TWO Irish-bred mares, owned by Queen Elizabeth II, were recently scanned in foal to the three-time Dublin champion stallion Cappa Cassanova. This nice boost for Irish Draught breeding came about after his owner Jimmy Quinn received a phone call from David Foy, one of the royal stud grooms.

“At the time we had no idea who our VIP client was going to be,” the Cappa Stud owner told The Irish Field this week. All the necessary Department of Agriculture paperwork, health certs and licensing for exporting semen was put in place by their local vet, Philip McManus, from Rockmount AI Clinic.