I wanted to start doing semi-formal reviews of horses in my personal collections (as I can give in depth analysis of them not just my opinions of them from a photo/video). So I decided to start with my newest model the best of British Connemara pony! (who I got in TKmaxx for a steal!)
So firstly a little background on the breed (I promise I won't go on a boring lecture about the breeds origin... or at least I'll edit it before I publish it.)
Breed Background
This breed orginated in Ireland in (as the name suggests) Connemara, Co Galway. They were bred from a now extinct breed called the Hobby Horse. However today they have a bit of everything in them! It is believed Andalusians (shipwrecked from the Spanish Armada), Thoroughbreds, Hackney ponies and Arabian blood all contributed to the modern Connemara pony. However the amount of crossbreeding began to dilute the bloodlines so in 1923 the Connemara Pony Breeder's Society was set up to preserve the breed, they subsequently opened the studbook in 1926.
Connemara's were originally know for their stamina and strength (before we all found out they were jumping stars). They were used from farm labour and carrying turf from bogs. Any horse not hardy enough for this kind of work was not kept for long and thus the breed became even more renowned for its strength and durability.
Breed Standards
Height: 12.2 to 14.2 Hands.
Movement: free, easy and true, without undue knee action, but active and covering ground.
General Conformation: compact, well-balanced riding type with good depth and substance and good heart room, standing on short legs, covering a lot of ground.
The Model
Breyer chose to do this model on the Newsworthy mold, a popular mold released in 2008.
(original Newsworthy, not my image property of identifyyourbreyer.com)
He is a dappled bay gelding, who comes in two variants; loose mane and tail and braided mane and tail. (I only own the braided version so that is what I will be reviewing). He is also a regular run released as part of the Best of British series in 2015.
Okay and now to the actual review part! I shall be showing you photos owned by me of my lovely model Hopper, whilst giving my opinion on the model, enjoy!!
Okay to start here are a few photos of the model from several different angles so you can get a feel for him if you don't own him.
I bought mine as he has nice shading however he does have a few paint flaws (but this maybe because he was being sold as a toy and might have gotten banged around a bit.)
His dapples are well blended and not very fish scaly as Breyer is sometimes known to do... However he does have dapples on only one side of his neck and not the other which is a little odd.
I would also have liked him to maybe be a little darker (this is just personal preference) but I thought he was a sooty dun until I saw he had no dorsal stripe! I just think if he was going to be a bay he could have been richer in colour.
Conformation wise I don't think he makes a bad Connie but his face might be a little small compared to some (just might have a bit more Arabian in him!) They are quite muscly ponies as they were used as work horses so he is definitely a more modern jumping Connemara. (Duuhh look at his pose!!)
A nice feature I tried to capture is his eyes, they aren't the standard Breyer black, which in my opinion almost makes the horse! It makes his eyes seem big and kind (just like a Connemara's eyes).
His braids are well set, no lifting and they are sculpted well for a mass produced model. Mine has a slight bit of over spray but it is very minor.
Over all I think he's a great little model to add to your collection and would make a great performance horse if you are into showing. They can be found in TKmaxx at the moment for very cheap so I wouldn't hesitate in picking one up!
References
https://cpbs.ie/breed-standards/
http://www.theconnemarapony.ie/?page_id=28
http://www.identifyyourbreyer.com/identify/Newsworthy.htm
