Welsh Cob Horses

A Rare Breed of Welsh Origin

Welsh Cob horse (Photo by Michael Trotter)

Standing from 13.2hh and with no upper height limit, Welsh Cobs should have the overall proportions of Welsh Mountain Ponies but of course are much larger. They stand with arched neck, four legs in a square, and a well set tail held with pride. Their feet are well shaped and as hard as nails ensuring longevity – the old saying “no foot, no horse” still holds true today. They have a very well laid-back shoulder with a long slope which ensures a comfortable horse to ride. In movement they use their whole foreleg which extends forward from the elbow with strength; the front legs have short cannons with a good amount of flat bone so as to reduce tendon injuries. They have a deep girth which allows adults to ride them without looking out of place. Their width across the hips is broad, the loin strong and the lumbo-sacral joint is flexible which allows for great jumping ability.

Welsh Cobs have a pony-like head with a large eye set wide – this reduces the instance of spookiness as the eyes have almost 360 degrees visibility when set prominently on the head. They are highly intelligent, have small neat ears, and a slight dish to the face. The mane and tail hair is very fine, and fine feather is present from mid-cannon to the hooves. They come in all colours except skewbald and piebald.

Welsh Cob filly foal and mare (Photo from Carolynn West)

The old vernacular description of a Welsh cob is “a head like a Duchess and a farewell like a cook” which is exemplified in this photo at right of Ballytruckle Cleopatra with filly foal Ballytruckle Hot Chocolate at foot!

The Welsh Cob has been in New Zealand at least since 1907 when one was exibited in the annual horse parade held under the auspices of the A&P Association in Christchurch, where it was described in the Otago Witness as “the first of this class shown on parade at Christchurch, and was much admired.” It was later shown in Ashburton the same year.

Since 2000 there has been a resurgence in the numbers of younger people breeding the Welsh Cob in New Zealand. Although there are currently about 30 breeders of the Welsh Mountain Pony and about 10 dedicated breeders of the Welsh Pony, until the beginning of this century only a handful of Cob breeders were standing stallions and breeding. Now with a resurgence of interest in horses with more bone and nice temperament the Welsh Cob is making a comeback. In 2009 there were about 10 active breeders of the Welsh Cob.