the exmoor pony has been part of the landscape for generations, but it s an endangered breed. now a project is underway to preserve the genetic material from the ponies to help safeguard the animals in the future. andrea ormsby has this report. these exmoor ponies are in a rush. they have an appointment for the annual health check and they don t want to be late. feet are ok, eyes all right, not too many burrs in your hair. lovely, she s going to the top pen, please. we have just marked this mare up, we have given her a look over to make sure she is well, she is carrying enough condition to get her through the winter. and so far they are looking good? looking good, very pleased, yes. the wallace family from near dulverton on exmoor have been guardians of the anchor herd for more than a century. it s one of the founder herds, and the biggest purebred herd in the world. so no pressure. it is a responsibility. i do sometimes get quite emotional about it because it s just a lovely heritage
and so far they are looking good? looking good, very pleased, yes. the wallace family from dulverton near exmoor have been guardians of this herd for more than a century. it s one of the founder herds, and the biggest purebred herd in the world. so no pressure. it is a responsibility. i do sometimes get quite emotional about it because it s just a lovely heritage to have. they are just lovely ponies, they are a heritage, they have created the landscape on exmoor. and they keep it as it is. so, yeah, we are very proud of them. after the second world war, when the population of exmoor ponies was depleted, some of my ancestors were one of those few farmers who actually got a group of ponies together and ensured their survival. and now plans for a new gene bank for exmoor ponies should keep them safe forever. over the decades ahead of us, should an outbreak of equine flu