Duke the Moving Machine

[Valkyrie91a]

Duke is my favorite Percheron and every time I see this video I love him more! Attitude, movement, beauty; Duke has it all!

[photoelle]

GoodRebBlackRatio, the show style for modern draft horses is very fancy. It is what it is, like any other competitive breed show style. I'm not a farrier, but if you every get a chance to talk with a draft horse farrier, maybe at a fair or show, they could give you a lot more info about it. It is very specific to draft horses, I've noticed most light horse farriers who have not learned it know little or nothing about it.

[photoelle]

He is wearing a very common draft horse shoe called a "scotch bottom" shoe. It is not a correction shoe. This type of shoe and the shape of the hoof is standard for draft show horses. It is quite different than any light horse shoeing.

[GoodRedBlackRatio]

@photoelle Thank you for that answer - after looking up some info about scotch bottom shoes, I see they sure are used to create more movement or a more exaggerated step. I also read a few pages that explained how it gave a larger surface area to contact the ground - now, this isn't what this video is about, but that all sounds ridiculous to me. Hooves are not mean to be square, and the largest surface area is the entire bottom of the hoof, without peripheral loading and a fancy step..

[GoodRedBlackRatio]

Anyone else think his hooves looks strange? Almost like.. heavily flared out, especially in the front hooves. You can also see in many of the stills his toes are very long, which may be the reason for his very high step? Unless he was trained specifically to step like that - but I know that horses with long toes will bring their feet up very high to avoid tripping. ...last, he seems to have a very bizarre horse-shoe, almost square in the front - I wonder if these are rehabilitation shoes?

[Steedrider]

I don't know if this is true but my suggestion would be that it's similar to show shoeing of TWH and ASB. It's supposed to make him move 'bigger'. Whether or not this method is applied in this case - it's generally a rather disgusting fashion.

[GoodRedBlackRatio]

@Steedrider Unfortunately I think you're right - many thing in the horse world are about appearances rather than a healthy animal.

[MrNatha91]

also das sieht schon n bisschen zu krass aus -.- bei solchen pferden will ich ja nie wissen wie die das beigebracht bekommen haben

[violanceangelshate]

@sorornoctis ja echt, und ne rossige stute seh ich auch nirgends ,da is doch was faul.

[violanceangelshate]

schönes pferd , aber was hat der denn für merkwürdige eisen drunter? besonders vorne.. ich hoffe nicht das das so texas walking eisen sind ,soring ist echt krank.

[sorornoctis]

@violanceangelshate Sieht komisch aus, oder? Hab mich auch gewundert, vor allem weil sein Gang für n Percheron doch ganz schön krass ist und nicht so gaaanz natürlich aussieht

[cammarkgross]

Now just imagine him with a full tail....

[jmcvlam]

Percherons are incredible. Why do the French eat them?

[hyperfocus2011]

He's awesome...it's just to bad they still bob the tail :(

[AoibhealMc]

His movement is stunning. You have quite ruined me for any other percheron. He is a magnificent horse.

[psychobunny32]

I read on another post that the tail is docked when they are very young to prevent it from getting caught in reins while plowing or pulling a cart (considered very dangerous if it happens). similar to cattle dogs getting tails docked to prevent it getting stepped on or bitten off while working

[miniaturegalforlife]

I wish my percheron liked lunging like this.

[PennyIsLovedd]

Looks like he likes lunging!!!

[remedyfarm]

Lovely!

[Valkyrie91a]

What an astonishing, beautiful big boy he is! Everything you would expect in a stallion, and a whole lot more. Thanks for sharing him! Val

[JohnNorthcote]

He is available for breeding (live or shipped semen).

Check out his website for more information (yoderfarmsduke com)

[ytkuser]

why do they cut the tale like that ? 

[Ezra91020]

hes so purty :}

[oOPoisonIvyOo]

He´s a happy horse :-D

[SweetStyleProduction]

wow hes lovely! the way he moves is just stunning!