THE interest in horses definitely came from my father, Seamus. If you rewind the clock, we were into sport horses before Draughts. We’d usually have five foals, keep them until loose jumping them as three-year-olds and sell them on.

I worked in Gabriel Slattery’s yard for a couple of summers when Captain Clover was the main stallion then amongst Mayo stallions. He was a smasher. They were so saleable off him, good models and lovely to do anything with.

Then we bought our first Irish Draught; a Sir Rivie yearling colt and he won the All Ireland yearling colt final at Ossory in 2005. That was my first All-Ireland, judged that year by Vicky Matthews and John Shorten

Married to Aisling, we have two children: Seamus Jnr. (four) and Saoirse (10 months). Showing is a hobby to me, family and work come first. I work in plastering and dry lining and before Covid, would have worked a lot in England for 10 days at a time.

We live just 10 minutes from Knock Airport and so there were planeloads of people doing the same thing: over from Knock every Sunday evening to Stansted, Luton and Gatwick and back home again for the weekend.

Aisling and I got married five years ago, she works for the Road Safety Authority and also shows and judges dogs.

Which means I’m often asked if the dog show scene and judging are like horse shows!

1. Congratulations on breeding King Elvis I (King Elvis – Elm Silver), the first of this year’s Class 1 stallions approved at Cavan. Tell us about his background.

In 2006, my uncle Raymond spotted a filly foal with similar Sir Rivie–Diamond Lad breeding to that All Ireland champion colt and he bought her from Tommy McCann. That was Morning Glow.

We went through the stallion book to find a suitable Irish Draught to cover her with and, following Brian Cogan’s advice, settled on Elm Hill. He stood with Bernard Kennelly near Adare; a nicer house you couldn’t go into but just a bad spot for Draughts as Elm Hill only covered a handful of mares.

Elm View (Elm Hill – Morning Glow) was foaled the following year and it took me 10 trips to Raymond’s yard to buy her, he knew she was a smasher. She won all there was to be won in the Draught showring, often in threes, such as three-time wins each at Dublin, the National Show and the Leitrim Breeders championships.

Her daughter Elm Silver (Fast Silver) was the foal at foot when Elm View won the Leitrim Breeders championship in 2013 but, unfortunately, Elm Silver got injured as a yearling, so was unshown.

She’s bred a couple of foals already, including Spellbounds View (Cloneyhea Spellbound), sold to Minnesota to Paula Schneider and just last Sunday, she produced her first foal by Mountain Diamond.

I got a rare King Elvis straw from Danny Molloy and covered Elm Silver on an 11-day foal heat at vet Kate Murray’s and bang, the mare went in foal. And that’s her Class 1 son, King Elvis I.

My plans are to keep him at present as a lot of breeders have shown interest in him and I think he’ll be a huge asset to the breed.

2. Why do you breed Irish Draughts?

My Dad Seamus was into Irish Draughts so I suppose that rubbed off on me. I think it’s like anything you’re interested in; you will try to do your best at it.

3. Proudest moment as a breeder?

In 2014 when Elm View’s Fast Silver colt won the Irish Draught foal championship at Dublin.

4. Best advice you ever got?

Never give up. If you believe in something, stick with it; it will come right in time.

5. Favourite broodmare, past or present?

Hands down, Elm View. All that she won will probably never be repeated. She’s won several Horse Sport Ireland breeders awards for Raymond too.

6. What is your template for a Draught?

For me, again, it’s Elm View. I think she is as near to the perfect Irish Draught mare as you can get. True to type, short-legged, super power, an unbelievable mare to move and she’s also produced some lovely offspring.

7. It takes a team – who’s on yours?

All the credit for producing King Elvis has to go to Padraic Corcoran and his team at Riverview Equestrian Centre in Crossmolina. I couldn’t be happier with the way he was produced for Cavan.

At home, my mother Eileen holds the fort while I’m working and if there’s anything urgent, our neighbour Brian Cogan is very good to us. Conor, Raymond’s son, helped showing Elm View on some of her big days out.

And of course, I really have to thank Danny Molloy again, especially for that King Elvis straw. You can say there’s a lot of rivalry amongst stallion owners but I would say there’s a lot of friendship and support too.

8. What do you think are the greatest challenges facing Irish Draught breeders?

Stallions! As Danny Molloy said, it’s all we talk about: the right ones, outcrosses, finding them and keeping them.

9. Describe your wintertime regime for mares/youngstock?

I keep all the mares outside for the winter and they’re fed on haylage and rolled oats.

All the youngstock are kept indoors. There is a lot of work to it, but it’s so wet in the west of Ireland for the winter, that’s it’s a better way.

I feed them hay, haylage and a mixture of hard feeds to keep them ticking over.

10. Do you think that Seamus Jnr and Saoirse will have the same keen interest in horses and shows?

I have them out in the yard and in the stables every chance I get! Seamus is quite handy with the yard brush and as for Saoirse, please God she’ll take over the plaiting in the future!

As for the shows, after a quiet two years, we’re just looking forward to getting back out with some nice youngstock for a family Sunday outing.