred from her.

“Her first foal was sold at the Dublin Horse Show to German show jumper George Kettlegerdes and went on to be a decent jumper so we knew we were onto something good.

“She is the dam of Killossery Kruisette, by Cruising, who is probably our greatest success story. She enjoyed lots of international success representing the Army Equitation School, making numerous 1.60m Grand Prix and Nations Cup appearances.

“After her retirement she came home and we took embryos from her. She is the dam of a number of promising young performers including Killossery Kaiden who won the six-year-old final at the FEI World Breeding Championships in 2016.

Ger O'Neill and Killossery Kaiden winning the six-year-old gold medal at the FEI World Breeding Jumping Championships for Young horses in 2016. Photo Hippo Foto Dirk Careman

“That was probably one of the best days I’ve ever had with horses; I thought my heart would explode, it was so exciting. It was unreal.

“Another memorable day has to be when my daughter Sara won the bronze medal at the European three-day-eventing pony Championships. These days Sara is too busy with her studies to get to ride a lot, but she does have a three-year-old here by Jack of Diamonds and she plans to start working with it this year.

“My son Ciaran runs the yard and is competing in Badminton this weekend with November Night. He’s had her since she was four years old. She got her name because owners Susanna Francke and Peter Cole bought in the Going for Gold sale which takes place in November.

“Ciaran has diversified recently. As well as his coaching and riding, he imports show jumps and builds cross country and working hunter fences. He has just become the Irish agent for Spiro Fix which is used for holding fences and trampolines in place.

BREEDING PROGRAMME

“Other horses we have include a nice five-year-old by Mighty Magic out of Wren’s Next. He is with Barry Griffin right now. I have a nice four-year-old with Nicola Ennis called Killossery Kitten. He is by Mr Big Cat out of Kruisette and I chose that sire because I wanted to breed an eventer and I thought that was a good mix.

“I have another one with Cathal Daniels called Killossery Klover. He is a six-year-old by Clover Flush and was entire until last year but he got a bit tricky to ride so we gelded him, so we’ll see how he goes this year.”

Sadly, Killossery Kruisette passed away last year, but the Glynn family still have some of her progeny to look forward to, although Laura is taking a step back from the breeding operation.

“Killossery Kruisette died after her colic last year. She was in great health prior to the colic, she looked fantastic. We still have six frozen embryos from her which is great. A recipient mare with one of her foals, by Emerald, belonging to Ciaran is due tomorrow so that’s exciting.

“When Kruisette died I decided that that was the end of my involvement in the breeding programme. I decided that when she stopped I would.

Ciaran Glynn and November Night at Land Rover Burghley 2018. Photo Equus Pix

“Deciding which youngsters to hold on to and which to sell would really be decided on a number of the things. I always look at the eye first. They must have a nice, kind eye.

“Next I look at the way they move. They should be light off the ground and move well. I then look at the pedigree. But probably the most important thing is that they are athletic; if you want a horse to succeed at a higher level at any discipline it is essential that they are athletic.

“If I had any issue from an owners point of view, that I would like clarified by the sport’s governing body, it would be that when Horse Sport Ireland was established, and all different disciplines came under one umbrella, it was my understanding that one registration would cover everything.

“This would mean that you wouldn’t have to join Showjumping Ireland, Dressage Ireland and Eventing Ireland separately to compete the one horse. I believe that some sort of discount is available but it’s not an easy thing to do, it seems to involve a lot of paperwork. So maybe that’s something which could be looked at.”