I WAS one of three boys born to Micko and Bridget Foran in Querrin, a small, scenic townland in West Clare. Although it’s only 60 years ago, life was very different back then. Everything centred around the farm. Mealtime conversations were always about the animals - horses, cows, calves, hens, geese – and, occasionally, a fox trying to make off with one.

We weren’t among the privileged few who had a tractor, so all the work was done by horse. That meant horses were central to daily life and they were respected for the essential role they played. My brothers, Paul and James, and I spent every summer holiday on the farm, storing fodder for the winter and bringing turf home from the bog. I think it was during those summers that my deep love of the horse began to form. I was captivated by the magic of foals being born - there’s something truly special about the arrival of a newborn foal.