Disclaimer: this is my personal home page: any views expressed here are purely my own, not representative of the University of Dundee, the Highland Pony Society, or any other body.
The Eriskay Pony has its origins in the Western Isles of Scotland, with numbers decreasing dramatically around the beginning of the C19th. Eventually, only a very few ponies remained on the Island of Eriskay, which lies in the Outer Hebrides, between South Uist and Barra.
On Eriskay the crofters used ponies for the traditional tasks of carrying peat and seaweed in panniers slung across the ponies' backs. These ponies were mainly handled by the women and children, since the men were mainly involved in fishing. A docile temperament was therefore invaluable.
12.0 - 13.2hh, the predominant colour is grey, with occasional black or bay ponies. Foals are often born brown or black, but turn grey with maturity. In winter, their dense, waterproof coat enables the ponies to live out in the harshest of island conditions. These ponies are fine legged, with only a tuft of hair at the fetlock. Their temperament is excellent, and their enjoyment of human company made them ideal "back door ponies", as they were on crofts.
Eriskays are family ponies, easily trained and possessing great stamina, they can carry a small adult with ease and have also proved successful in driving, where their temperament makes them suitable for use by disabled drivers. They are nimble and willing, so also make very good PC and gymkhana ponies for children.
The Society promotes the breeding and use of the Eriskay Pony in the present day. The breed is now rare, and has recently been accepted by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust for inclusion on the Rare Breeds Priority List under Category 1 (critical).
The Secretary of the Society is happy to receive enquiries about the breed. Subscription rates for 1999 are £10 (individual), £18 (joint with spouse/partner), £25 (family of parents plus children under 18), £5 (junior supporter aged under 18), or £250 (Life Member - £150 for anyone aged over 50). The Registered Office of the Eriskay Pony Society is at 66 Queen Street, Edinburgh EH2 4NE.
The Eriskay Pony Society has a website at http://www.eriskaypony.com/. More info there.
New in January 2007 an Eriskay based society Eriskay Pony (Mother Society) launched its own website so take a look there too.
...that an English bred Eriskay stallion is standing at stud at Aberdeen Farm Park, in order to provide an input of new bloodlines for Scottish breeders? With a rare breed, the dangers involved in a limited gene pool are obvious, so the decision to bring the stallion north from England was welcomed in Eriskay circles, I'm told, and made the Scottish equestrian press!
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E-mail: a.douglas@dundee.ac.uk
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Copyright ©A Douglas 1997 |