Ever since Jim Poole was 5 years old, growing up on a ranch in Manitoba, Canada, with a herd of 40 Belgian draft horses and a few Clydesdales, he has been enamored with the huge animals.
Each New Year’s Day after he was done with his farm chores, he remembers running into the house to watch the Anheuser-Busch eight-horse hitch pulling the immaculate red wagon in the Rose Bowl parade.
Years later, after decades of showing and selling championship Clydesdales, Belgians and Percherons throughout North America, Poole was recruited to St. Louis to oversee one of the most well-known corporate icons on the planet, the same Budweiser Clydesdales he had admired in his childhood.
He held that one-of-a-kind position at Anheuser-Busch for 25 years until retiring in 2011, when he started his own stable, supplying Clydesdales and consulting with clients throughout North America who are in the Clydesdale industry.
His love for the breed and his knowledge of how a 2,000-pound horse brings smiles to people led him to share the unique experience of being up close and personal to a Clydesdale with the public. In 2023, he and his son Barclay began offering two different private programs to let the public interact with the gentle giants at their business, JFP Equine, which is on Monroe County Electric Cooperative lines.
A Clydesdale meet and greet is $250, with a maximum of 10 participants per group. The experience includes 45 minutes to an hour of what Barclay says is filled with meeting, greeting, petting and picture taking with the horse.
The “Ultimate Clydesdale Experience” is $99 a person and is, “what we like to call 2 hours of Clydesdale awesomeness,” Barclay says. “No more than four people at a time participate.”
In the Ultimate Experience, guests participate in the full grooming process — combing, brushing and even vacuuming the horses for a deep cleaning that leaves their coat shiny. Guests also mix feed and then hand feed the horses, as well as halter them, along with whatever else Jim and Barclay can pack into the time period. Both programs include as many selfies with the horses as guests desire.
While there are typically four to eight Clydesdales in the barn, three horses are usually involved in the two programs. “Ace is the star of the barn,” Barclay says. “When guests groom him and braid his mane and tail, a sparkle appears in his eye, and he seems to be looking forward to showing off. Fred is a certified snuggler, and Flame is just, well, huge.”
Sometimes the experience can be quite emotional. “I cannot tell you how many times people have teared up soon after getting close to our horses and helping groom them,” Barclay says.
Jim credits the public’s love and fondness for Clydesdales to the Anheuser-Busch commitment to the quality, pride and craftsmanship the firm has put into their horses in public appearances and commercials.
“When the ‘Here Comes the King’ music accompanies the appearance of the eight-horse hitch, the effect is magical,” Jim says. “There is not a person who is not familiar with it.”
“We love to see the smiles on the faces of people in our barn as they experience a Clydesdale in person and in private,” Barclay says. “It makes us happy to see people happy. We enjoy raising Clydesdales as much as we do sharing the experience with visitors.”
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JFP Equine
5674 Kaskaskia Road, Waterloo
314-443-4314
JFPEquine.com
