Horse
Pronunciation:
Suff'-uhlk Puhnch
Breed Description:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse is an old English draft breed. The Suffolk Punch are well known for each horse being almost identical in appearance; they are all large, very muscular, and virtually all the same shade of chestnut with no white markings. They have excellent feet, plenty of bone, and little leg feathering. They have a low, short action, moving very close to the ground. The Suffolk Punch comes only in chestnut, and usually with little or no white markings.
Temperament:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse has a very quiet, loyal, and trainable temperament.
Height:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse stands 16 to 17 hands.
Weight:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse weighs around 1500 pounds.
Health Problems:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse has no significant health messages.
Living Conditions:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse is very hardy and can be kept outdoors. The Suffolk Punch is very easy to keep and needs little forage for its size.
Exercise:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse is a working breeds and enjoys regular activity but does not require hard work to maintain its strength and temperament.
Life Expectancy:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse lives into its late twenties.
Grooming:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse has a fine coat and sparse leg feathers and requires little maintenance.
Origin:
The Suffolk Punch breed of horse, unlike many draft breeds, does not trace its ancestry to the large medieval war horses of Europe. Consequently, it has the very finest of draft traits, being immensely powerful and strong, yet with a docile temperament.
The Suffolk Punch comes from England's Norfolk and Suffolk counties on the east coast of England in the 1770s, making it one of the oldest draft breeds. The breed was developed largely in isolation, and shows few additions of other breeds, and all Suffolk Punch trace their ancestry back to a single foundation stallion, Crisp's Horse of Ufford. A stud book was established in 1880. he Suffolk Punch was specifically developed to pull plows through the heavy clay of east England. Most farmers only bred and raised the horses they needed themselves, so the breed has always been small in numbers and until very recently was not often seen in export.
After World War II, as with many other draft breeds, the Suffolk Punch was replaced by farm machinery and its numbers were in steep decline, so much so that the stud book was closed in the 1940s. However, in the 1960s, they found a new popularity as a display horse, pulling antique and replica brewer's wagons in shows and competitions. Their excellent temperaments, combined with the ease of finding perfectly matched pairs, made them a popular show choice. The stud book was reopened in 1961, and with active promotion by breeders the Suffolk is now found across England and is being increasingly exported around the world.
