I GREW up on a mixed farm in Leap, West Cork. My father had a great knowledge of horses and there was always a mare and a young horse coming on. An Agricultural Science graduate from UCD, I work as a nutritionist with Southern Milling.

I studied a number of elective subjects such as Animal Breeding, Genetics and Equine Science in university and in my Agricultural Extension thesis, I presented the role of the Irish Draught and Connemara to the Irish Sport Horse industry to Prof. Joe Mannion. Later, I did a Masters in Genetic Engineering and Micropropigation, which really went into the depths of breeding.

As hobby farmers, we breed pedigree Limousin and Belgian Blue cattle and of course, sport horses. We bought a small farm, just outside Bandon, so our three children would grow up in the country.

P.J. is well able to handle and ride a horse. He actually won the inaugural national Young Breeders’ championship in 2009 and represented Ireland in the World Championships. Aoife is a fine day rider with a lovely seat. Micheal applies his mathematical brain, quoting statistics and predictions on eventing results.

I’ve been the West Cork Horse Breeders Co-Op secretary, chairman of Bandon Show, and I’m also involved with Bandon point-to-point.

1. Proudest moment(s) as a breeder?

Thank God, I’ve had a few. Fenya was the first and only filly to win the Cork County yearling and All Ireland two and three-year-old filly championships. She was the RDS champion hunter mare in 2000 and 2001 and then Fenya’s Elegance (Ricardo Z) won it in 2008, the first time in RDS history for a mother and daughter to do so. Both were bred and owned by the Hegartys and ridden by Ann O’Grady.

Fenya’s Elegance, an All Ireland and RDS winning foal, was home produced to be placed and top filly in the Millstreet Young Irelander. An FEHL winner, her winning the Blenheim Palace International CCI4*-L as a nine-year-old was a milestone. To have Amhrán Na bhFiann played in front of Blenheim Palace for the first time was forever memorable.

West Cork has a great reputation for horse production. The late Mick Mennis commented that “Donie Hayes and yourself, in horses a few short years, are winning All-Ireland and RDS championships where many have spent a lifetime trying to win a rosette.”

2. Tell us about the Fenya’s Elegance story?

Fenya’s Elegance, and her litany of successes, still makes me smile. She qualified for the world championship seven-year-olds at Le Lion d’Angers and was Eventing Ireland’s champion mare. Her wins in the prestigious CCI3* (now CCI4*- L) international classes at Blenheim and Bramham were the first Irish wins at both events, capturing the biggest international eventing wins for Ireland in over 40 years since Durlas Eile.

Finishing best of the Irish at the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Normandy, where the late Pierce Lyons, from sponsors Alltech, came to join us for the show jumping phase and qualifying the Irish team for the Olympics are other highlights. As was being presented with awards from [then] Minister for Agriculture, Simon Coveney, T.D and Horse Sport Ireland chairman Prof. Patrick Wall for Elegance’s exceptional successes.

Oliver Townend taking over the ride was an exciting and rewarding time, for example at Samaur and the European championships at Blair Castle. What a performance there [Blair Castle] in terrible weather, as Oliver said we should have won silver.

She gave brave, winning runs around Gatcombe Park in the British Open championships. To be on the podium for the presentation and meeting the Princess Royal in person are more milestones.

There were great nights out too, from Normandy to Leap, with a steak or hake dinner presented by top cook [wife] Una to good friends.

After Fenya’s Elegance won the CIC3* at Ballindenisk we retired her there, after a lovely tribute from Tom Busteed. These achievements money cannot buy and creates the “buzz” which are the benefits of having a champion horse.

Changing from being a competition horse to be a broodmare isn’t like pressing a switch but she produced an ET [embryo transfer] foal this year. I hope she passes on her step, toughness and jump to her offspring, and takes us on the merry-go-round again, as we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Britain's Oliver Townend and the Irish-bred Fenyas Elegance winning the CIC*** title in September 2016 \ Radka Preislerova

3. Best advice you were given?

The best advice came from a great West Cork horseman, the late Joe Sheehy, when I showed Fenya as a foal in Bandon show and was placed fourth or fifth. That afternoon, Joe said to me, “Don’t sell that filly. She was the best foal in there today and she will go to the very top. She’ll make a champion mare.” How right he was!

