Rob and Dave Nicholson recently took on a Toyota Hilux to help care for their growing Shire horse collection at Cannon Hall Farm in South Yorkshire as part of their conservation efforts for these heavy horses.
Since opening to the public in 1989, Cannon Hall Farm has developed its farm attractions, shop and restaurant and now receives 335,000 visitors a year. It has also become the star of Channel 5’s Summer on the Farm Live.
The 200 acres of Cannon Hall Farm have been owned by the Nicholson family for the past 65 years, with Rob and Dave’s father farming the land with Shire horses.
Rob Nicholson from Cannon Hall Farm said:
“It seemed right to invest time and money in Shire horses. They helped us win world wars, so it’s unthinkable to think they could fade away, so we thought we’d do our bit to preserve and safeguard them for future generations. We bought our first Shire horse eight years ago. There are only 850 breeding mares in the country, so keeping the bloodline is important. We currently have five and are about to buy our sixth, and we are now a recognised Shire horse centre.”
With the Shire horse population on the farm growing, the Nicholsons needed a robust, reliable vehicle with good off-road, load-carrying and towing capabilities to assist with the day-to-day routine.
Rob Nicholson added:
“We’ve always liked these vehicles and aspired to own one. The Hilux has more power than other trucks we’ve had before, and the gears seem just right for towing.”
Having ordered their vehicle from Burrows Toyota in Barnsley, Rob and Dave have been loaned a top-of-the-range Hilux Invincible X while they await delivery of their vehicle.
Rob said:
“We used it for a couple of hospital runs recently. We collected Orchid, our 14-year-old Shire and her foal, Rosie, from Rainbow Equine Hospital, 100 miles away. Rosie nearly died soon after birth – she had something called ‘dummy foal syndrome’ where she thought she was still in the womb and was refusing to suckle.”
The team more recently had to rush their eight-year-old Shetland, Pony M, to the same hospital. The vet was going to put her down but said there was a chance the hospital could save her, so they hooked up the horse trailer to the Hilux to get her there.
The Shire horse and the Toyota Hilux share some similarities in terms of horsepower, and both are endowed with plenty of character. The Shire horse is famous as a working animal in various industries, and the Hilux is renowned for its versatility for business or leisure, conquering the North Pole, Icelandic volcanoes and Antarctica.
The Hilux is ideal for day-to-day farm work as it is tough, strong and competent on any road, in any conditions. The Invincible X model has a 204hp 2.8-litre engine, and every model in the Hilux range can carry loads of up to 1,030kg and tow up to 3.5 tonnes.
About the Shire horse
During the late 19th century, the Shire horse became popular for performing farm jobs such as ploughing. That popularity grew during the Industrial Revolution when the Shire horse was used to carry or pull heavy loads over long distances, for example towing barges or drays for breweries.
With technological advances, including the advent of railways and tractors, demand for them began to reduce. Their numbers declined from more than a million in their heyday to just a few thousand in the 1960s. Numbers began to increase again during the 1970s, but the breed is still considered ‘at risk’ by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. Today Shire horses are used for forestry and leisure activities, such as riding and carriage driving.
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