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WELSH TYPE
Excerpts from Britain
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On JUDGING
1973 Welsh Pony and Cob Journal, Wales
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It is not the duty of a judge to
place first the pony, which he himself prefers. He is acting for the Society
on whose panel he has agreed to serve and that Society has laid down a
certain specification. If the pony he personally prefers does not conform
more or less to that specification he must put it down.
This may mean that a judge may have to put down the pony which, if given the
choice, he would like to take home and moreover, the pony which, if sold at
public auction, he considers might fetch more than his first in line.
If there are any judges not prepared to put up those ponies, which most
closely resemble the Society’s official description, they should resign from
the panel. If every judge is allowed to please himself regardless of the
Society’s official policy, there seems no object in going to the
considerable trouble of compiling a judge’s panel. Let anyone come and sort
them out. |
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On WELSH MOUNTAIN PONIES (section
A)
1959 RIDING, England
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“If we have knowledge we shall
look for the great bold eye, the tiny head, short back, strong quarter, high
set on of tail, hocks that do not turn in, the laid-back shoulder, the
straight foreleg and the short, so very short cannon bone…..
A very great breeder of these lovely ponies said many years ago – and what
good advice it is for all of us; “The bigger the eye the better, the deeper
though the heart the stronger, the prouder the lift of the head the more
courageous, the swifter the action the more fearless.” So perhaps we can use
these points when we are trying to determine how to produce perfect type…..
I wonder if the present position of ponies in the show-ring today is
responsible to a certain extent for the wrong type of animal being used for
breeding. By this I mean that many judges of Welsh Mountain Ponies sometimes
award major prizes to animals who do not conform to the true type of these
beautiful ponies…..
I feel that, if the judging at shows was somewhat tightened up, the
show-ring would be a place where the inexperienced could learn what the true
Welsh Pony should be. Failure to conform to this type should preclude ponies
from winning in the show-ring.” |
M. De Beaumont |
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On WELSH MOUNTAIN PONIES (section A)
1984 Welsh Roundabout
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“Bone, I think, is very important,
again because it is such a characteristic of the breed…..
Quality is sometimes mistaken for lightness of bone only…..
I am often asked whether the ‘knees up’ variety or the ‘daisy cutting’ sort
are correct for the Welsh Mountain Pony. My answer is neither. The action
should be free and active. In front, the leg should come up and then out
from the shoulder. Behind, the hocks should really work, balancing the pony
and propelling it forward.” |
Alison Mountain |
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On WELSH PONIES section B
1975 Welsh Pony and Cob Society Journal, Wales
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“To return to the B’s, they were
bred to enable the shepherd to work the hill with his dogs. Can anyone,
quite frankly, see most of the B’s bred today working the hill?……
What else can the judge put up when they are all little Thoroughbreds? How
many of today’s so-called B’s are anywhere near the breed standard?…..
Once we have lost the breed we can never get it back.” |
John Winstone |
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On WELSH PONIES section B
1963 Welsh Pony and Cob Society Journal, Wales
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“This cannot be repeated too often, the Section B pony
must have adequate substance and good limbs. There should be no place in any
section for little weedy animals, with spindly legs, small knees and hocks,
weak round joints, and bad feet.” |
E. Griffith |
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On WELSH PONIES section B
1973 Riding, England
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“If one is going to judge a BREED class, the standard
for that breed must be adhered to…..
The description for this section says that they should be as the Section A’s
with a difference of height, of course, and with an emphasis on the riding
qualities. It may have been a slight warning (or a glimpse into the future)
that is also specified pony character, adequate bone and substance,
hardiness and constitution…….
It is quite easy to get them finer and more glamorous, but very hard to put
true type and substance back into them once it has been lost.” |
Alison Mountain |
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On WELSH PONIES section B
1973 Welsh Pony and Cob Society Journal, Wales
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“I am however sure that it is a
duty of all judges, who have accepted an invitation to serve on the
Society’s panel of judges, to put up the true type and put down the refined
type. Of course there may be occasions when ponies of the true type have
such defects of confirmation that the refined type must be preferred……
If all breed judges make a habit of putting up the refined type and breeders
react by producing that type, not many years will pass before the Connemara,
the New Forest and the Welsh Pony will become practically
indistinguishable.” |
Mr. Mountain – Twyford Stud |
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