Clydesdale
One of the most easily recognized breeds of draught horse, the Clydesdales originated in Scotland.
Kingdom - Animalia
Phylum - Chordata
Class - Mammalia
Order - Perissodactyla
Family - Equidae
Genus - Equus
Species & Subspecies – E. ferus caballus
Common Names – Clydesdale
Despite their large and imposing size, Clydesdales are known for being gentle giants, with calm and docile demeanors. They are intelligent and dependable, and not easily spooked.
Clydesdales are large horses, thick and stocky and well-muscled.
They are often brown in coloration with white markings, usually on their face, legs, and occasionally on the body.
They are known for the long hairs on the lower portion of their legs, which is known as “feathering”.
The Clydesdale is named for the place the breed originated, a county in Scotland which has since been renamed to Lanarkshire. It lies on the river Clyde, which gave the area its original name.
The breed’s development began in the late 1600s, and in 1806 a female horse was born that most Clydesdales are able to trace their lineage back to. The breed was first referred to as “Clydesdale” in 1826.
The Clydesdale was at one point in danger of becoming an extinct breed. Many horses were utilized in World War I, and breeding declined through World War II and beyond. The Clydesdale began to rebound in the late 1900s and would continue to increase its numbers into the 2000s.
As of 2010, there are thought to be around 5,000 Clydesdales worldwide, with the majority of them located in North America. The most common use for the Clydesdale is as a draught horse, used for pulling carts and hauling cargo. The most famous Clydesdales were the Budweisier Clydesdales, which were used to haul carts for the Budweiser brewery.