Hunter Ponies - A discussion with Jerome Harforth

This article appeared in the February 2019 Horse Deals magazine

Have you ever been to a show and wondered why a particular horse or pony is in the Hunter class, or indeed why it isn’t in a Hunter class? The Hunter ring is not an option for a horse or pony that will not win in the Open Ring. Horse Deals caught up with Jerome Harforth during one of his trips to Australia. Jerome founded the famous Stanley Grange Stud in the UK and for over 40 years, he has bred, produced and shown ponies and horses with outstanding success. Jerome has also judged all over the world.

It must be remembered that in the UK the hunting tradition is very strong and the desire to breed a horse for that purpose has been in action there since before the Inclosure Consolidation Act of 1801. The desire for a beautiful horse exists in us all, no matter what our chosen activity and a Show Hunter has to be a quality animal, but it also must have qualities that are recognised in the hunting fields. “Hunters,” Jerome says, “are more robust and workmanlike than hacks, but they still must be quality animals with substance. The Hunter Pony must be quality, have good manners, bone and substance and they should possess pony character.

“A lot of ponies carry too much weight, without the limb to support it and they look top heavy. We still want a show animal, but a stronger overall pony. A Show Hunter Pony really wants to be in the mound of a Middleweight Show Hunter Horse. There is a lot of Thoroughbred in the Show Hunter and in the UK that has been crossed with Irish Draught to get the type of horse suitable for hunting. Here I see that many of your Hunter Horses are pure Warmblood and in the UK the Warmbloods are making inroads. But still in the UK the breeding of Hunters and Hunter Ponies is very much in line with actually taking them hunting. The most important thing with a Hunter is staying sound and the limbs and the feet are very important. You may forgive some slight conformation fault in a Show Pony, but in a Hunter Pony you would not.

“In the UK, the Show Hunter Ponies started in about 1984 and were originally considered a second class pony; an off type Show Pony that didn’t quite make it. However, the classes have really developed and we are getting a much truer type. They have developed and are now of equal status with the Show Ponies. The ponies come under the jurisdiction of the British Show Pony Society, (the horses are administered by Sport Horse Breeding GB). In judging, points are awarded, 50% for workout and manners and 50% for conformation and movement. Manners are very important, as, if you are in the hunting field, you want a well mannered pony whether you are on the move or standing still. Those good manners are expected in the ring, with the pony standing on a loose rein in the line up and producing a smooth, obedient performance. We pay a lot of attention to manners in the UK.

“Regarding movement, the Hunter must have a good walk, use their shoulder and over track, as a hunter does a lot of walking. In Australia I have noticed that the ponies are not judged much at the walk, but a good walk is essential. I like to see a nice, athletic, ground covering trot and a little bit of knee action is acceptable. We want a rhythmic canter that is comfortable to sit on. The gallop is not so much about the speed, what we want is for the pony to lower and stretch out, to lengthen and lower the stride. The judge really wants to see a gallop, but the horse should go in to the gallop smoothly and come back out of the gallop smoothly in to a nice, working canter without any resistance. It is important to show a good gallop and many riders don’t know how to do this. A medium canter is not a gallop, however, an out of control gallop is not wanted either. We want the riders to let the horse out of a collected outline and stretch their whole body including head and neck. Many classes are lost for want of a good/appropriate gallop.

“The gear should be understated and functional i.e. plain leather browbands etc. White girths are for Show Ponies, not for Hunters. For the riders, tweed jackets with plain cloth covered or leather buttons; bling is a no no in a Hunter class. Some of the jackets I have seen here in Australia are too short, they should be long enough to touch the cantle of the saddle. Too much product applied to a Hunter is not a good look, as well as having black painted hooves on the end of white legs. The horse’s plaits can be bigger and fewer in number. The idea is to enhance the pony’s neck, but you don’t want a row of peas along the pony’s neck. Quarter marks to show off the pony’s coat, should not be elaborate designs; maybe just three long sweeps and three big sharks teeth. By and large the presentation of the horses and ponies in Australia is excellent.

“The Hunters are amongst the oldest showing classes in the UK and the type is more established. The ponies that came along much later have still found their place based on the principles governing the judging of the horses. Now the Hunter Ponies are not second rate Show Ponies and a Riding Pony of Hunter type is just as nice as a Riding Pony of Show Pony type. Of course the Hunter Ponies are not restricted to Riding Ponies, as Welsh Ponies have been successful as have ponies of varied pony breeding. In the years I have been coming to Australia, I have seen the Show Hunter Pony classes improve in number, quality and correctness of type as we would determine in the UK. There is room for both Hacks and Hunters, but a clearer definition between the two is needed, as are certain differences in judging criteria.”

The qualities we look for in a Hunter Pony or Horse are:
• Clean through the throat.
• Good length of rein. Some ponies are ridden too overbent which foreshortens their neck.
• Good turn of front. A nicely shaped and muscled neck roughly one third the length of the horse’s body.
• A good laid back (sloping) shoulder.
• Big muscular quarters, with a big, muscular second thigh. This is where the strength comes from to push them along through ploughed fields
• Good angulation of the fetlock. Not too sloping, not too upright. The slope of the fetlock wants to continue down to the point of the hoof.
• Stand four square. (A leg in each corner; a well balanced pony.)
• An attractive/handsome head.

Story: Anna Sharpley.

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