Sport horse sire Carnaval Drum put to sleep
The popular sport horse sire, Carnaval Drum, has died at Pembers Hill stud in Hampshire, aged 29. He was put to sleep<.strong> on 27 September.
Carnaval Drum, a 16.2h Dutch warmblood, was bought by Kevin and Annette Cooper as a two-year-old.
He had a successful showjumping career with Kevin Cooper – qualifying for the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS), the Royal International and winning many open classes – before retiring to stud.
The elite stallion went on to sire the first British-bred World Champion, Carnavelly and produced a number of eventers, dressage and show horses.
Another Carnaval Drum son, Carnaval Spirit won the Foxhunter final in 1998 with Damian Charles.
Annette Cooper told H&H that they owed a lot to the horse.
“He set us up really,” she said. “He’s the reason we started stud work and we’re still a stud today.
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“He had a lovely temperament. We’ll never have another one like him – he was like part of the family.”
Flora Watkins spent several years working for BBC News before moving into print, first as a staffer at Horse & Hound, before going freelance.