Breed Registries | History & Origin |Population | Conformation | Breeders

Suffolk Punch Draft Horse History & Origin

The Suffolk Punch originated in East Anglia, where it remained largely pure and true to its original form. Today, the Suffolk is bred in other parts of England, as well as abroad, most notably in America. The breed can be traced back to 1506, when writers referred to them as the Old Breed. All Suffolk Punches today can be traced back down the male line to one stallion called Crisp's Horse of Ufford, who foaled in 1760. The Suffolk Punch is one of the three heavy horses of England - the other two being the Shire and the Clydesdale. However, the Suffolk differs significantly from these two, being both shorter and more massively built, and also have only minimal feathering of the legs.

Traditionally the Suffolk was used for agricultural purposes, being immensely powerful and very wiling. They were developed for the East Anglian terrain, which was mainly heavy clay soil, and there fore the lack of feathering was a distinct advantage. One gentleman credited with establishing the breed was Herman Biddell. He was the first secretary of the Suffolk Horse Society and published an extensive history of the breed as well as the first studbook in 1880.

The Suffolk has tremendous stamina and can work for long hours on minimal fodder rations. Traditionally they were entered in strength contests, where they would be required to pull hugs logs. They were judged by the amount of effort they put in, and it would not be uncommon to see a Suffolk get down on its knees in an attempt to move the log. They are unique in appearance, with very short legs in comparison to the massive build of their body.

Suffolk Punch Draft Horse Population

The Suffolk Punch is considered critically endangered, with there being only an estimated 400 in Britain. There are currently more Giant Pandas in the world than there are Suffolk Punches, but there are plenty of breeding programs trying to help this situation. One of the reasons for their numbers decreasing is the use of machinery, and heavy horses such as these are not needed any more, so they have become less of a priority.

Suffolk Punch Draft Horse Conformation

The Suffolk Punch generally stands 15.3 to 16.1 hands high, and weighs 1,980 to 2,200 lbs). They are always chestnut, and no other color is considered for admission to the Stud Book. The traditional spelling, still used by the Suffolk Horse Society, is "chestnut" (with no "t" in the middle of the word), and the Society recognizes seven distinct variations: dark approaching brown-black, liver color or mahogany chestnut, dull dark chestnut, light mealy chestnut, red, golden, lemon, bright chestnut. White markings are extremely rare, and are generally limited to small markings on the face and lower legs.

The Suffolk Punch has a powerful, arching neck; well-muscled, sloping shoulders; a short, wide back; and a muscular, broad croup. Their legs are short and strong, with broad joints; sound, well-formed hooves; and little or no feathering.

*References:
- The Encyclopedia of Horses & Ponies. Tamsin Pickeral.

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