The Connemara Pony is considered to be one breed of equines that really does bond very strongly with their owners. Many Connemara Ponies remember a voice or a person for years even if they have been separated from the person.
The Connemara is named after the area in Ireland where it originated. This area is very desolate and barren with cliffs and rugged areas, seashores and bogs and marshes. The Connemara Pony is believed to have descended from the Celtic Ponies brought to the island. In the 16th century a Spanish ship sank off the coast of Ireland, and the Iberian horses on board swam ashore and bred with the smaller island ponies, resulting in the Connemara Pony we know today. Arabians, Hackney and Thoroughbreds have also been involved in the development and refinement of the breed.
The Connemara was first used by local farmers and laborers to haul huge creels or baskets of rock from the fields and seaweed from the shore to be used as fertilizer.
The Connemara Pony was often raced in local events alongside of the Thoroughbreds and the Irish Hunters, often with the Connemara being the winner.
The first Connemara Pony Breeders Society was formed and started in 1923 in Clifton, Ireland by local horse breeders and farmers.
Although officially considered a pony breed due to its heritage and temperament, the Connemara Pony can measure up to 15 hands, larger than some horses.
The Connemara is a long lived breed of pony that does not fully mature until they are at least 5 years old and can easily live well into their thirties.
The Connemara Pony can be found in most countries of Europe, in Canada and the United States as well as Australia, New Zealand and even into South Africa.
In Clifton, Ireland the Connemara Pony Show is held every year. This tradition started in 1924 and continues to this day. The show features Connemara Ponies in all types of events including dressage, show jumping, hunting, driving and pleasure riding classes. Breeders from around the world come to see the show and there are often more than 400 ponies entered in the event.
A 22 year old Connemara gelding named The Nugget, measuring just 15 hands, managed to successfully leap a 7 feet 2 inches tall jump at the International Horse Show in Olympia, London in 1935.
In the 1968 Olympics a half Connemara that measured only 14.1 hands named Stroller was one of only two horses to make a clear round in the event. Stroller went on to win a silver medal in that Olympic event.
The Connemara Pony, Dundrum, was the International Jumping Champion from 1959-1963, also winning five events at the Dublin Horse Show in 1961, which earned him the right to the title of Jumping Horse of the Century.
Connemara Ponies are typically used for English type riding events, but in North America they have been successfully used as stock horses and trail riding and endurance riding horses. They are often considered to be the most versatile of ponies, easily adjusting to the riding style and requirements of their owners.
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