124 JUDGING DRAFT HORSES 



of the long hair or feather characteristic of the Clydesdale 

 and Shire breeds. The roan color of the Belgian is becoming 

 very characteristic and in many cases it is a distinguishing 

 mark in some of the leading specimens of the breed which 

 have been shown in this country. Compared with other 

 draft breeds the Belgian is lower set, broader, deeper, and 

 more compact throughout. Specimens do not possess as 

 much refinement as the Clydesdale or the Percheron breeds. 



Clydesdale. The Clydesdale breed originated in Scotland 

 along the river Clyde. The breed is especially noted for 

 its quality and characteristic action. The weight varies 

 from 2000 pounds upward in stallions of approved breeding 

 and in mares from 1600 to 1800 pounds. The color varies, 

 including bays, browns, blacks, and grays. Gray is not a 

 characteristic color, although at one time it was so. The 

 breed is characterized by white markings, especially on the 

 face and the four legs. White occurs sometimes in large 

 splashes on the body and there may be an intermixture of 

 white throughout more or less of the body. The conforma- 

 tion of the Clydesdale is not as drafty as in other breeds. The 

 body is rather long, comparatively shallow, the ribs lacking 

 in length, and the back somewhat inclined to be low. The 

 shallowness of the body gives specimens of the breed a 

 rather upstanding appearance. Although the weight is 

 acceptable, the animal is not built to the best advantage for 

 draft purposes, especially as compared with other more 

 massive compact breeds. 



The action of the Clydesdale is one of its most accept- 

 able features. The stride is long, quick, regular, and well 

 balanced. The hock is unusually strongly constructed, and 

 the action corresponds with this condition. The quality of 

 the Clydesdale is an important attribute, this characteristic, 

 as in the Percheron, being unusually developed. Action is 

 exemplified in the slope of the shoulders, pasterns, and leg 

 development. The breed is characterized by feather on 

 the legs and open-textured, shelly feet. The chief criti- 

 cisms of the breed are deficiency in scale, their short-rib 

 development and a criticism of the color markings, especially 

 the white, which has no special distribution. The Clydes- 