4. Favourite broodmare, past or present?

My favourite is Fenya. She took us to so many places around the country and put us on the map. She achieved and won so much and was loved by the public. As well as being the RDS champion hunter as a four and five-year-old, she was placed in side-saddle, Future Competition Horse, and American hunter classes, won the Future Event Horse in Millstreet and show jumped up to Grade B, with Ger O’Sullivan on board.

Fenya is a thoroughbred by the National Hunt and HSI-approved stallion Good Thyne. Her dam Ferryboat Lady was a top-rated point-to-pointer and winner of two, whose pedigrees goes back to Mourne, highly influential in French event breeding. She had three foals by Good Thyne; Many Rivers won three point-to-points, two hunter chases, and at Limerick while Walkaway Mary won a super point-to-point at Tallow.

In any breeding programme, the damline is so important and it must have delivered and succeeded, no matter what you are breeding for; show jumping, eventing or racing.

Fenya has delivered everything herself and of course she has bred Fenya’s Elegance, along with a few others.

5. The 2020 foal crop?

We have had three and embraced all modern technologies. Fenya now 25, produced Fenya’s Allure, a lovely filly foal in July by Ramiro B, through ICSI (Equine Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection) and ET. In December, Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) announced that Fenya’s Allure was the overall winner of the 2020 eventing foal championship, after winning the CoilÓg qualifier. This is a great start for such a young foal as it recognises her conformation, movement and pedigree. Fair play to the judges and their points system.

Fenya’s Elegance had an ET filly foal in mid-August by Jaguar Mail. She is nice and has personality! Our third foal is a colt foal out of a half-sister of Fenya, Ferrys Golan.

6. Favourite stallion/mare line?

I don’t have a favourite stallion/mare as it’s the cross that counts, you try to balance the strengths of traits. Linear scoring is most useful for this and the Dutch and Germans are big into balancing the cross.

7. What do you think are the greatest challenges facing breeders?

My gut feeling is that horse production is going to change dramatically in the future. The day of buying a young horse out of the field is gone. Breeders are not being rewarded for their vital part of the equation in horse production.

The FEI need to put a prize fund in place, via sponsors and provide an incentive or reward for the breeders of prizewinners at major competitions.

Along with HSI, Eventing Ireland should become more involved in youngstock production and help breeders with promotions at events, especially at internationals. The concept would be more focused and targeted. The RDS, FEHL and Stepping Stones have all done a good job to showcase young eventers.

Ireland’s reputation of producing great horses will be lost if we go into factory production. The Irish environment should not be underestimated, as it is an important contribution to the phenotype of the Irish horse and we wouldn’t want to lose it as it is genotype plus phenotype that makes the Irish horse.

Stallion fees for event horses are expensive, relative to the price achieved for a foal or young horse. Eventing is a very expensive sport, but it is equally very rewarding when you have a winning horse. What aspect of horses is profitable?

8. You’ve won the Euromillions jackpot. How would you spend the money on horses?

I am totally contented with my breeding. Instead I would put something in so the breeders of winning sport horses are rewarded, as I am afraid the small breeder will become extinct.

9. Which studbook/country do you regard as the market leader(s) in event horse breeding?

Ireland is the best producer of event horses in the world with its record WBFSH awards over the last 25 years, along with winning the young event horse championship at Le Lion so many times. HSI’s new schemes, including thoroughbred bloodlines, X-rays and breaking schemes are positive developments for the breeders of eventers.

10. What does your future with horses hold?

I believe I have a couple of serious young eventers that will go a long way. I’ve a five-year-old Connemara stallion Rosedale Casper that I bought as a foal and have great hopes for him. He has a super attitude, great jump and is extremely athletic with a lovely temperament.

At home we produce our horses on a very natural basis and never over-ask them as they develop. I know the characteristics that’s needed for a horse to make it to the top, and yes, luck is involved as well.