Horse lovers aren’t always popular companions when watching a film. Most people see a breathtaking fight on horseback: we notice that one extra at the back who isn’t holding the reins correctly.

It’s understandable that among the amazing work on movie productions, the equine accuracy can occasionally get a little skewed. That said, the horse community sees all, and we’ll endure any number of sighs from our friends and loved ones to point it out.

Here are five of the biggest equine mistakes on the silver screen…

1. Exodus: Gods and Kings

The 2014 biblical epic Exodus: Gods and Kings may have been a slog to get through (all two and a half hours of it), but at least it kept equestrians a little occupied with one very big anachronism. The soldiers in this film ride with their feet in stirrups, despite the fact that modern stirrups didn’t exist until 332 AD. For the record, that’s around 1500 years after the setting of the movie, making those soldiers’ footholds amazingly futuristic.

2. Lord of the Rings

Thanks to the invisibility granted by a ring of power, there’s a lot of disappearing characters in the fantasy series Lord of the Rings. However, unless all the horses also got their own evil jewellery, nothing can explain their disappearing act during a battle scene in Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. Check it out in this clip below — warrior Aragorn gives his rousing speech on horseback whilst their army is surrounded and then, suddenly, everyone is on foot. Not a horse to be seen. Let’s hope they made it safely back home.

3. Black Beauty

You know what they say about chestnut mares, but in this case the mistrust might actually be warranted. In the 1994 screen version of Black Beauty, the feisty mare Ginger was frequently portrayed by superstar horse actor, and gelding, High Tower. As much as they’ve tried to shoot the film around any evidence, at times it’s noticeable. Still, credit must be given to High Tower — he really gives an excellent performance, versatile when acting across genders as well as orchards and fields.

4. The Ballad of Lefty Brown

The Ballad of Lefty Brown is an impressive Western but there’s just one blink-and-you’ll-miss-it equine error. There, in a remote town in 1899 Montana, can be seen two Norwegian Fjord ponies. The problem? Well, according to the Norwegian Fjord horse registry, it wasn’t until 1900 that a New York horse breeder imported a significant number to the USA. In short, the chances of two Fjords pulling a cart over in Montana are fairly slim…

5. Planet of the Apes

Look, Planet of the Apes is hardly a documentary but if there’s one thing that is going to make the plot completely unbelievable, it’s an equine error. Despite plenty of CGI work, fully-grown mountain gorillas could not physically ride horses, and certainly not the middleweight horses shown in the movies. Gorillas can weigh up to 400lbs and wouldn’t sit lightly, meaning a horse would suffer injury carrying them over a distance. Also, do the filmmakers know that many horses find a plastic bag terrifying? Imagine them faced with a big scary gorilla and honestly, good luck to the gorilla in even getting near the saddle.

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From damsires to covering and AI to gestation period, when it comes to horse breeding for beginners, there is an awful lot to learn. So to help get you started, here are the answers to some of the most common questions that first-timer horse breeders ask.

Horse breeding for beginners: Q&A

1. When do you say ‘by’ and when is it ‘out of’?

The term ‘out of’ is used to describe the mother, or dam. ‘By’ is reserved for the stallion. The easy way to remember this is that foals come ‘out of’ mares, not stallions.

2. What does damsire mean?

Damsire is a term used to describe the sire of a horse’s dam. For example, if a horse is by Totilas out of a mare by Jazz, then the damsire is Jazz.

3. When a horse is said to be by a stallion x another stallion, what does it mean?

If a horse is described as being by Totilas x Jazz, that is the sire and damsire. Breeding aficionados are deemed to already know the breeding of stallions in general, so the names of the dams are excluded, as saying that a horse is by Totilas x Honeypie gives you no indication of its damline, unless you know the mare Honeypie personally — which most people won’t.

4. What is a covering and is it the same as a stud fee?

The stud fee is the price a mare owner pays to use a particular stallion, but that stud fee may include multiple attempts — referred to as coverings — if the mare does not fall pregnant after the first attempt.

5. How long is a mare pregnant for?

About 11 months, though a gestation period (pregnancy) anywhere between 320 and 350 days is completely normal for horses.

6. When does a foal/yearling become a colt/filly?

Actually a foal is already a colt or a filly, from the moment it is born. From birth to the end of that calendar year the horse is a foal. Once weaned (separated from its mother) it becomes a weanling, then from January it becomes a yearling as all horses’ official birthdays are on 1 January.

7. What is AI?

It stands for artificial insemination. This is a breeding technique used to inseminate a mare with a stallion’s semen when she and the stallion are in different geographical locations, the stallion does not offer live cover, or the mare owner does not wish to move the mare. AI can also be used after a stallion has died, using frozen semen. It is safer for handlers as only one horse is ever involved at a time, so some studs use AI even when both mare and stallion are at the same facility.

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

What do you get if you cross one Olympic gold medallist with the full sibling of another? The answer: a young horse that will almost certainly go on to great things.

Specifically in this case U-Genius, the son of Carl Hester’s London 2012 ride Uthopia (Metall x Inspekteur), whose dam is none other than Weidyfleur II — the full sister to double Olympic champion and multiple record holder Valegro (Negro x Gershwin).

“U-Genius has to be the best-bred horse in the world,” says Carl of the eight-year-old stallion, whom he owns along with breeder Claire Hester, Roly Luard and Anne Cohn.

“He’s a big, strapping black stallion — he’d make the perfect Lloyds Bank advert horse.”

U-Genius has so far been only lightly competed up to advanced medium by Amy Woodhead, former rider for Carl, but was recently showcased during the five-time Olympian’s dressage masterclass at the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club.

Spectators relished this rare opportunity to see this exciting horse showing off his current stage of training with Amy, as well as his natural talent for the higher level work.

“He was a very big foal and a big young horse, so he has needed lots of time,” explains Carl, who highlights the stallion’s super work ethic and scopey, athletic canter as his biggest strengths.

U-Genius is already training the grand prix movements, with his early piaffe and passage work looking particularly promising.

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As an Anglo European Studbook (AES) approved stallion, U-Genius is combining his early competition career with breeding duties, and so far has around 20 offspring on the ground, with the oldest now being three years old.

Whether U-Genius will follow in the footsteps of his world-famous family remains to be seen, but he certainly has everything it takes to get there, from genetics to temperament. This is one young horse to keep a serious eye on.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

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A rider who repeatedly whipped and “violently” kicked his horse until the animal collapsed with a broken leg has been suspended for 30 months.

A protest was lodged with the FEI over the way the UAE’s Khalid Jumaa Salem Al Khatri rode Castlebar Nato in a CEI1* endurance ride in Abu Dhabi last December.

The FEI Tribunal found Al Khatri guilty of horse abuse.

The Tribunal ruled that Al Khatri had repeatedly whipped the 12-year-old gelding with his reins, as he realised he was about to be overtaken. Under FEI endurance rules no item of tack or equipment is allowed to be used as a whip.

“Mr Al Khatri whipped the horse at least 18 times and violently kicked the horse until the horse eventually collapsed from exhaustion,” states the panel’s report.

“His actions were all captured in the live video footage… The Tribunal finds that his actions constitute horse abuse because he undoubtedly caused pain or unnecessary discomfort to the horse.”

Pauline van Drumpt of Clean Endurance, who submitted the protest along with video footage of the incident, told the Tribunal:“The horse is seen foaming at the mouth and breathing hard, visibly exhausted but going as fast as it can. Three minutes into the video, it collapses to its knees, tries to get up but collapses again. When it puts its right foreleg down to try and get up, the cannon bone can be seen bending backwards with a fracture.”

Warning: upsetting footage

The FEI veterinary department confirmed the cannon bone fracture, adding that the horse was not put down but the decision was made to “treat him conservatively with a cast or surgery depending on the owner’s decision”.

The department added that it had not seen any evidence “proving the cause or underlying factor to the fracture”.

“However, in general terms there is evidence that spontaneous fractures (fractures that have not been caused by external force such as hitting a solid object) in horses are caused by already existing bone fatigue (stress fracture) that are due to long term overloading and mismanagement such as overtraining, poor training surface and intense frequency of competing.

“Although pre-existing bone fatigue is the most likely cause of this fracture, there is no physical evidence to support this.

“High speed in a competition contributes to the overloading and could have triggered the fracture. There is however no physical evidence to support this.”

The Tribunal ruled that while there was no evidence to support a spontaneous fracture, “the fact that the horse ended up with a fractured leg, not being caused by external force, could not be ignored”.

Al Khatri told the Tribunal he used his reins to “encourage” the horse, and that no force was used to cause the horse any harm or discomfort.

He said: “The main reason why I was trying to encourage my horse to go faster was to allow horse number 75 to safely move away from me when we entered the rail as the horses were close to each other and that is typical with any herd or pack animal as they prefer to run close to each other and feel safe.”

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Al Khatri added that he retires horses in competition if they feel tired, adding: “Finally and with the love of animals and horses, it is no act of humanity to cause harm to any living creature let alone an animal which I’ve spent my entire life growing up with and learnt so much from.”

The Tribunal disagreed that no force was used to cause the horse pain or discomfort, and dismissed Al Khatri’s claim that he was trying to move away from another horse.

The rider was ordered to pay CHF 9,000 (£7,252) and 1,000 costs (£805).

The case was one of three incidents of horse abuse on the part of UAE endurance riders ruled on by the FEI Tribunal this week. For more see next week’s H&H magazine, out 11 July.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The top lot of the first sport horse auction to be held during the international showjumping show at Keysoe was a scopey For Pleasure x Dynamo gelding.

He was sold to a phone buyer from the USA for £24,000 during the sale in which 10 of 14 three-year-olds put forward found new homes.

A large audience arrived for the evening event yesterday (3 July) hosted by Kingsman Equine, a Gloucestershire-based company founded specifically to source sport horses and run elite auctions.

Showjumper Carron Nicol took two new horses home to Warwickshire. She first paid £14,500 for a black Nouma DAuzay daughter, a big mare with plenty of jump. Then the enormous-jumping grey gelding Diablo, by Durango VDL, went into Carron’s shopping basket for £14,000.

“I’m delighted because I’d earmarked both these horses before the auction,” she said. “I love a black horse and it’s a real bonus that the mare is already backed, while Diablo was my absolute favourite when I looked at the catalogue.

“I haven’t had to pay a fortune for either of them and they both have lovely characters. Temperament means a lot to me because my horses are part of the family.”

