IDHS Breed Standard & Guideline - Irish Draught Horse

Type & Character
The Irish Draught Horse is an active, shortlegged, powerful horse with
substance and quality. It is proud bearing, deep of girth and strong of back
and quarters. Standing over a lot of ground, it has an exceptionally strong
and sound constitution. It has an intelligent and gentle nature and is noted for
its docility and sense.

Height
Stallions - 15.3hh to 16.3hh approx.
Mares - 15.1hh to 16.1hh approx.

Bone
Good, strong, clean bone. Celtic Manor recommends a minimum of 9 inches of bone.

Head
Good, bold eyes, set well-apart, long, well-set ears, wide of forehead. Head should be generous and pleasant, not course or hatchet-headed, though a
slight Roman nose is permissable. The jaw bones should have enough room
to take the gullet and allow ease of breathing.

Shoulders, Neck & Front
Shoulders should be clean-cut and not loaded, withers well-defined, not coarse; the neck set in high and carried proudly. The chest should not be too broad
and beefy, the forearms should be long and muscular, not caught in at the elbows, the knee large and generous, set near the ground; the cannon bone straight and short, with plenty of flat, clean bone, never back at the knee (calf-kneed), i.e. not sloping forward from knee to fetlock. The bone must not
be round and course. The legs should be clean and hard, with a little hair
permissible at the back of the fetlock, as necessary protection; the pasterns strong and in proportion, not short and upright, nor too long and weak. The
hoof should be generous and sound, not boxy or contratced and there should
be plenty of room at the heel.

Back, Hindquarters, Body & Hind Legs
The back to be powerful, the girth very deep, the loins must not be weak but
the mares must have enough room to carry a foal. The croup to buttocks are
to be long and sloping, not short and rounded and not or flat-topped; hips not wide and plain; thighs strong and powerfuland at least as wide from the back view as the hips; the second thighs long and well developed; the hocks near
the ground and generous, points not too close together or wide apart but
straight, they should not be out behind the horse but should be in line from
the back of the quarters to the heel to the ground, they should not be overbent
or in any way weak. The cannon bone, etc., as for the foreleg, short and strong.

Action
Smooth and free without exaggeration and not heavy or ponderous. Walk and trot to be straight and true with good flexion of the hocks and freedom of the shoulders.

Colour
Any strong whole color, including greys. White legs, above the knees or hocks, not desirable.