“BEGIN with the end in mind” is one of Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, so Stephen obviously never tried his hand at horse breeding.

The dream business as it is called, may hinge on a specific end, perhaps the winning post at Epsom, maybe the winner’s enclosure anywhere (preferably at two), or perish the thought, the sales ring at Goffs or Tattersalls. Most times, the story unfolds totally differently.

I fancied Medaglia d’Oro as a broodmare sire and was quite pleased to find one in foal to a well-promoted stallion, whose blushes shall be spared. It was a bonus that the mare in question was out of a Grade 1 winner, second dam also of that calibre and the producer of a World Champion. When she produced a colt foal, it was just a matter of picking whatever end you fancy most.

In great expectation, the said foal was sent to the foal sales at Goffs and little did I know that this “end” was merely the beginning. The foal was not a bit happy with the accommodation at Goffs and spent a troubling night circling the box like an extra from Eat The Peach (Okay, it was a movie about riding a motorbike around the inside of a large wooden barrel). Without troubling the auctioneer, we returned home, proud of our colt, but seeking a new “end”.

Store’s companion

Our pride and joy acquired a stable name of “Walter” and became best pals with a colt foal by Walk In The Park. Walter’s much-hyped sire duly was revealed as a flop and with his unstable stable habits hanging over him, the Walk In The Park friendship became semi-permanent and we had ourselves not so much a store as a store’s companion.

One veterinary intervention later and both friends would be permanently platonic and an end as a stallion was no longer on the list of possibilities. Happy times ensued with blissful pasture days and gentle sparring matches the only diversion until year three. While the Walk In The Park was afforded a day at Goffs, Walter did not seem so well suited to the prospect of running over extended distances with some restriction to his air intake. Houston, we have more than one problem.

Walter should really have been named “Lucky” because his owner’s daughter expressed an interest in the noble equestrian pursuit of Eventing. Walter was educated in the rudiments of tack and taking instruction from on high, and for the first time in his life was found a purpose beyond lawn-mowing. In fact, his beauty was now a much-admired feature and his amenability caused no worry to daughter’s parents on the safety score.

Vertical integration

Walter is one of hundreds if not thousands of thoroughbreds in Ireland which take a detour from the original direction of travel. A feature of the Irish industry is the degree of vertical integration of many of the players, who may have a farm or access to same, a highly developed breeding sector, so many skilled people at every stage in the life of the horse.

We know that there are nearly three-times as many thoroughbreds which are not in the racing sector, which enjoy lives lived in care and on the thousands of premises designed for their safety and comfort. This is our breeding sector, a major success story, the biggest home for ex-racehorses, including a large number of non-productive ones.

The RDS Racehorse to Riding Horse class crowned Mickah Wallace as best in class and it was nice to see one of the less celebrated racehorses in the group being given the prize. Well done to Stephanie (and Trish) McGlynn.

This series of articles was designed to highlight the growing number of stories which many of us take for granted. Our Walter may not have lived up to the original projection, he may even have been a source of disappointment in ways.

However, he is entering middle-age as a much-loved permanent feature, with a habit of finding a sore foot whenever he hears talk of an event coming up. His habit of taking a lump out of a thumb or bum of the unwary is not quite endearing. He is aging like George Clooney.