Gentle giants trot through fairgrounds

In medieval times, draft horses were used by knights in battle, one Percheron owner said.
BY AMANDA GARRETT
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
BAZETTA -- The clip-clop of enormous horse hooves rang off the pavement at the Open Class Draft Horse Show at the 160th annual Trumbull County Fair.
Owners and their Percherons and Clydesdales patiently waited in the hot sun for their turn in the draft horse ring.
Draft horses usually weigh about 2,000 pounds, but they are gentler than smaller breeds, said draft horse judge Jim Best of Kinsman.
"Draft horses are like the tractors of the horse world, while flashier horses like thoroughbreds are like the fancy sports car," said Best, who drove the Budweiser Clydesdales for five years. "They're steady and reliable and for my money, they're easier to handle than smaller horses."
In medieval times, draft horses were used by knights as battle horses, said Max Dade of Southington, who brought his Percherons to the fair.
Knights preferred draft horses because their large size and broad backs could easily carry the weight of a suit of armor.
In more recent times, draft horses were used as work animals or to pull carriages, Dade said.
Dade occasionally uses his team of dapple-grey Percheron mares, Pearl, 14, and Duchess, 10, to pull wagons for rides.
"Most of the time they have a pretty comfortable life," he said. "They're in the field eating grass. Or, when it's hot like this, they like to stay in the barn."
A jumper
Cody, a 4-year-old Percheron thoroughbred gelding, is a little more active than Dade's team. His owner, Rachel Dorn, 17, of Farmdale, participates in show jumping with Cody.
"He does really good," she said. "We jumped three times, and we placed every time."
Dorn decided to place Cody in the Junior Showmanship competition on a whim.
"We just did it because we thought it would be fun," said Dorn, who won second place.
Matt Olson and his sister, Erica, teenagers from Champion, also competed in the Junior Showmanship with their 4-year-old sorrel Percheron, Rosie.
Getting ready for the show
It takes a lot of work to prepare a horse for the show ring, Matt said.
"You have to give them a bath, brush out their mane and tail and blacken their hooves," she said. "Rosie's a little easier to take care of because she's not white. For lighter-colored horses, you have to put a special shampoo on them to make their coats shine."
Rosie's chestnut color -- referred to as sorrel in draft horse terminology -- makes her a rare type of Percheron. A sorrel Percheron is considered undesirable, Matt said.
"Percherons are supposed to come in white, black and dapple-grey," he said. "Percherons like Rosie used to be destroyed because of their color."
Before the Olsons bought Rosie, she had been in an abusive home, Matt said.
"She was so starved for love," he said. "She would lay her head on my sister's lap for hours."
Despite her background and color, Rosie has become a good show horse, Erica said. "She's my pride and joy," she said.
agarrett@vindy.com