Next up in our producer series I talk to the multiple award winners of very prestigious titles with his absolutely incredible Irish Draught Horses – Jimmy and Edel Quinn – owners of Cappa Stud. The Irish Draught is the national horse breed of Ireland, known for their strength, intelligence, courage, durability and gentle temperament and It was my absolute pleasure to speak to Jimmy, who is so passionate about them and I was given such a fascinating insight into these magnificent horses. 

Firstly – tell us who you are and a little bit about what you do and the type of horses you specialize in: 

I’m Jimmy Quinn , owner of Cappa Stud, it’s just me and my wife Edel here and we keep 9 class 1 and class 2 Irish Draught stallions. Contrary to what many believe as the name Irish Draught often conveys up the image of a plough horse, especially to foreigners and it doesn’t do them any justice, especially to their greatest attributes of their temperament, jumping ability and soundness. 

Here at Cappa stud we keep both traditional type and modern type stallions but to be honest, the old traditional type stallions do not cover many mares  to justify keeping them at stud.   

Have you seen a change in potential buyers?  Would you mostly sell internationally, or where is your main base? 

The economy is not great at the moment and money is not freely available so the horse industry is definitely feeling the effects , although a good price will always be paid for the right horses, we sell our horses mainly to the United Kingdom and America, which are ideal markets for the Irish Draught horse 

How is the cost of living increase affecting you – if at all? Do you find yourself forced to pass incurred costs to your clients and if so – do you feel it is a risk to your business? 

Keeping Irish Draught stallions is more about passion for the breed rather than a successful business model especially in the current economy.  The rising costs of horse feed and Haylage and generally everything else associated with breeding, and keeping horses has skyrocketed in recent years but we still charge the same stud fees from 10 years ago, we only offer AI and that involves more time and costs compared to natural covering. A single bottle of Inra Extender is €38 for each covering.  

Has the type of horse that your clientele are looking for changed at all? 

For our breed, the type of horse wanted remains the same, an attractive looking ID with good athletic ability and a kind temperament and sound disposition.   

Do you have concerns for the industry going forward unless things improve? 

I do have major concerns for the Industry as the costs have increased so dramatically  and if there is a sudden downturn in the economy, the equine market will be one of the first to suffer.

Is there anything that bodies like Horse Sport Ireland/Show Jumping Ireland or even the Government could be doing to help the equestrians of Ireland in your opinion? 

I think there should be a lot more support given by the government and HSI to promote and support the Irish Draught horse especially as they are our native breed, I credit the RDS for creating a whole new market for the Irish Draught horse with the Performance ID class. It has become very popular with professional people wanting to compete at a 5 star show at amateur level. I think they should also include a ridden class to showcase the breed. 

Finally – if you could change one thing in the Equine Industry – what would it be and why? 

If there is one thing I wish I could change in the horse industry, it would be the inhumane treatment and  slaughter of horses that has been highlighted recently on television. Complete evil!  

Contact Details for Cappa Stud as follows:

Email:  cappastud@gmail.com

Website:  www.cappastud.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/cappastudstallions