Arthington Show: Meet the man extolling the pulling power of Dales Ponies

“Andrew will do it,’ says Andrew, in good spirits. “We have some great people who have been involved much longer and newer ones, like me, such as Dan Thackray, who has brought pigs to the show, which I understand we never had before, and Sam (Samantha) Hardcastle who has done a great job on sheep entries.

“I got involved through Adrian Tate our show chairman who lives and breathes the show but there are others too, we’re always looking out for more to help.”

Andrew says this year’s entries are looking good but he has been amazed by the popularity of one particular class.

“We’ve got ferrets! It was mind blowing when I heard how many. I didn’t realise people competed as keenly showing as racing them, but that’s a terrific new thing.

“Sidesaddle riding and carriage driving will be part of the show as we stay a country agricultural show. My passion is explaining to people about farming and the countryside, reconnecting people with country life.

“I’ll be bringing my Dales Ponies and will be in the main ring showing what these fantastic animals are capable of and why they are so much in demand.”

Andrew will also be showing his Highland cattle, but not in competition. Arthington sadly lost its previous show site in Pool in Wharfedale and held its comeback show for the first time since Covid restrictions, last year.

A change to the show date appears to have cost the show its cattle entries at present.

“This year it will just be me and while we would love to have cattle entries it has just not been possible. I’m cattle secretary. Hopefully we can encourage a return of the commercial continental cattle we had, and it would be great to have native breeds too.

“For me showing is about two things, trying to do well and letting people know more. We’ve just done a demo with our Dales Ponies at a show in Lancashire and spoke with hundreds of people.

“The event was a Green Fair where nothing plastic was allowed on site. Anything that involves nature has always been my passion. I was a farm manager in Coverdale and heather regeneration was my thing.”

Andrew was brought up in Scarborough. His father was an engineer, but his mum’s side farmed at Russell Farm in Otley where he farms today.

“Farming’s in my blood. I studied agriculture at Askham Bryan College, leaving in 1995 and worked on farms in Wigton, Cumbria; and as a farm manager in the Yorkshire Dales and Helmsley.

“At Coverdale we had 5000 acres. It was a very big hill farm. In Cumbria it was a dairy farm with pedigree sucklers and pedigree sheep.

“When my father passed away in 2005 I made a start at being my own boss and came back to the family farm I inherited from my mum and started odd-jobbing on farms doing a little bit of fencing, that then led to doing a lot more fencing and now to doing horse logging. My sister passing in 2013 accelerated things too. Things like that make you think.”

Andrew’s other work has now become his major income.

“The fencing has taken off and the horse logging. That was a hobby that has become commercial, driven by demand.

“We only farm 40 of the 80 acres here. The farm was initially rented to mum’s brother who owns a bit of it. He has sheep and we have cattle and horses. I’m a sheep man really but like my cattle. We’re now too busy fencing, so we got rid of the sheep. We had Cheviot-crosses, putting a Cheviot tup onto a Mule, selling the gimmer lambs. We were pretty successful.”

Andrew’s love of Highland cattle started while he was up in Coverdale.

“I got involved in the Limestone Pavement Project and brought cattle on to Coverdale. That’s when I fell in love with the breed. They’re so easy to manage.

“We were part of the heather regeneration project and various schemes to take sheep off the hill and put cattle back on.

“Our livestock today is now our Chevin Fold of 30 cattle, with 10 cows and a bull; and 10 ponies, one being a Fell, the rest Dales Ponies or crosses. My partner Debs looks after the farm while I’m fencing and horse logging. Debs tries to organise me. I’ve a son Jacob who’s an engineer like my dad was and helps evenings and weekends. His girlfriend Lib is into horses. They help me out at the show.

“We’ve not shown our Highlands this year we’ve been that busy. We’d normally take them to local shows, Malham, Kilnsey, Ripley and Halifax. We had quite a few red rosettes at Ripley one year. Our first stock came from the Oban sale. I have a lot of contacts up there. Our current bull came off Tyree - Seamus Dubh of Balemartine.”

Andrew tells of a change that he’s having to make.

“Sadly, respected Highland breeder Robert Phillip passed recently. We sell heifers to other breeders, but our beef cattle went to Robert. We’re now thinking of selling boxed beef direct. We’re right on the Chevin on Leeds Road, so we’re quite well placed.”

Andrew extols the virtues of his Dales Ponies.

“They’re so nimble, so keen for work and their temperament is spot on. I’ve always been into horses and always pinched a ride somewhere. I never owned a horse until 10 years ago but used to shepherd on horseback up in Coverdale.

“When I bought myself a horse I got into driving and a bit of chain harrowing on the farm then became involved with British Horse Loggers and ended up on the committee for that as well as the show committee.

“It turns out my grandfather did horse logging. Sadly, he’s gone so I can’t talk to him about it. There are currently about 40 horse loggers in the country who make some form of living.”

Dales Ponies are known for their ability to haul logs from difficult-to-reach areas.

“Horse logging is very niche. We get work in SSSI areas, archaeological sites, wet difficult awkward sites. We pulled timber out of Swaledale where you had all on walking on the hillside but the ponies were perfect for it.

“We get work from private landowners to large estates. We’ve just done a big demo for the MoD because we could go in and do work on woodland without making a mess and soldiers could literally follow 10 minutes after we’d left.”

But for the next week Andrew’s focus is on Arthington Show.

“We’re trying our best to bring it back to its glory. Its return was a big success, but it has a lot more potential. As a fencing man I’m also very much involved in the setting up and taking down too.”