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Kingsman Elite Sport Auction prices

Lot 1: Valor Z (Vagrant Z x Chellano Z stallion) £9,500 not sold

Lot 2: Lazora (Lantino x Ferro mare) £7,500

Lot 3: Lady Balu (Bubalu VDL x Tolan R mare) £17,000 not sold

Lot 4: Camillus S Z (Cicero Z x Chin Chin stallion) £15,000

Lot 5: Lola (Durango VDL x Conterno Grande mare) £6,000 not sold

Lot 6: For Your Pleasure (For Pleasure x Dynamo gelding) £24,000

Lot 7: Lacarda (Dallas VDL x Aerobic mare) £13,000

Lot 8: Action Time Z (Action Breaker x Indoctro stallion) £17,000

Lot 9: Formidable SLR Z (For Pleasure x Carthago Z stallion) £12,000

Lot 10: Corazon Z (Cicero z x Negro stallion) £10,000

Lot 11: not forward

Lot 12: Unnamed (Nouma D’Auzay x Quidam’s Rubin mare) £14,500

Lot 13: not forward

Lot 14: Unnamed (I’m Special De Muze x Clinton gelding) £7,500

Lot 15: Diablo (Durango VDL x Harley VDL gelding) £14,000

Lot 16: Unnamed (Quasimodo Z x Mister Blue gelding) £9,500 not sold

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Carl Hester showed off yet another horse to watch when he made his competitive debut on the Benetton Dream mare Brioso II. The pair posted 78.03% in the prix st georges (PSG) at Summerhouse on Friday, 26 April, before upping that score to a whopping 82% at the same level at Hartpury on Sunday, 28 April.

“I’m not used to getting scores like that,” Carl joked to H&H. “I gave Charlotte a nudge and said, “we’re joining the same club as you!

“I had just wanted a nice peaceful run where I could enjoy it without wondering who was watching, and hopefully qualify her to do young horse PSGs this year.”

The nine-year-old British-bred mare, known as Bella, is owned by Carl — who bought her just-backed out of a point-to-point yard — but she has been competed up until now by Charlotte Dujardin, becoming elementary gold national champion in 2016 and claiming the medium gold title at the winter championships the following year.

But shortly afterwards, disaster struck and the mare had a full year out of competition as she recovered from first colic surgery, then a hernia.

“She was under anaesthetic twice within six weeks.” says Carl. “We gave her lots of time off, but she is incredibly tough and has bounced back.

“I’d never had a [horse by] Benetton Dream before but I absolutely adore her,” he added, despite admitting that he never wanted a chestnut mare. “She’s just my pet, and she has the best ears in the business — big floppy ears that hang out to the side.

“Last year Charlotte had so many mares to ride at that level, so she said to me, ‘Why don’t you start riding Bella?’ and I never got off.”

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Carl reports that the lovely mare has all the talent needed for grand prix — “We’re hoping she’ll be ready for next year” — and it’s extra impressive given her less-than-auspicious start.

“She had been so difficult to break as she was very cold-backed when she was young, and that’s why she ended up in a point-to-point yard,” Carl explained.

Bella was spotted there by Carl’s former groom Caroline Dawson, and Carl sent Amy Woodhead to try her so nobody would know who was buying her.

“We all had a good laugh about it in the end,” he remembers. “She has transformed into having the most amazing temperament — if you show her lots of love and affection she is very amenable.”

Keep up to date with all the latest equestrian news and reports in Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

William Fox-Pitt and the Eventing Riders Association (ERA) have spoken out over the FEI’s “clarification” of the flag rule, saying it does “not go far enough”.

The so-called “missing a flag” rule (549.2) has proved highly contentious in Britain since the re-worked regulation came into force this year.

The seven-point clarification (see in full at the end of the article) asks fence judges to “give the benefit of the doubt” to riders, states that knocking a flag does not entail an automatic penalty and goes into detail on how to use video evidence.

But FEI eventing rider representative William Fox-Pitt requested a further clarification be added and has said he “is unable to support” the statement sent out by the FEI.

The clarification he requested stated: “the shoulder or body of the horse is permitted to move or dislodge the flag, and the horse should be judged clear so long as it has jumped the correct side of the flag.”

On Monday, he wrote to the FEI eventing committee to say he understands its position regarding the clarifications of the rule.

“As I have repeatedly stated I do not feel that this deals with the central issue at stake and my additions, which are the result of extensive consultation with riders from around the world, have not been incorporated,” he said.

“Regrettably, as the rider representative I am unable to support the statement regarding the clarification.”

ERA chairman Bruce Haskell said the organisation accepts the sport must follow FEI procedure and that a full change to a FEI rule is not possible mid-way through a season.

“The additional guidelines are a positive initiative by the FEI eventing committee to address uncertainty for athletes, officials and wider stakeholders but in our opinion do not go far enough,” he said.

“The central issue remains as follows: the rule states that if any part of the body strays outside the line where the flag was originally positioned it should be penalised, therefore a horse who jumps the correct side of the flag but moves or dislodges it with the shoulder or pelvis is judged as not clear and is awarded 15 penalties.

“Despite the overwhelming majority of the eventing community sharing our view, we are all bound by a rule stating otherwise and today’s clarification does not change that.”

ERA is asking the FEI eventing committee to view the clarifications as a “good starting point towards a workable rule for 2020 and beyond”, but urges them to remain open to change in the short term for the benefit of the sport this year.

Bruce added ERA, William Fox-Pitt and chairman of the international rider working group Harry Meade have been “overwhelmed by a consistent response from riders, officials, national federations, organisers and other stakeholders”.

“The message is the same. The definition of “clear” in the current rule is not sufficient in line with what riders feel is appropriate,” he said.

Article continues below…

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Top riders including Harry Meade, Flora Harris and Bill Levett raised concerns over how the rule was implemented at Belton in March.

Following this, some competitors at Bicton faced appeals before the final results were confirmed in the CCI3*-S.

Riders are worried the rule is bringing subjectivity into cross-country and that the way it is being applied is “not in the spirit of the sport”.

Elite rider and owner Kate Walls started a petition to the FEI last month, which garnered more than 4,000 signatures in a week.

But the FEI stated it cannot change a rule part-way through a season “unless there is a risk management impact”, which does not apply in this case.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Cillnabradden Evo, Oliver Townend’s first ride, has a 10% chance of winning the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials this week (1-5 May), according to a new predictive tool from equestrian data company EquiRatings.

The Eventing Prediction Centre, an innovation from EquiRatings and their partners SAP, will be launched to the public next week ahead of Chatsworth, but is available to media at Badminton this week.

Using the latest SAP predictive analytics technology, the EquiRatings team has designed a statistical model that calculates the likely outcomes of major events before and during every competition. After each phase, it simulates every combination’s score at that event 10,000 times, exploring every plausible outcome.

According to the model, Cillnabradden Evo has a 10% chance of winning Badminton, a 15% chance of being in the top three and a 22% chance of being in the top 10.

The next two horses on the ranking, Mr Bass (Laura Collett) and Vanir Kamira (Piggy French), have an 8% chance of winning, but both have a higher chance of finishing in the top three or 10 than Cillnabradden Evo.

Badminton final scores

After each phase, every score is updated and the event simulated 10,000 times, allowing fans to see the movers after each phase and what effect that phase has had on the likely winner, podium or top 10 chances. The tool will also allow the public to input their predicted top three and assess how other fans are voting.

The inputs the Eventing Prediction Centre uses are:

• a horse’s 6RA (average of past six dressage scores, all levels)

• a horse’s average cross-country jumping clear rate at the given competition level

• a rider’s cross-country jumping clear rate at the venue

• a horse’s OBP (opposition beaten percentage)

• a venue’s historical average showjumping clear rate

• a horse’s historical average showjumping faults

• a horse’s most recent showjumping faults

EquiRatings has been testing the model at all four- and five-star (previously three- and four-star) competitions over the past two years.

They report that there is a high level of accuracy when looking at top 10 and top three results. A 20% chance of placing in the top 10 really does occur roughly 20% of the time, and a similar trend holds for top-three rates.

Testing calibration at the top end of the scale (a top three chance of above 30%, or a win probability of above 15%) is difficult.

This is due to the very few cases where a combination is scored this high, and in the case of top threes and wins, relatively few cases of a successful result to measure.

Nevertheless, they report, for the vast majority of combinations the model is pretty accurate in predicting their win and place probabilities.

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The EquiRatings team report there are areas they can improve on in the model and that they are continually making updates with the aim of improving accuracy.

Check back later for a report from the trot-up at Badminton and pick up this week’s magazine (dated 2 May) for the full H&H Badminton form guide.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The interim chief executive of British Eventing (BE) said it is possible the fixtures and balloting process could need review after Chatsworth had to drop its novice sections due to large entries across the popular fixture’s classes.

Having followed the BE balloting procedure, in which the international and higher-level classes are the priority, organisers of Chatsworth International Horse Trials (10 to 12 May) were unable to run the novice sections.

Chatsworth asked BE for permission to run an extra day of cross-country to accommodate the novice entries, but was refused.

In a statement, BE said it was “very disappointed” the class would not be running, adding that the decision was “not taken lightly”, and that an important factor behind it was the impact an extra day would have on the “viability of other fixtures in the calendar”.

Chatsworth event director Patricia Clifton told H&H this is the third year the novice sections have been dropped.

“Last year a lot of events had been cancelled so we got more entries; we didn’t think it would be the same this year,” she said.

“We applied for an extra cross-country day at the end of last year so we didn’t have to ballot as many people and it was turned down, but we were told if we had enough entries, we could bring it up again after ballot date.

“That was last Tuesday [16 April] and while it would have been inconvenient to organise an extra day as the event’s only a couple of weeks away, we’d have been happy to do it.”

Mrs Clifton said that had the event run 15-hour days, it might have been possible to run “half a novice section”.

“But then who would you ballot out?” she asked. “People really want to come to Chatsworth; it’s their dream, and it doesn’t mean we’re taking entries from an event next weekend that’s miles away.

“It doesn’t seem logical to say we could have run the novice sections on Saturday without affecting the other events, but that an extra day would affect them.

“I think if people want to enter Chatsworth, they enter it, and if they want to enter X event, they enter that; they should be able to go where they want to go, if organisers can cater for it.”

BE released a statement explaining its reasons for denying the extra date.

Interim CEO Jude Matthews told H&H she sympathises with riders and Chatsworth’s organisers, but that the processes for deciding whether extra days are viable has been developed for a reason.

“It is essential to balance the needs of organisers and riders and BE has the responsibility to maintain this balance,” she added.

“I have asked the fixtures team to see if there is a way in which this particular set of circumstances could be incorporated into the fixtures protocol,” she said. “It works for some but – and there’s no doubt from the social media outcry – it doesn’t for others. But the process has been developed to help all events be viable and ensure competitors have the right level of opportunity to compete.

