Island Carriage Farm

"step back in time"

North Hero, VT 

YOUR TEAM....TEX AND SPRUCE  

 AND THEIR BARN!

    Tex and Spruce are half brothers and have never been apart.  They were born and bred on a farm in Southern Vermont.  They are half Percheron and half Morgan horse.  They are what you would call a Draft Cross.  Other Draft breeds besides 'Percherons' that you may be familiar with are the 'Beautiful Clydesdales' (the Budweiser Team), the 'Big Belgians' or perhaps the 'Grande Shires'.                                                

   There are many more Draft breeds.  Drafts were bred to pull wagons and work in the fields.  They enjoy using their power in this manner.  They are mild and easy tempered animals and they love and respect those that love and respect them!  The great Morgan horse 'Figure'  (the Father of all Morgan's) was brought to Vermont and bred back in the 1800's by Justin Morgan.  They are a remarkable breed and very versatile.  By combining the Morgan and Percheron together in Tex and Spruce we get a smaller version of the huge draft horse.  Drafts can stand taller than 76 inches at the shoulder and can weigh more than 2200 pounds.  Now that is a very large horse!  Tex and Spruce weigh 1400 pounds each and they are approximately 16 hands high at the shoulder.  A hand is a measurement used to gauge the height of horses.  Back in the old days it was the standard means of measurement.  A hand is 4 inches and so therefore 16x4 would mean that Tex and Spruce are 64 inches tall at the shoulder.

    Tex is 9 and Spruce is 7 years old.  They have been pulling wagons and carriages their whole life.   They eat about a bale of hay a day and each bale is about 35 pounds or so.  They also receive additional feed to give them all the nutrients they require daily.

    They love their routines and they LOVE THEIR BARN!  They wait by the door every night to come in for their dinner and to go to bed on their clean wood shavings.

    Each of them loves to be groomed and get a nice cool bath especially after a hot day of work.  Of course, they immediately go out and roll in the dirt which makes them filthy all over again.  Oh well....we are talking about what they like....right?  The boys have thick rubber mats in their stalls so they don't get any leg strain in the barn; it is better for their joints.  We don't use horse shoes, though many folks do.  Horse shoes are metal shoes nailed onto their hooves (this doesn't hurt them at all).  You will notice during your carriage ride that the boys are wearing boots on their hooves to protect their feet from the pavement on the road.  Then at the end of the day I take the boots off and repeat the process the next day.

    Tex and Spruce may look exactly alike when you first see them.  Tex has a white front foot....that will help you tell them apart. 

    Our barn was designed by Mario and everything that you see in it was made and fabricated by him.  When you walk thru it make sure to notice all the hardware and harness racks and stalls.  He made the boys a castle to live in.  We are still under construction so give us a little time to complete everything...but.....slow and steady wins the race.....right?

    We love our horses with all our hearts.  We hope we can share our love of them with you.  Ask us any questions you can think of.  It doesn't matter how silly you think it might be.  I guarantee....we have asked all the same questions at one point in our lives.  If you stump us, we promise to find out the right answers and get back with you.

       Horses have brought out the best in people for many years. There is truly a beautiful and compelling 'Mystique' to the horse.  That is why they are treasured and loved all around the world.

We are betting that our boys will really make you smile! 

Send mail to rjbayer@fairpoint.net with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2009 Island Carriage Farm, LLC
Last modified: 07/04/09