Horses around the world
The Eriskay Pony
ERISKAY PONIES ARE the last surviving remnants of the original native ponies of the Western Isles of Scotland. These ponies were invaluable to the islands’ crofters who used them to carry creel baskets of peat from the moorland for winter fuel and seaweed from the shore to fertilise the land. They were also used for light ploughing.
The Eriskay pony we see today evolved to survive on meagre food supplies, and their coats, ears and tails are well adapted to coping with a harsh, wet and windy climate. Eriskays also lived in a society where the islands’ women and children did most of the work on the crofts while the men were away at sea. Over centuries of domestication, the ponies therefore evolved into the hardy, versatile and people-friendly characters we recognise today.
With the onset of mechanisation and a decline in the local population as people moved to the mainland, the breed steadily reduced in numbers. By 1968 the only Western Isles ponies left were on the islands of Uist and Eriskay. A breed society was founded to conserve the remaining animals and the breed name established as the Eriskay pony.
Eriskay ponies have excellent temperaments and their sturdy conformation makes them ideally suited to the harsh environment of the Western Isles.
Although they stand at less than 13.2hh, Eriskays are strong for their size and make excellent riding ponies. Their friendly temperament and willing nature mean that they are often used to work with children with special needs and those with disabilities. They also make good driving ponies thanks to their strength and stamina.
The Eriskay is typically grey, although occasionally other colours may be seen. Newborn foals can be black, bay or roan in colour, but this gradually fades to the grey colouration seen in adults. In summer, the ponies’ coats are fine and silky, but they grow a denser coat in order to see them through the harsh winters.