“But equally, if there’s demand for extra days of competition, BE needs to be sure it can deal with such circumstances and that the right outcome is achieved.”

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Ms Matthews said that without the BE-managed calendar, which is supported by organisers, fixtures would become a “free-for-all”, with popular, central venues doing well and others becoming unviable to run.

“Such a situation would have a devastating impact on so many of our members,” she said.

“I can see it from both points of view,” she added. “If you enter Chatsworth, that’s where you want to run, and if you’re an organiser and there’s demand for a class you want to run, I understand frustration when you are unable to do so. But BE has an overall responsibility to the whole sport, and all organisers are fully aware of the process when they sign their agreements with BE.”

Ms Matthews added that it would be wrong of BE to “bow to social media pressure”.

“Chatsworth is an iconic venue, but we have responsibility to balance the needs of all organisers and members,” she said. “It may be that the time is right to change, but should change be required we will need to involve all stakeholders and ensure we are really open and transparent in what we’re doing.”

Read Ros Canter’s thoughts on every fence on the Badminton course in today’s Horse & Hound magazine (dated 25 April). Full Badminton form guide in next week’s issue (dated 2 May).

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

John Whitaker is facing a month on the sidelines after fracturing his collarbone in a fall at Gothenburg Horse Show in Sweden last week (3 April).

“It’s not really that painful, it’s just annoying because I can’t do stuff and I can’t ride at the moment,” 63-year-old John told H&H.

“So I’m just trying to take it easy for a bit, but depending how quick it heals, the doctor said it would be four weeks before I can ride again.”

John was riding the 17-year-old Argento in the opening 1.40m speed class of the show — which also hosted the Longines FEI World Cup Final, won by Steve Guerdat — when they took a crunching fall at an oxer.

“It was just one of those stupid things,” said John. “I wasn’t really trying to win the class, I was just going for a nice round and he anticipated the turn a little bit and caught the wing — because he’s so careful he didn’t put his legs down.

“I didn’t fall badly either, it was just the way I caught my shoulder. It was the first class of the show, so I finished before I started! It’s a really good show and I haven’t been for a few years, so I had really been looking forward to it.”

Continues below…

John Whitaker injured in Gothenburg fall

‘I didn't even think it was a bad fall for me,’ John told Horse & Hound

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John Whitaker described him as a ‘great all-rounder’ who arrived at his yard with ‘great big balls’ that ‘got in

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“Archie” was uninjured in the fall and, according to John, the Arko III stallion and all his other top horses will be kept busy during this enforced absence.

“We might stand Argento for a few weeks with the fresh semen,” he said. “Depending how long I’m going to be out of action for, he’ll stay in work — hopefully it’s not going to be long anyway!”

Don’t miss the full report from the Longines FEI World Cup final in this week’s Horse & Hound, out Thursday 11 April.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The much-anticipated international and championship fixtures list for 2020 to 2025 has been released by British Eventing (BE) following weeks of speculation.

Little Downham, Keysoe, Kelsall Hill, Cornbury and Wellington are among the venues that are gaining new classes.

Great Witchingham, Brightling, Hambleden, Chilham and Frickley have all lost their international status.

The handling of the strategic fixtures review has been met with frustration (Mark Phillips comment, 28 March). Part of the process involved events being scored for aspects of their fixture, for example medical cover, sponsorship and ground preparation, but a number of organisers were left at a loss to understand the marks they received which did not match previous feedback.

The main aim of the initiative is to rebalance the calendar to make it work for organisers and riders. It was meant to be released on 1 March, but due to an appeals process was delayed until the end of the month and was finally made public today (3 April).

Little Downham has been awarded a CCI3*-S and a CCI4*-S to run from 3 to 5 October, which clashes with Osberton (1 to 4 October) holding CCI2*-L&S and CCI3*L&S.

The event applied for a four-week window issued by BE in which it could hold the event, but has been told it cannot move the date it has been allocated.

A spokesman for the event told H&H that while they are delighted to have been awarded international status, they are disappointed with the clash.

“Our whole tender response was created around providing an event with the riders and sport at its centre,” she said.

“Little Downham in October has always been used as a final run for lots of riders heading out to the continent for the big autumn internationals. We had assumed that BE would relieve the clash with Osberton by juggling the British calendar in order for it to still work with riders’ European plans.”

Nunney had been told it had lost its international fixtures, putting a post on its Facebook page on Tuesday (2 April) that it was “extremely disappointed” with the decision. However, today that decision appears to have been reversed, with the venue hosting CCI2*-S and CCI3*-S classes in June next year.

Other notable changes include Bishop Burton as the new host of the under-18 championships, plus junior and young rider-only CCIs*-L. South of England has been awarded the 2020 junior championships, which will run in its CCI2*-S sections. The pony championships have moved to Belsay, which also gains a CCI2*-S.

Belton has been given a CCI2*-S to run alongside its current CCI3*-S and CCI4*-S; while Alnwick Ford now has a CCI3*-S to go with its CCI2*-S.

Bicton has retained its October CCI2*S&L, but has lost its spring international classes (CCI3*-S and CCI2*-S) and its autumn CCI3*-S.

Meanwhile eventers based in the south east and south west of the country wishing to compete at CCI3*-L or above face lengthy trips.

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Mark Phillips: Dismay at a dysfunctional process *H&H VIP*

H&H’s eventing columnist delves into what’s happening with the fixtures review

William Fox-Pitt, Piggy French and Pippa Funnell — 18 Badminton entrants enjoying a spin round Belton

A number of the world’s best event horses and riders were out in force, using the event as an essential

‘Robust process’

A statement from BE said the overriding objective has been to provide a “balanced fixtures calendar giving the greatest opportunities for members to compete and reflecting the changing needs of the sport”.

“In addition, key considerations included sustainability, financial viability and geographical spread,” the statement added.

“A robust process was carried out during 2018/2019 to which all organisers were invited to participate.”

These stages invited tenders, receiving 60 applications; scored and evaluated the applications; a stakeholder panel allocated the fixtures; conducted an appeal process.

BE said that to “respect the organisers and the sensitivity of the information provided”, it kept the details of this process confidential.

BE board chairman Fiona O’Hara thanked organisers for their applications.

“We were delighted to have received so many high-quality submissions,” she said.

“As a result of a final review, we identified a geographical gap in the south west, and have therefore taken the decision to rectify this for the benefit of our members by an adding one additional fixture in this region.

“The fixtures calendar will remain under constant review in order to ensure that we continue to maximise the opportunities for our members to compete.

“We are really excited by the calendar and the introduction of new international and championships venues. This gives our members the unique opportunity to compete at a choice of familiar and much-loved venues along with some exciting new additions.”

Click here for a list of the 2020 dates and venues; click here for a map

For more on the fixtures review, don’t miss tomorrow’s issue of H&H (4 April), plus further reaction in next week’s issue (11 April).

• Would you like to share your thoughts? Let us know about your views by writing to hhletters@ti-media.com for a chance to see your thoughts in H&H magazine (please include your name and address; letters may be edited).

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A table fence designed to collapse to prevent serious horse falls has been trialled in Britain for the first time.

The MIM clip table has been used in competitions abroad, but was jumped for the first time at a British event at Belton last week (29 to 31 March).

Three varying sizes of the jump, which came at fence five (or fence 5a) were used across the novice, intermediate, CCI3*-S, advanced and CCI4*-S sections (previously CIC2* and CIC3*).

“I had to get permission from British Eventing to use them,” course designer and organiser Stuart Buntine told H&H.

“I am just so pro us testing and trying and finding solutions to potential issues. They are not going to solve every issue and as we know devices go at certain times and don’t go at others, nothing is going to [activate] every time.

“I just wanted to get them out there and try them.”

Video below shows the table in action at a German event

The fence is designed to collapse on impact when hit by a horse, with the aim of reducing the risk of serious and rotational falls.

The table jumped well and was not activated, although the 5b corner element of the following fence proved highly influential in terms of run-outs in the top classes.

Stuart added the great thing about using this type of fence at an event such as Belton, which has hundreds of runners across different levels, is that it has now been jumped close to 850 times in just three days.

“We’ve just got to work with new technologies, I’m a great believer in that,” he said.

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Stuart referred to the frangible wishing well-style fence at the water complex at Oasby, which was activated dozens of times and eventually removed, as an example of trial and error.

“We just need to be out there trialling and testing,” he said, adding he will use the MIM clip tables again, including at Osberton.

“Unless we try things, we don’t know what’s going to work and what isn’t going to work and anything we can do to make [eventing] safer to me we have to look at doing, while staying within the integrity of the sport.”

Don’t miss this week’s issue of Horse & Hound magazine, on sale Thursday (4 April), for the full report from Belton

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A promising vaccine said to work “really well” against strangles is expected in 2020.

Protein-based Strangvac is due to be released in the UK next year following successful trials. 

Dr Andrew Waller, head of bacteriology research at the Animal Health Trust, said the vaccine had taken a long time to develop and while there is “still room for improvement” to get the equine industry to embrace it, it will be a “real help” for people worried about the disease, of which 600 outbreaks are estimated in the UK each year.

“Where the vaccine comes in, is with naïve horses who haven’t had strangles – it reduces the number of horses who become carriers, and then we can gradually make a difference over time,” said Dr Waller. “The catch is the vaccine only has a short duration of two months’ immunity.”

Dr Waller said the vaccine can have an important role at “high risk” events despite the short duration of immunity.

“If your horse is going to a competition, for example, you can vaccinate and it will be protected really well and be much less likely to bring strangles back to the yard which will be really useful,” said Dr Waller. “Although the horse isn’t fully protected for the 10 months after their first course, they should be less susceptible for that period.”

Unlike the current vaccine, equilis strep E – which is not widely used – Strangvac is safe for intramuscular injection and will allow blood tests to differentiate between a vaccinated horse and an infected horse. 

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Dr Waller said it would be possible to “eradicate” the disease in the future if more horses were identified as carriers.

“It’s very easy during an outbreak to say my horse didn’t have strangles and not get it checked out but actually those horses could be the carriers who then trigger the next outbreak. If we were screening horses before they moved around to identify and treat carriers we could knock strangles on the head but it’s not happening and part of the reason for that is it isn’t being recognised as a serious problem,” he said.

“It’s important horses can move around and that’s where vaccination can play a really important role in improving herd immunity and reducing the number of cases we have in the future.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In this week’s showing special, H&H meets five inspirational home producers who combine family, work and the general stresses of daily life with successful careers in the show ring.

Turn to page 34 in 28 March 2019 issue to read the full feature but for now, learn how these brilliant amateurs juggle the plates and manage to show at top level without burning out:

1. Be super organised

“I keep all my show stuff separate and most of it stays in the lorry,” says Charlotte Massey-Dales, a learning support assistant at Lincoln College who rides her own small hunter Whittlesbach Diamond. “I get the lorry packed up the day before a show as it helps soothe my nerves.”

