“Meet Phantom, one of the world’s largest horses!” At just an inch shorter than the late Big Jake, Phantom is truly as big as horses can get.
“This horse is 8-feet tall, making him one of the largest in the world,” Now This begins of the gorgeous gentle giant. “Meet Phantom, a 7-year-old horse who’s going viral for his impressive height!”
While most are familiar with Clydesdales as giants of the horse family, there are several different breeds of draft horses that grow to even larger sizes. Phantom is one such horse – a Shire horse, to be exact!
Phantom’s assistant trainer, Courtney Garner, works with him at Gentle Giant Draft Horse Rescue. She explains for Now This that “He’s a 7-year-old Shire. His personality is very bold. He’s goofy, too, and he loves to have attention.”
“Most people – when they see him – their jaws do drop,” Garner admits with a laugh. “And they tend to say ‘Oh my God, that’s the biggest horse I’ve ever seen!'”
Phantom himself was originally transferred to a rescue center in Maryland. “He has grown too big for his original owners to properly house him,” Now This continues. Today, however, he has more than 300 acres to roam around thanks to the rescue.
“Phantom has become a mini celebrity of sorts at the rescue,” they add – though “mini” is the wrong choice of words for this goliath. “Many visitors come to see and play with him.”
Phantom is a ‘Slow, Steady, Really Fun’ Horse, Says Trainer
“We ride many draft horses every day,” assistant trainer Courtney Garner continues. “He is actually the biggest horse I have ever ridden,” she says of Phantom. “And it is kind of high being up here. And trying to get all the way up here and get back down is sometimes a struggle…” she laughs.
“But it’s actually awesome because he is so big! You would think he moves really, really fast – but he’s actually just kind of super slow and steady and really fun.”
As for Phantom’s weight, the big fella comes in at a whopping 2,000 pounds.
According to another trade, Newsflare, Phantom was measured at only one inch smaller than the late Big Jake. Equine enthusiasts will remember Big Jake as the horse previously considered the tallest of all horses in the world.
Sadly, Big Jake passed recently on July 6, 2021. He lived to 20-years-old, a steady, long life for a large horse.
In his life, Big Jake stood at 6-foot-10 to his shoulders. Like Phantom, adding his neck and head into the equation had him pushing past 8-feet tall. Big Jake weighed more than 2,500 pounds, however, making him quite a bit stockier than Phantom. The gentle giant lived out his final days at his home: Smokey Hollows Farm in Poynette, Wisconsin.
Perhaps the Guinness Book of World Records should contact Phantom to continue on Big Jake’s legacy?
