Connemara pony database goes global

AN electronic database of the celebrated Connemara pony breed is set to expand internationally.

The database is scheduled to include registered overseas ponies by early autumn.

Details of 30,000 ponies in Ireland and beyond will then be accessible to buyers, breeders and enthusiasts.

Information on each registered pony will include breed, height, sex and other characteristics.

Connemara pony breeders society website features a facility to research pony pedigrees, information on the progeny of mares and stallions and to carry out some basic genetic calculations.

It said the provision of comprehensive details of a particular pony’s breeding going back four generations will be of significant value to all breeders.

Alex O’Connor, a Galway native and Limerick- based internet developer, has undertaken the compilation of the database.

Society president Dermot Power said the versatility of the Connemara pony has attracted interest not just from European countries but also from the US, Canada and Australia.

The International Committees of Connemara Ponies based across 15 member countries has put the iconic pony on the world stage, he said.