2. Study the professionals

Dental nurse Sophie Burrows — who was placed sixth at the Royal International Horse Show (RIHS) last year with young small hack Penharver Bright Light — says: “Learn from the pros and don’t be afraid to ask for advice.”

3. Establish a good routine

This is how Rachael Holmes — a medical textiles design manager specialising in creating made-to-measure sensory dynamic orthosis for children with brain injuries and cerebral palsy — keeps her horses happy throughout the season.

“I have four horses and they all fit into a routine before and after work, which usually starts at 5am and finishes around 9pm,” she says.

4. Save time at the weekends

“At weekends I will do a week’s worth of haynets and feeds to save time,” says customer contact team manager Raquel Dickin, who qualified her middleweight hunter, Raconteur, for HOYS last season.

5. Plan around your work

Emma Staton, who was reserve supreme in the SEIB SFAS mountain and moorland finals last year with her New Forest Buckland Romantic, says that planning is the key to her having a stress-free show season.

“I book as much as I can in advance so I know when I need to take time off; not just for major competitions, but for the farrier, dentist and vet visits,” says chiropractor Emma.

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6. Be resourceful and spend wisely

“I saved up a few years ago to buy LED floodlights in my arena so I can ride before daylight,” says Emma, who sometimes does not finish work until 9pm.

7. Don’t get disheartened

Adds Sophie, who also admits that it can be quite stressful trying to balance her job and business, childcare and horses.

For all the latest equestrian news and reports, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday. In this week’s issue don’t miss the showing special issue, filled with interviews and exclusive features.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The sport of eventing has undergone massive changes in the past 50 years. In audio and video clips supporting a virtual rebuild of the course from 50 years ago, event director Hugh Thomas and others talk through the four different phases on cross-country day, highlighting the evolution the sport has experienced...

“Back in 1969, the cross-country day was known as the ‘speed and endurance day’, so called because of the four phases involved — Phase A (roads and tracks), Phase B (steeplechase), Phase C (roads and tracks) and Phase D (cross-country),” explains event director Hugh Thomas.

“It was a very different day to what we see today; Phase A, the roads and tracks, acted very much as a warm-up before Phase B, the steeplechase. More roads and tacks followed in Phase C, before the vet inspection in the 10-minute box ahead of Phase D, the cross-country.

“The only phase that still functions today [in modern-day eventing] is the cross-country phase. There was also a very different scoring system back then, with riders able to gain maximum bonus points [for coming in under a certain time]. Not long after the 1969 Badminton, the FEI changed that scoring system. There were no more bonus points, which made it much easier to understand.”

‘A true endurance test’

Former event rider Judy Bradwell — who is now a top trainer and was the first female president of the ground jury at Badminton, having also ridden round the three-day event — reflects on how the sport has changed over the years.

“The main difference between now and then is that we didn’t do nearly as much in the cross-country warm-up back then, because we had the road and tracks and steeplechase to warm our horses up,” says Judy.

Badminton final scores

“In those days we also carried weight [lead in weight cloths], the weight was set at 11st 11Ib, and we didn’t rely on studs either — I’m not even sure we had studs back then,” she adds. “A three-day event was a true endurance test for both horse and rider.”

Hugh compares the steeplechase speed to a “slow point-to-point”.

“The steeplechase course comprised four or five brush fences, jumped twice,” says Hugh. “Sometimes we would see falls on the steeplechase, but back then there were ‘penalty zones’ — on the cross-country too — if something happened outside the penalty zone you couldn’t be penalised. The penalty zone extended 20 metres after the fence and 10 metres before it, but the concept was abolished in the late 1980s.”

‘Well designed for horse welfare’

The 10-minute box was used for horses to refresh after Phases A, B and C ahead of the final cross-country element, and where the horses received a check-over by the team of vets.

Bill Bush was a member of the horse inspection team in the 10-minute box for 25 years at Badminton.

“As a horse approached from Phase C, the roads and tracks, we would look at them and see how they were trotting in. If the horse looked particularly tired, we would wait for the vets to check their heart rate, before making a decision on whether or not they were okay to go across country,” explains Bill.

“Our job was to ensure the horses were well, fit and strong enough to go round the final phase.”

Hugh adds: “Phase C, the roads and tracks, was designed for horses to wind down following the steeplechase and recover their breath, so that when they came into the 10-minute box they could rest and start the cross-country in good shape. The sport has always been well designed for horse welfare — it was not any more strenuous for the horses back then compared to today.”

‘Flimsy timber’

Eventing has witnessed an evolution over the years, with the change from a long to short format the biggest of them all.

“The cross-country test was easier back then, it wasn’t as complicated,” says Hugh. “It was just as big, but there were no angles, corners or narrow fences, for example.”

The 1969-winning rider, Richard Walker, adds: “Nowadays, the construction of the fences across country allows riders to be more daring in the saddle because they are so well built and attractive.

“Back then, the fences were upright and built with flimsy timber. Now, they have pleasant groundlines and riders can attack the fences more freely. I would like to have ridden some of my past horses around the modern-day courses.”

Click here to view the full audio and videos from the archive, courtesy of the CrossCountry App.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Racehorse trainer-turned-author Henrietta Knight — who trained Best Mate to three consecutive Gold Cups — talks to H&H’s racing editor, Hannah Lemieux, about her favourite stories from the Festival, plus the current controversies within the sport.

“You only have to be at the Cheltenham Festival for a short while before being swept along and mesmerised. Racegoers are hypnotised and the rest of the world forgotten. The feeling is indescribable. I defy anyone not to be emotionally affected when champion after champion is led back to the holy grail — that revered winner’s enclosure – created as it is like an amphitheatre, with the crowds rising high towards the sky on the steps of the semi-circle. To cap it all, the music that is played makes it all the more emotional. Well done Cheltenham racecourse — it is the best unsaddling area, you have created a masterpiece.

“Lady jockeys were greatly to the fore at the 2019 Festival and Bryony Frost is undoubtedly the darling of the racing public. Her partnership with Frodon (winner of the Ryanair Chase) is warming. Both horse and rider seem to have a great understanding. Bryony is full of enthusiasm and extremely determined. She seems to impart these qualities to the horses she rides. Lizzie Kelly is another gifted rider and the bold front-running tactics that she employed on Siruh Du Lac in the 2m4½f handicap chase definitely paid off.

“Ireland’s new sensation, Rachael Blackmore, is an outstanding rider — probably the best of all the lady jockeys riding at the moment. She is currently lying second in the Irish jockeys’ championship table to Paul Townend and she wins races on a variety of different horses. She is strong and stylish with a tactical brain. To emerge from the Festival with two winners — A Plus Tard (Close Brothers Novices’ Chase) and Minella Indo (Grade One Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle) — has put her in the history books.

“On Thursday, 14 March, Emma Lavelle’s training of Paisley Park to win the Sun Racing Stayers’ Hurdle further demonstrates the strong position that ladies now hold in the sport. It was a moving moment when the horse’s owner, Andrew Gemmell, received his trophy because he is blind from birth, however, he puts a huge deal into racing. For jockey Aidan Coleman it was a first ever Cheltenham Festival Grade One victory and he was visibly delighted.

‘A massive breakdown of trust’

Despite this year’s Cheltenham Festival providing some outstanding results it was, nevertheless, unfortunate that the four-mile National Hunt Chase on day one caused such a stir.

It is a well-established Festival race and has, over the years, produced some top-class chasers. It caters for novice horses, who are ridden by amateurs. If one looks back statistically, 2016 was a particularly good year for this race. Horses that ran in it have since won over 85 races and include Minella Rocco, Native River, Measure Of My Dreams, Noble Endeavour, Pleasant Company, Shantou Flyer, Vieux Lion Rouge, and Definitly Red.

Admittedly, last week, the National Hunt Chase was not a pleasant spectacle and only four of the 18 starters completed. The runners were notably tired and there were some heavy falls. Critics of the race now say that the jockeys should not be amateurs, However, most of this year’s riders had plenty of experience and several of them are better than many of the professionals, including Jamie Codd, Derek O’Connor, Barry O’Neill, Patrick Mullins, Noel McParlan, Sam Waley Cohen, Will Biddick and Finian Maguire.

However, it is hard to see why Declan Lavery was penalised for finishing third on Jerrysback. He was dished out a 10-day ban for not pulling up his mount before the last fence. Yet, the horse jumped the fence safely and carefully. Declan did not resort to his whip and nursed his partner up the run in. What more could have been done? The horse’s trainer, Philip Hobbs, reported that the horse was fine afterwards and was never seen by any of the racecourse vets.

Over the past few months, there has been a massive breakdown of trust between the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and trainers. The latter work closely with their horses and with the jockeys. They are licensed by the BHA, however, there was a lot of displeasure concerning the action taken by the BHA-appointed stewards at Cheltenham after the National Hunt Chase. It is to be hoped that Declan is successful with his appeal.

‘Easy campaigns for Gold Cup runners’

On a happier note, the four major championship races were outstanding spectacles. As well as Frodon’s victory and Altior in the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase, it was great to see the five-year-old Espoir D’Allen win the Champion Hurdle. He was the youngest horse in the race and his jockey, Mark Walsh — who won two races last week — is a talented rider.

It is always good to see new names on the board and for handler Gavin Cromwell — who started off as top Irish trainer Gordon Elliott’s farrier — it was a fairytale result. Although, he is not new to British racing, having saddled Welsh National winner Raz De Maree a few years ago.

Willie Mullins deservedly won the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He had trained several placed horses in previous runnings of the race, but had never lifted the crown. He had become resigned to thinking that he would never win the blue riband of steeplechasing, and the champion Irish trainer’s delight was clearly apparent as he returned to the winner’s enclosure.

Nowadays many of the Gold Cup contenders are given easy campaigns when building up to the big race, indeed this year’s winner only had one outing in January, when winning at Tramore in Co. Waterford. When Best Mate won three consecutive Gold Cups, he too was lightly raced prior to the Festival. We were much criticised for wrapping him up in cotton wool, but it is always a tough race and horses need to be feeling good when it matters most — they only have limited mileage in their careers.

‘A little terrier of a horse’

Finally, no reflections of this year’s Festival can leave out Tiger Roll — a little terrier of a horse, who is only 15.3hh yet has the heart of a lion and unbelievable enthusiasm for racing. He loves Cheltenham and has now won four times at the Festival, beginning with the Triumph Hurdle and then, as a novice, winning the much-talked about National Hunt Chase, under Lisa O’Neill. This was before taking the Glenfarclas Cross-Country Chase two years running, with talented jockey Keith Donoghue.

