Steppin' Out
University Daily Kansan, August 18, 1983
Page 5
Clydesdales: four-footed royalty
The huge black and white patched stallion stood calmly in the dimly lit wooden barn stall as the owner fed him his evening's supper of corn and oats from a plastic bucket.
The horse's white "feathers" flowed down upon his massive hooves, which looked like woolly animals themselves.
The owner, Tom Taul, 35, who stood three feet below the horse's head, looked more like a child than a man as he stood next to the Clvdesdale stallion he calls Scotty.
TAUL'S DWARFED frame was covered with faded tan corduroy jeans, a striped sports shirt, and on his feet were a small manure-covered pair of cowboy boots.
Scotty is a 12-year-old Clydesdale that had been brought here from Canada a few years ago where he had been national champion for three consecutive years.
Scotty is one of 10 purebred Clydesdales that Tom and Debbie Taul have on their small farm two miles west of Baldwin.
The Tauls have been in the Clydesdale business for about a year and a half.
It all started when Tom read an ad about draft horses — the large, traditional work horses — in the "Draft Horse Journal," a national magazine for horse fanciers.
AFTER READING THE ad he attended a Clydesdale sale in Iowa and came home with three brood mares and the stallion, Taul said.
Scotty, the stallion, has not been registered in the United States yet because he has just been imported from Canada. Taul said the paperwork was still being processed to register him in this country.
The mares are registered with the National Clydesdale Association, which makes them worth more money since their blood lines can be proven to be pure, he said.
Last October the Tauls acquired two sister brood mares, Bonnie and Belle, who were both sired by a famous Budweiser stallion named Bardrill Glendon.
In mid-July Taul took the two mares to their first parade, which was held in Eudora. Bonnie and Belle were hooked to his neck, but he said he was pleased with their performance.
"THEY DID EXCELLENT. We're very pleased." Taul said.
Three young Clydesdales round out the rest of the Tauls' herd. One cott was born in late May, bringing the total number of Clydesdales owned by the Tauls to 10.
Maul's herd includes Mirabelle, 9;
Queenie, 16; Shelia, 12; Lady, 12; Bonnie,
19; Belle, 6; and the lone stallion Scotty,
who is 12 years old.
The three young horses have not been named. Taul said.
Queenie and Shelia were due to give birth by the end of July, Taul said.
Taul, a veterinarian who practices at the Baldwin junction about 10 miles south of Lawrence, said that he was perhaps one of three people in Kansas who raised the large draft horses, which were originally bred in Clive Valley, Scotland.
TAUL SAID THAT the Clydesdales were the only type of horse he owned and that he would probably stick with them.
Taul, who has collected a show wagon, a cart and other implements the horses can pull, said he spent time on weekends and after work driving and playing with the horses.
Taul said he would hitch them up one or two at a time and drive them down the road or around the pasture just to relax and get his mind off his veterinary work.
"We're sure proud of these ole horses," Taul said. "To me, I enjoy coming out here with these horses and it's kind of a means of relaxation. I'll be out here with these horses and I'll brush them a little bit, and for me it's good therapy."
TAUL SAID HE would like to think of making money with them, but for now they just had to be looked at as a recreation or hobby.
"You really just have to like the horses, your really do." Taul said.
Debbie Taul said, "I think what we're attempting to do here is get enjoyment out of them. We start having some colts we can show and sell colts."
Taul said he would like to sell all of them and get some more Clydesdales.
"We always have horses for sale here," he said.
By selective breeding, Taul said, he is trying to improve his herd. He said that the ideal Clydesdale would have dark brown hair and a black mane.
TAUL, WHO ATTENDED Kansas State University, said he would like to farm with the horses because they were well broke for work, but that he did not have time because of his veterinary practice.
"My big aim is that I'd like to raise and have a six-horse hitch of Clydesdales, and I'd like to show them," he said.
Taul, an admitted novice at raising Clydesdales, said that a lot of people at shows and sales had helped him learn how to breed and raise the horses.
"There's so many of the harness parts that I don't know anything about. I still don't know all the right names of all the tugs, or checks as they call them," Taul said.
"But I'd like to get to where I could be a good driver and work the horses someday."
Belle, a 6-year-old Clvdesdale, stands calmly in her show harness before being hooked up to the wagon.
Story and Photos by Steven Purcell
Holding the team mares by their bridles, Taul gets them ready to be hooked to the wagon.
Taul guides Belle and Bonnie as they pull the wagon carrying family and friends during the Eudora parade.
With Tau'l's hand gripping one of the lines, the team mares Belle and Bonnie, are driven in the field next to Tau'l's house.
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