Watching Tiger Roll’s win this year brought a smile to my face and a tear to my eye. He is such a special horse and, after his victory in last year’s Grand National, one tentatively brackets him with Red Rum — who was another small ex-Flat horse who just loved jumping.

He will hopefully continue to give pleasure to his many fans before, according to Gigginstown Stud’s Eddie O’Leary, doing retrained racehorse classes in his eventual retirement.

Don’t miss our full report from the Cheltenham Festival and further comment from Henrietta Knight in this week’s issue of Horses & Hound — on sale tomorrow (Thursday, 21 March).

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A rider involved in two separate incidents with out-of-control dogs hopes to educate owners on the potential dangers of dogs being off the lead around horses.

Sarah Backhouse from Leeds was returning from a hack with her friend Sarah Barnard on Sunday morning (10 March) when they were chased by a great Dane at The Churchfield in East Ardsley.

Sarah told H&H: “We normally go on the road but we decided to take a shortcut through some fields with a track. We picked up canter and Sarah’s gelding, Digby, spooked, jumped to the side and she fell off.

“My gelding Piper, bucked which is really unusual, and I saw a great Dane chasing us. I managed to stop to help Sarah who was still on the floor and the dog started circling Piper.”

Sarah said the dog’s owner was at the other side of the field.

“It took him a few to get minutes to get to us and I told him his dog should be on a lead. He said his dog was fine when we were walking but took off after us when we galloped off – but we didn’t gallop and we hadn’t seen him because he was behind us. He obviously saw us and hadn’t put the dog on a lead,” said Sarah.

“He had no control over it and no recall – as he tried to put it on the lead it was running away from him. The man apologised after I explained his dog could have been kicked, and he walked off.”

Sarah phoned the yard she keeps Piper at for help as her friend was unable to ride home.

“Sarah wasn’t injured but she was too sore to ride. Seven people arrived in two cars including the farm owner, yard manager and some of their relatives. Someone was going to drive Sarah back while the others helped with Piper and Digby,” said Sarah.

“As we set off a couple were walking through the field with two dogs off the lead and one came running over. One of our helpers managed to get hold of the dog and took it back to the couple but the man said “I won’t change what I do’ when he was asked to keep the dogs on a lead.

“I had an incident with the same couple last August when I was leading Piper and one of their dogs ran up to us and barked in Piper’s face. He bolted and ended up on a main road.

“At the time they were apologetic but they’ve done it again and I’ve been told by people they’ve been seen with their dogs off the lead.”

Sarah reported the incidents to the police and the British Horse Society.

“The couple are putting their dogs’ welfare at risk by not keeping them on a lead when they can’t get them back or if they see a horse coming,” said Sarah.

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Police order for owner of dog who chased horse into the sea

‘I felt so helpless watching Spring get chased into the sea — the man allowed his dog to hunt and

“Horses don’t speak dog and can’t differentiate between a dog wanting to play or not. People need to put their dog on a lead if they see a horse, even a trustworthy dog can chase a horse.

“The police and the BHS have been really supportive and the BHS sent me information about the law on dogs. I am considering volunteering for the BHS to perhaps visit local dog training places to help educate fellow dog walkers about the potential dangers.”

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said the owner of one of the dogs has been spoken to and given advice.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

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The owner of a horse whose leg went through a lorry floor inches from a wheel wants metal floors in horseboxes to be mandatory.

Amy Poltinger’s horses were being driven by her partner Adam when her six-year-old Irish draught Daniel’s hind leg went through the floor of her horsebox on 6 March.

Amy told H&H: “I was travelling in another horsebox behind but I was told Adam heard a bang and then a second one. A friend looked through the jockey door and it looked like Daniel had gone down.

“My partner pulled straight over into a car park and a car was flashing and beeping at him. I got a phone call but I had already seen a piece of my lorry lying in the road and pulled in. Daniel’s leg had gone right through the floor and was a few inches away from the wheel.”

Crew from Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service attended the scene along with vets from Corner House Equine Clinic and Walnut Hill Equine Veterinary Clinic.

“The vets and fire service were there very quickly. The other horses were removed from the box and Daniel was sedated to make sure he didn’t struggle.

“A second specialist unit animal rescue arrived from Bromyard fire station and they made a plan to get him out. The sides and roof of the lorry were cut off and hoisting equipment was used to lift him out. A local farmer came and helped with lifting him out with a tele-handler and Daniel was put on to a board and slid into a trailer.”

Daniel was taken to an equine hospital, but has since returned home.

“It was worrying because we couldn’t fully assess the damage he had done while he was in the box, we had to get him out. It took some time for him to come round at the hospital and he was very wobbly but he escaped with cuts and bruises. He’s home and he’s doing well,” said Amy.

Amy, who had recently had the floor replaced, said it should be mandatory for all horseboxes to have metal floors.

“We’ve always looked after the lorry and had the floor replaced a few months ago. We’ve received some negative comments online about what happened but it doesn’t matter if a lorry is two years old or 20. It’s not just about checking the floor, previous to having the floor replaced we had a sealed rubber floor so apart from looking underneath outside, we wouldn’t have been able to lift the matting and check the floor inside.

“As a safety principle I think it should be mandatory for all lorries to have metal floors, it would take some of the risk factor away. Going forward we will always make sure to have a metal floor and I won’t be putting my horses in anything that doesn’t have one.”

Promising eventer killed in £65k horsebox: owner campaigns for change

The owner wants annual checks to be mandatory, as well as checks on buying new-build boxes on older chassis

Is your horsebox floor safe? Horse survives life-threatening accident *warning: graphic images*

Pictures of a horse with its leg trapped after the floor gave way have gone viral on social media. Owners

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Amy said the fire service and vets were “invaluable”.

“They were amazing. They kept me updated and knew what they were doing and did it the quickest way they could. The fire service followed us to the vets to help get Daniel out of the trailer – everybody went over and beyond to help us.”

Richie Jordan, group commander of Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service, said: “We are really pleased to hear that Daniel is expected to make a full recovery after his three-hour ordeal.

“It is not yet clear why the floor had failed but we would urge all horse owners to regularly check the floors of their horseboxes, especially underneath rubber matting to check for any unseen damage or weaknesses.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The FEI is investigating after footage appears to show a top-placed horse in a prestigious international endurance ride being injected at the final vet gate.

Tammam La Lizonne, a nine-year-old mare ridden by Bahrain rider Sheikh Mohammed Bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, can be seen in the film surrounded by people, at the King’s Cup, a CEI3* ride in Bahrain on 2 March. One individual appears to inject the mare’s neck.

The combination finished third in the ride, clocking up an average speed of 24.95kph, although the recorded speed at the last vet gate was 30kph.

A spokesman for the FEI said: “As the incident shown in the video footage only came to light after the event, no action was taken by the ground jury at the time, but the FEI is looking into it and is currently collating a dossier of evidence.”

NB: please be patient while waiting for the video below to load. If it does not appear, click here to view.

The FEI spokesman continued: “Once this process has been completed, we will take the appropriate actions in line with the rules.”

Article continues below…

Human sewage to blame for horse’s positive dope test

The horse’s rider has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the contamination case

Horses can read and remember human emotions, scientists find

The horses changed behaviour according to the humans’ expressions

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The FEI confirmed the identity of horse and rider, who represented Bahrain at the World Equestrian Games in Tryon last September. The combination’s first FEI event was the Royal Windsor Horse Show CEI2* 120 last May, in which they retired at gate one, and their only other international result together was a CEI3*160 in Castelsagrat, in which they finished fourth.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

This week’s magazine (14 March), is our sport horse breeding special issue, which includes our feature on the Helgstrand Dressage empire, plus we look at the influential sires of this year, and much more. You can also read our new columnist John Whitaker’s thoughts on Brexit and breakdowns, and find out more about the banana-loving dressage gelding Hawtins Delicato.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Helgstrand Dressage is owned by the 2008 Olympic team bronze medallist Andreas Helgstrand and his wife Marianne. Since its establishment in 2008 Helgstrand Dressage has won 11 medals at the World Championships for young horses and the more established horses impress at Prix St. George and grand prix level both nationally and internationally.
 Here, we take a look around and to read the full feature on Helgstrand Dressage, don’t miss the latest issue of Horse & Hound magazine, out now (dated 14 March 2019)

1. The beautiful yard near Aalborg in the north of Denmark had humble beginnings

The original buildings were built for cattle and machinery and it wasn’t until Andreas Helgstrand bought the property in 2009 that it was transformed into the state-of-the-art stallion station and sales and training centre that it is today. The business has grown fast, and the yard with it — every year has seen some form of expansion.

2. The stables are cleaner and brighter than most people’s homes

The stable barns at Helgstrand all ooze Scandi cool with their minimalist Danish design, featuring white washed walls, high vertex ceilings and skylights. They are kept immaculately clean and tidy, as are their occupants.

3. The staff enjoy enviable working conditions

Helgstrand Dressage employs almost 100 staff, all of whom benefit from competitive salaries and working hours many grooms can only dream of — no one works past 5pm. Overlooking the huge main indoor arena is a spacious cafe, where fresh, healthy food is served at lunchtime, with all riders, grooms and other staff encouraged to take a proper break.

4. You can buy any horse on the yard

With some of the most talented young dressage horses in the world residing within Helgstrand’s gleaming white walls, you might expect Andreas to keep at least a few to ride himself. but no — every horse on the yard is for sale, including the world young horse champions Revolution (pictured) and D’Avie.

“You cannot make money if you keep the good ones for yourself,” reasons Andreas.

5. The outdoor arena features no ordinary dressage letters

The unique dressage letters used around the beautiful 20x60m outdoor arena were made specially for Andreas in Italy, out of a special plant that can withstand the harsh temperatures of the Danish winter, which can drop below -10 degrees.

6. The local Pony Club benefits from some of the Helgstrand facilities

Just over the road from the main stables is the Helgstrand Dressage VIP Lounge and vast competition arenas, which host a CDI in the summer and the Danish championships in 2019. Also based here is the local Pony Club, which benefits from some of the very best riding facilities out there, and regular para riding lessons also take place here.

To read the full feature on Helgstrand Dressage, don’t miss the latest issue of Horse & Hound magazine, out now (dated 14 March 2019)

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Deep in Co Kilkenny, Michael Hutchinson runs a small stud which houses a veteran powerhouse of Irish eventing breeding.

The grand old man of Ballyquirke Stud is Puissance, the 31-year-old son of the thoroughbred Imperius. His progeny include Sam Watson’s first championship mount Horseware Bushman, Michael Ryan’s perennial top-level campaigner Old Road and Francis Whittington’s successful Sir Percival.

Alongside him, his son also stands at the stud. Imperial Tiger is a full brother to the world team silver medallist Horseware Ardagh Highlight — ridden by Sam Watson — and several other successful eventers.

H&H visited Puissance and Imperial Tiger at home…

Sporting a winter coat to be proud of, Puissance loves to go out in the field each day — and to show off his moves.

Michael believes getting out in open space every day is key to a stallion’s mental wellbeing.

Imperial Tiger enjoys a romp round the field.

Michael and his wife Eva with Imperial Tiger.

Michael shows off Imperial Tiger in all his glory. The horse showjumped with Michael’s son, Michael “Tjossti” Hutchinson, in Belgium before retiring to stand at stud.

Imperial Tiger’s full siblings include not only world silver medallist Horseware Ardagh Highlight, but also Horseware Lukeswell (12th at the 2015 European Championships with Sam Watson), grade A showjumpers Lee Ann and Little Ellie and international event horses GFG Rambo Man, Harthill Percy and Chanterelle II. They are all out of a Kings Servant mare called Gentle Servant and by Puissance.

Pictures by carolinenorris.ie

Don’t miss our full feature on Puissance and Imperial Tiger in this week’s Horse & Hound magazine (dated 14 March), the first part of our 2019 sport horse special. The issue also features a visit to Helgstrand Dressage, information on the most influential sires in sport horse breeding today and an essential guide to how British breeding will be affected by Brexit.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

An endurance rider who used a bottle to “aggressively” beat his slowing horse has been suspended for six months by the FEI.

The FEI Tribunal found that the actions of UAE rider Ali Mohd Ali Al Hosani constituted abuse of LCE Corleone during the Sheikh Mohammed Cup CEI 160km ride in Dubai on 4 January.

H&H contributor Pippa Cuckson lodged a protest with the FEI over Al Hosani’s actions, which were caught on camera.

In her submission to the Tribunal, Pippa pointed out that the rider can be seen taking a “slosh bottle” from a groom, and pouring the water over the horse. He then takes a second bottle, moves it behind the saddle to slosh the horse’s loins, while giving the horse a “big kick”.

“He then swings his right arm forward and strikes the horse in an angry manner on the neck twice. This is done forcefully and from height, in an action quite different from pouring a slosh bottle,” the Tribunal heard.

The incident took place on the fourth loop, during which the horse had slowed. His high average speeds in the first three loops – 24.24, 25.72 and 24.15kph respectively – had dropped to 18.12kph, then dropped again in the fifth loop to an average of 14.11kph.

“It is likely that around now the rider realised his horse was tiring and he had fading hopes of a top 10 placing,” Pippa told the Tribunal.

Al Hosani said he had not meant to abuse the horse, the Tribunal report read.

“I would like to explain what happened exactly and as it shown in the recorded video, it is clear that when I took the second water bottle from the groom I started spraying water on the horse’s neck, I did this twice because I felt there still water in the bottle so I poured it again. It is true that I poured the water vigorously due to speed and I tried to pour as much water as possible, but I did not intend at all to hit or abuse the horse,” he said.

Al Hosani said he hoped “this will be only a matter of misunderstanding” and emphasised his “respect and commitment to all rules and regulations governing endurance rides”.

But the Tribunal disagreed, stating that the video shows the rider “clearly hit the horse with the water bottle twice and in an aggressive manner”, and agreeing with Pippa’s statement above.

Endurance rules ban whips, and the use of any other item as a whip, but the Tribunal found the rider used the bottle as a whip, and also that he “seemed to show no remorse for his actions”.

The Tribunal thought it is likely Al Hosani hit the horse “out of frustration or anger because of the horse’s falling speed”, and that his actions constituted abuse as he “likely caused pain or unnecessary discomfort to the horse”.

Al Hosani is banned for six months from 7 March, the date of the Tribunal decision. He was also fined 2,000 Swiss francs (£1,511) and ordered to pay 1,000 francs in costs.

Pippa said: “Naturally I am pleased Tribunal has recognised that this incident violates FEI rules and is an affront to horsemanship and the welfare of the horse. I am only sad I was reduced to lodging this protest because the ground jury did nothing – notwithstanding the incident being captured on the official livestream of the ride, and then going ‘viral’ on social media.”

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A yard owner who sustained a broken cheekbone and eye socket when a “bolshy” young mare ran over her at a field gate has urged other owners to be aware of the importance of horses’ having good manners on the ground.

Jan Simpson, who runs Elvington Stud in East Lothian, was knocked unconscious by one of the two livery horses she was bringing in one evening two weeks ago.

She told H&H she cannot remember the events leading up to the incident – and that she was unconscious for some 20 minutes before she was found by a jogger.

“I just remember trying to get out from under her legs, and being pushed on to the ground,” she said. “I thought I came round immediately but from looking at my phone realised it was longer.

“If the jogger hadn’t found me – it’s a quiet, private road but it is a road and if a car had come round in the dark, the driver wouldn’t have seen me. I’m so lucky, in so many different ways; it’s not worth thinking ahout what could have happened.”

Jan was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, where the “fantastic” staff inserted metal plates behind her cheekbone to put it back into place.

“I was a bit of a mess,” she said. “I’m not precious about how I look but to look in the mirror and not really recognise yourself is a bit of a shock.”

Jan, who has been told that although the bones should heal in six weeks, she should wait eight until she returns to work or riding, said the incident highlighted to her of the importance of horses’ manners.

“They need to respect your personal space,” she said. “They’re horses so they’re going to get scared of things, but they need to run round you if that happens, not over you.”

Jan says horses are handled by a number of professionals, such as vets, farriers and equine dental technicians, and that she has seen a number of near-misses in these situations.

“I’ve held liveries’ horses for the dentist or others and looking back, it was so dangerous because the horse just ran into them,” she said. “Yes, it’s something the horse doesn’t like but they should have the basic knowledge, respect and spatial awareness not to run into you, or use their weight and size against you.

“Also, if something happens to you, you know your horse will be ok if it’s got good manners. Other people have had to step in and do my job at the moment and I’m confident my horse will behave – it’s a good feeling to know you can ask others to do your horse safely.”

Jan added that as often bad-mannered horses are seen as dangerous, so can be passed on to different homes, giving them the right education can also protect their welfare.

Continues below…

Top rider’s terror as Calais migrants attack horsebox

Men surrounded the lorry, banging on the sides and smashing a window as they tried to get on board

‘I saw a hoof in my face’: Rider’s warning after kick shatters her skull

The rider was millimetres from death in the freak accident, despite the extensive precautions she had taken

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“There’s sometimes a grey area as to whose responsibility it is to teach the horse to behave, but it’s the owner’s,” she said.

“The doctors said my cheekbone, although it was caved in, did its job of protecting my eye and brain but I could have been brain-damaged or killed.

“I just hope this might make people sit up and pay attention, and put the groundwork in. People don’t like to think of their horses as naughty, but they won’t like you any less if you put the work in – and everyone round them will be safe.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The Rothenberger family of international dressage fame have thanked all those who have come to their aid after a devastating fire tore through their yard.

Five horses died and several people were injured, including the family’s 26-year-old daughter Sanneke and their gold medal-winning 24-year-old son Sönke, who both sustained minor burns.

“Words can not describe what we feel,” said a statement from the family.

“I do not know what to say or write. I do not know where to start … to cut it short: thank you all for your immense support.”

The family thanked vets, helpers, police, firefighters and all those who have been in contact to offer their support.

“We will never get back what we lost. Our whole life has been broken to pieces. At the same time we are so grateful for the support,” said the statement.

The Linsenhoff family, who are based close by, have offered the Rothenbergers use of their yard and facilities.

“Ann Kathrin called me in Lier as soon as she found out and offered us all kinds of help, like many others,” said the family statement.

The family have been to visit injured horses Luna, Cantata and Toni at the vets several times.

“Although the mares are still very critical, Toni is on the way to recovery,” added the family statement.

“It reassures us that our horses are in good hands with Dr Ing. Franzen.”

Continues below…

Five horses confirmed killed in Rothenberger fire

The family has thanked all those who came to their aid

Olympic gold dressage horse rescued from major blaze as others perish

A devastating fire ripped through the elite dressage yard, claiming the lives of horses and resulting in at least one

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Amid all the sadness, the family also welcomed a new arrival — a colt by Totilas, who was born to one of their mares (by Cendy).

“Many thanks to Dieter Kellermann and family who have been taking care of our broodmares for years,” added the family.

“Especially now in this difficult time, we thank that our mares with offspring can stay with them over the summer.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

You have got your outfit sorted, your travel arrangements and maybe a hotel booked for the Cheltenham Festival — kicking off tomorrow (12 March) — but there is just one dilemma left... which horses should you be putting your hard-earned cash on?

Well, don’t panic because help is at hand courtesy of H&H’s racing correspondents, Marcus Armytage and Tom Peacock, who have done their homework for you...

Marcus Armytage’s Festival picks:

Glen Forsa (Arkle Chase)

Best Mate was favourite for this race when the meeting fell to foot and mouth, and Gold Cup winner Sizing John was second in it.

Glen Forsa looks a Gold Cup horse in the making and, though he has won over three, two-and-a-half and two miles this season, he could certainly win a below-average Arkle.

Tiger Roll (Glenfarclas Cross-Country Chase)

I’m not sure many people have twigged that Tiger Roll could yet be one of the greatest chasers of all time.

He has won three different Festival races already, he may win a second Grand National in April and should win a second Cross-Country Chase.

Sir Erec (JCB Triumph Hurdle)

Interesting that he is a full (entire) horse, because his connections thought there wasn’t enough time to geld him between his last run on the Flat (just behind Stradivarius at Ascot) and his first run over jumps at Leopardstown in December.

You will not see many better looking horses at this year’s Festival.

Elixir De Nutz (Supreme Novices’ Hurdle)

Unbeaten in three starts, his form now looks outstanding but does not seem to have the fan-base of Al Dancer or Angel’s Breath so good value at 8/1.

Tom Peacock’s Festival picks:

Coeur Sublime (Fred Winter Hurdle)

Progressive earlier in the season and was right in the thick of it before falling at the last in a Grade Two over Christmas. Trainer Gordon Elliott is a master in this sort of race.

Whatswrongwithyou (Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Challenge Cup)

A lightly-raced hurdler, who is really starting to get his act together over fences in recent weeks. He fits the bill in a race dear to trainer Nicky Henderson’s heart.

Don’t miss our Cheltenham Festival preview in 7 March issue, and read our full report from the big meeting in Horse & Hound magazine, on sale Thursday, 21 March.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Two dog owners in France have been ordered to pay €815,000 (£743,000) in compensation and costs after they were held responsible for a serious riding accident — despite the fact their pets did not come within 10m of a horse.

One rider — referred to only as Audrey E — suffered brain damage in a fall while out hacking with a friend.

The French court of appeal ruling described how two dogs suddenly ran out in front of the horses, causing one of them to spook.

The dogs’ owners took the case to appeal, arguing they would only have been responsible if they had an active role in the accident. They also said that the dogs had not gone near the horses or behaved in an unusual or aggressive way.

The claimant’s counsel countered that the actions of the dogs had been sufficient to cause one of the horses to panic and bolt — an argument supported by the court, which said the experienced rider would not have fallen had the dogs not run out in front of the horses.

The “big dogs” were running free off-lead and had appeared in front of the riders without warning — leading the court to conclude that there was a “casual link” between the dogs’ behaviour and the accident.

“Dog owners must make sure that their dogs do not scare animals or people encountered on a public path,” the ruling said.

The compensation and costs are expected to be met by the dog owners’ insurance policies, under their responsabilité civile cover.

Hannah Bradley, solicitor at The Equine Law Firm, said the French court had set an “extreme precedent” and a similar decision was unlikely in the UK.

“French legislation regarding dog ownership has been, in recent years, robustly amended as a result of increased political pressure following a series of fatal dog attacks and apparently so as to encourage the requirement for careful policing of dog ownership,” she explained.

“French legislation categorises dogs by breed, and imposes certain requirements on owners in accordance with the category. Owners also have an obligation not to allow their dogs to stray more than 100m from their property.”

Ms Bradley said that in the UK, injury and damage caused by dogs is regulated by the Animals Act 1971 and that because dogs are categorised as “non-dangerous species”, owners would only be liable for damage in specific circumstances. Claimants would need to show that:

– The damage suffered was of a kind likely to be caused unless the dogs were restrained, or was likely to be severe if caused by the dogs

– The likelihood of the damage is due to the characteristics of the dogs which are not normally found in dogs, or not normally found except in particular times or particular circumstances

– The characteristics were known to the keepers of the dogs.

Continues below…

‘My hat saved me’: rider trampled in dog attack

The hat was ‘totally smashed’ as it did its job of protecting the rider from a kick to the head

Filly missing ear after suspected dog attack makes ‘marvellous’ recovery

‘It was only later we discovered she had lost the bottom of her tongue which was why she couldn’t feed’

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“The exact circumstances of how the dogs were acting is not clear, but it is possible that if the dogs were simply running across the road, or even barking when the incident happened, the owners of the dogs would be able to argue that the behaviour demonstrated was normal for their species, and successfully defend the claim if it occurred in the UK,” Ms Bradley said.

She noted that biting does not fall under behaviour UK courts considered “normal” for a dog.

“Keepers of animals will usually be able to protect their position by securing a policy of insurance with a reputable insurer. However, cases which seemingly widen the scope of potential liability for accidents (which will be closely followed by insurers) are likely to increase the premiums which animals owners are required to pay,” she added.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Horses competing under FEI rules are no longer allowed to have their legs clipped while on site at a competition.

The change is an update to the FEI’s policy to help combat “hypersensitive” or “hyposensitive” areas of the body of equine athletes.

The rule change came into effect on 1 January and applies to all FEI disciplines. It comes under Article 1004, prohibited methods, of the FEI veterinary regulations 2019.

The rule states that horses are not permitted to compete in FEI events “if the hair on their limbs has been clipped/and or shaven at any point during their presence at an FEI event site”.

An FEI spokesman told H&H the rule has been updated to stop the practice of shaving and clipping legs to make them hypersensitive or hyposensitive.

“According to FEI regulations horses with altered sensitivity are not eligible to compete, ie horses are not eligible to compete when a limb, or part of a limb, is hyposensitive or hypersensitive,” said the spokesman.

Continued below…

New recommendations to improve dressage judging

The FEI’s dressage judging working group has proposed 19 recommendations for improvements to the current judging system

Coloured former carriage-driving horse secures World Cup showjumping final spot

‘Ryumi wasn’t overly impressed when he tried him at first because he had such an economical jump’

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The spokesman added that shaving or clipping legs shortly before a jumping competition is considered a “method that in itself may increase the sensitivity of the horse” and that it could also be a “preparation for the application of substances that are intended to cause hypersensitivity”.

The rules also states that if clipping or shaving is required for veterinary purposes at an event, prior permission must be granted by the veterinary commission or veterinary delegate to the permitted treating veterinarian before any investigation or treatment takes place.

Clipping of legs that takes place before a horse arrives on site for an FEI competition is still acceptable.

Don’t miss part two of H&H’s essential Show Guide out now. Check out our feature on how to survive show day, plus we visit Florida-based showjumper Amanda Derbyshire. In our Cheltenham review we meeting Emma Lavelle’s big hope, Paisley Park and we chat to top jockey Daryl Jacob. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A farm in the foothills of Dartmoor has come on the market and it incorporates one of the area’s most iconic visitor attractions; The Miniature Pony Centre.

Wormhill Farm is situated in the eastern foothills of Dartmoor, an area designated a National Park.

There are good communications links to Devon with the M5 motorway easily accessible at Exeter. For shopping, there are the villages of Moretonhampstead and Chagford nearby and provide both Newton Abbot and Torbay are about 15 miles away.

Equestrian centres within easy reach include: Grange EC (23 miles), Cheston Farm EC (21 miles), Dittiscombe (28 miles) and Upton Pyne (20 miles). Head East and you can be at the well-known Bicton Arena (36 miles).

There are cross-country facilities available on site at Collacott Holiday Cottages (30 miles), which is a one hour drive south.

Of course, the area is synonymous with great hacking and the property is surrounded by open moorland.

Redpost Equestrian (20 miles) is known for hosting a wide range of affiliated and non-affiliated competitions and sign up to either BSPS 13A or 13B for a host of local showing fixtures in the surrounding areas.

You can get involved with all the racing action at Newton Abbot Racecourse (15 miles), and head out hunting with either the Devon and Somerset Staghounds or the Mid-Devon Hunt.

Offered for sale by Savills, this one is on the market at a tidy £1.695m. Sadly, the pint-sized ponies are not included, but you will have a set up suitable for keeping your own!

Welcome to pony paradise…

This farmstead is set in about 18 acres of land and features a range outbuildings that have been developed into a Miniature Pony Centre.

The pony centre is completely separate from the private house. Surrounded by gently sloping grounds, there are also far reaching views over the surrounding countryside.

The modern barns are currently set up to include a children’s play area, stock yard and stabling. The outbuildings could be reused for your own horses or agriculture enterprise, subject to planning permission.

A cafe, a restaurant and a shop also form part of the centre. There is also a two bedroom staff flat and office facilities.

The pretty farmhouse, which is not Listed, has its own private gardens and independent access to the visitor attraction. In recent years, the home has been modernised to create a family home, with accommodation over two floors.

At the heart of the four bedroom home is this kitchen, complete with AGA .

Both the sitting room and kitchen open through into the conservatory. On the first floor, there are four double bedrooms, one of which is en suite.

Could you make miniature ponies your future business?

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A snapped stirrup or rein is the stuff of nightmares — check out these instances when it happened to some of the best in the business

1. Mark Todd at Badminton

The New Zealand legend was flying round Badminton with Bertie Blunt back in 1995 when his left stirrup broke as he jumped into the Vicarage Pond. He suffered through the agony of completing the rest of the course, hitching his leg up to relieve the pressure between fences, but the next morning the horse had some bruising to his foot and had to be withdrawn from the final horse inspection. Poetic justice was served when the pair won the event the next year.

2. Henrik Von Eckermann in Paris

The Swedish showjumper was jumping a massive oxer in the CSI5* grand prix Hermès in Paris in 2017 when his right stirrup gave way. He made a valiant attempt to stay in the saddle, but was unable to do so. Luckily neither horse nor rider was injured.

3. Sam Griffiths at Burghley

Lying in eighth place after dressage at Burghley in 2016, the Aussie eventer was on track for a good placing with Happy Times when his left stirrup iron broke between fences three and four — the bolts holding the tread of the stirrup iron in place sheared off, leaving it dangling from the leather with nowhere for him to put his foot. Sam continued on course, clear all the way, until the Cottesmore Leap (fences 12/13), when he pulled up as the flapping stirrup was beginning to unsettle Happy Times.

4. Christian Landolt at Bicton Arena

Christian was leading after the dressage in the CIC2* at Bicton in 2017 with Toblerone NZPH when his stirrup snapped at fence two of the showjumping.

“Luckily I did not fall off and managed to jump a few more fences before the pain of a pulled adductor muscle was too painful, so I had to retire,” he told H&H.

“All I can say is that luckily I was not going across country at the time.”

5. Harrie Smolders in Ghent

The Dutch rider was just starting his jump-off in the CSI2* grand prix at Flanders Horse Expo in Belgium in February 2017 when his left stirrup snapped on landing at the first fence. Undeterred, Harrie continued round the course with Emerald NOP, with barely a break in his balance, and went on to win the class.

6. Gregory Wathelet in Paris

At the Global Champions Tour in 2014, the Belgian rider was contesting the Prix du Qatar on Conrad De Hus when the horse’s bridle came off over his ears as he jumped a large oxer near the end of the course. The ear covers momentarily obscured the horse’s vision, but the bridle then dropped down and flapped around while the horse kept hold of the bit in his mouth. The pair managed to jump three more fences, completing a clear round, before the horse spat the bit out after the finish flags.

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7. Yago Alvarez del Castillo in Colorado

The rider was representing Mexico North in the second round of a junior showjumping competition, when his left rein popped off his ride Coloredo 2’s bit as he jumped through a one-stride combination. He was forced to retire, but the team still captured the gold medal, with the rider’s score from round one among the counting efforts.

8. Ginny Howe at Osberton Horse Trials

Eventer Ginny Howe survived a hairy moment when her girth snapped over a fence at Osberton International Horse Trials. Ginny was riding her sister Rachael Sheppard’s horse Echo P in the CCI2* in 2017.

“Looking at the video I think it happened two strides out [from fence six],” Ginny told H&H. “I was on a good stride, but he added another one.”

She added she gave Echo P a couple of smacks after the fence as she thought he needed “waking up”, not realising that her girth had given way.

She continued galloping round the corner and noticed what had happened about four strides out from the combination at fence seven, at which point she pulled up and retired.

9. Ludwig Svennerstal at Blair Castle Horse Trials

Ludwig was riding El Kazir SP in the Event Rider Masters class at Blair Castle Horse Trials, when the pair had a misunderstanding about the take-off point for the yellow upright at fence 10. The grey chipped in an extra stride and then blundered through the fence, throwing Ludwig up his neck. It looked momentarily like the rider would fall off, but he managed to right himself — only to find that somehow, the horse’s bridle and ear covers had slipped over his ears. The ear covers fell to the floor but the bridle was left dangling from the horse’s nose by the noseband, which was still done up. Unwilling to give up, Ludwig managed to lean forward and grab the bridle with his left hand and then use both hands to replace it in position while El Kazir SP trotted around. He then continued his round.

“I wanted to carry on — he’s a new horse for me and I felt he should have taken off [on the first stride], but I’m not used to him and he’s not used to me,” said Ludwig. “He’s a bit spooky and not that secure in the ring, so he needed not to finish on that note. He’s a nice horse, he just needs more confidence in the ring.”

Sadly in the course of the operation, Ludwig racked up 31 time-faults, as well as 12 jumping faults.

10. Kirsty Short’s rein snapping at Lincoln Horse Trials

Event rider Kirsty Short was competing Cossan Lad in an intermediate section at Lincoln when her rein snapped in the showjumping phase.

In her H&H blog, Kirsty explained: “A tack malfunction at the sixth fence saw my rein actually snap at the rubber part. This was a first for me and such a shame as Bouncer was flying. I was absolutely gutted for him. He was actually really well behaved given the situation — he could have easily just popped out of the arena over the hedge. I took a check setting up for an upright and suddenly I was like “oh I have no rein attached”. I then leant down and grabbed the bit of rein hanging from the bit and managed to stop him. I did however contemplate for a second maybe I could loop the rein through the bit somehow and carry on. Thankfully my sensible side came over me and I retired.”

For all the latest equestrian news and reports, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday

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The British Piebald and Skewbald Association (BSPA) hosted the first winter championships of the 2019 showing season, where a myriad stunning champions were crowned during the day and under the evening performance spotlight. Held at The College Equestrian Centre, Keysoe, the show had several tickets to the Royal International Horse Show (RIHS) on offer as well as two coveted supreme titles up for grabs.

Check out these 15 combinations who turned heads the show:

(Don’t miss the full report in the 7 March issue of H&H magazine — out now)

1. Rockstone Raven

Rae Colosso was on top form with her stunning gelding, a Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) winner in 2017, to claim a ticket to the RIHS in the coloured ranks as well as the section title.

2. Silverwoods

The seven-year-old grey cob won the novices and the RIHS lightweight class en-route to the championship with Jessica Ely at the helm.

3. Domino Bad Boy

Owned by Andrew Smith, this impressive eight-year-old traditional stallion was crowned supreme in-hand champion in the evening performance.

4. Carrhouse Dark Silk

The RIHS hack championship went to Charlotte and Sophie Hall’s home-produced 2018 SEIB Search For A Star winner, who was bought by the sisters as a two-year-old.

5. Red Warrior

The seven-year-old traditional pony went through the card to net the supreme ridden accolade with Terri Guyett. The gelding is owned by Victoria Ward and is in his third season with Terri.

6. Blue Russian

The 133cm traditional colt was crowned reserve in-hand supreme for owner Phaedra Towler.

7. The Silent Master

Allister Hood rode the Bowie’s middleweight The Silent Master to clinch the RIHS hunter spoils.

8. Kaybrook Midnight Comet

Phil and Karyn Thomas’ Welsh Cob stallion picked up amateur and junior RIHS tickets as well as the overall mountain and moorland title, with Ellena Thomas in the saddle.

9. Haysden Lithium

The big-moving three-year-old landed the in-hand horse title for Jen Baldwin-Murphy.

10. Ellie Blue

Willow Tarrant and her own 20-year-old mare took the amateur/home-produced sash. This part-bred Connemara has been with Willow for 15 years.

11. Bowerdarrow Fred

Katie Jerram-Hunnable made a successful return to the show ring. She is pictured here riding the maxi cob Bowerdarrow Fred, who she rode into second place for owner Ruth Flack.

12. Hollyland Maystar

Ruby Watts and this eye-catching mare topped the junior ridden championship on their season debut.

13. So Sweet

15-year-old Megan Thompson rode the mare to top the RIHS 153cm plaited class as well as the ridden horse championship before taking reserve in the ridden supreme.

14. Lenhalls Legacy

Cassie Hartley booked her Hickstead tickets in both the small and amateur hunter classes on her delightful bay, who also competes in intermediate ranks.

15. A Masterpiece

The Jayne Ross-produced maxi booked an RIHS ticket for owner Kay Campbell. Jayne also topped the heavyweight cobs on Randalstown Columbo and the riding horse title on CSF Cummer Paradise.

For all the latest equestrian news and reports, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday

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The event horse Director General, ridden by Izzy Taylor and owned by Jennie Thorn, has been put down aged 12 after breaking a hindleg.

Izzy gained the ride on “Bernie” last season and the pair took eighth in the CIC3* (now CCI4*-S) at Belton and fifth at Tattersalls at the same level. Director General’s year culminated in third place in the CCI3* (now CCI4*-L) at Blair Castle in Scotland.

“He was a little tiger,” said Izzy. “He was only a little horse and as a combination we did a lot in a short space of time. He had a happy, cheerful way of life and was always wanting to go and do things, which was great and really showed cross-country.

“He was phenomenal cross-country and was one of those horses that loved it and I had a really good connection with — one of those horses with whom you get the feeling that you fit each other. He wasn’t everyone’s type — he was little, thoroughbred, but I really enjoyed riding him and he was a horse who always made me smile when I took him cross-country.

“He was very green, but always wanting to do it, I was always having to say ‘Hang on a minute, you’re not quite ready for that yet’.” 

Izzy was aiming Director General at Burghley this year, while planning to give him experience in the Event Rider Masters series and at other CCI4*-S (old CIC3* level) through the year.

Director General was a thoroughbred gelding who was bred in the USA, by Bernstein out of a mare called Champagne Royal (by Jeblar) and raced on the Flat in Britain in 2010 and 2011 before turning his hand to eventing.

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He was bought as a four-year-old and started his eventing career under Albertine Blanchard, before joining Dannie Morgan in 2013. Director General scored his first win in 2014 when he took the CIC* (now CCI2*-S) at Hambleden with Dannie.

He was ridden by Neil Spratt in the latter half of 2014, plus for all of 2015 and 2016 and moved up to CCI2* (now CCI3*-L) level, achieving plenty of placings and a win in an intermediate section at Withington in April 2016.

Director General spent the 2017 season with Amelia Walker, finishing eighth in the CCI2* (now CCI3*-L) at Hartpury and 11th in his first advanced, at Little Downham in October, with a double jumping clear.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

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Rising United States showjumping star Eve Jobs, daughter of former Apple CEO Steve Jobs, was crowned leading lady rider at the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) in Wellington, Florida, last week after claiming her best ever result in an international competition.

The 20-year-old finished runner-up to Samuel Parot in Sunday’s $209,000 CSIO4* grand prix riding the 14-year-old mare Venue D’Fees Des Hazalles.

“I’ve actually never been in the top three in a four-star grand prix and this is the best finish I’ve had,” said Eve. “It’s really exciting for me and my whole team. My horses were jumping exceptionally well this week and I felt really confident coming into today. The leading lady rider award is such an honor, especially during CSIO week. There are so many talented lady riders, so to be recognised is a really big honour.”

Eve joined a dazzling roll of honour of leading lady riders during this year’s 12-week WEF including Jessica Springsteen, Beezie Madden, Tiffany Foster, Lauren Hough and Margie Engle. She was presented with a bottle of champagne, a bouquet of flowers and a gift certificate for a shopping spree.

From 43 starters in the grand prix, only Samuel and Eve jumped clear in round one to jump-off against each other. Eve had the final oxer down to finish with four faults plus three time-faults, before Samuel and Atlantis hit an early rail but came home faster.

“Samuel is always extremely fast,” said Eve, whose family was watching her compete “for the first time in a while”.

“You can always count on him to try his hardest and go as fast as he can. So I knew there was almost no way I was going to beat him on foot speed, so I was trying to leave all the jumps up. Unfortunately, I had the last rail. I pushed a little bit too hard. But, as always, he was very fast and very deserving of this win. I’m lucky to be in this company.”

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Eve’s ride Venue D’Fees (President x Alcatraz) came from Belgium nearly two years ago.

“She’s a phenomenal animal,” said Eve. “She’s so sweet and she tries. She really fights for you. She really has helped me in my career, especially being a young rider with not that much experience — not like these guys who are always wonderful! I make a lot of mistakes and she’s very forgiving. She’s taught me an immense amount about the top level of the sport. I’m really lucky to have her.”

Stay up to date with the latest showjumping reports in Horse & Hound every Thursday and don’t miss our Show Guide special issues on sale Thursday 28 February and Thursday 7 March

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Flying horses around the world requires impressive levels of organisation. Horse & Hound watches the operation swing into action at Heathrow, with horse transport company IRT ahead of a flight to Australia

A busy schedule

Around 5,000 horses fly globally each year with horse transport company IRT — every hour of every day, they have a horse in the air.

Quarantine

There has to be 14 days of quarantine either side of flying horses to Australia, but IRT does three weeks to allow for the testing. “The level of isolation is extremely detailed — the showering protocol includes washing your hair and brushing your nails,” says IRT’s European managing director Jim Paltridge.

The stalls

The stalls take up to three horses (it costs roughly £14,350 per horse to fly to Australia, including quarantine, vet and transfers fees), but clients can pay 35% more for “business class” (two horses per stall) or “first class” (single horse, 70% more), for instance for stallions or racehorses running in the Melbourne Cup.

Feeding

Each horse has two haynets — small-gauge to keep them grazing throughout — and will lose five to 15kg during the flight, but they’ll put this back on within five days.

The vet

“The IRT subcontracts a vet for the flight. This isn’t law, but once you go over 12 hours’ flying, it’s dangerous territory for shipping fever,” explains Jim. “Having a vet on board is the best way to care for them. Top-class travelling grooms are so important; they can recognise when a horse is off-colour like a mother with her child. But the vet is there for things like administering fluids if the horses aren’t drinking after eight hours.”

Loading up

Transferring the horses from lorry to stall is a slick procedure. There is a “load plan”, denoting where every horse will “sit”. The horses have been “buddied up” during quarantine, so they are used to their fellow passengers.

The lorries park alongside the stall, and the handlers pull down the ramp directly into the stall. The horses are led in chifneys and most walk straight in.

The stalls are then transferred to a scissor-lift high-loader, cranked up into the air and deposited through a huge opening into the plane.

As each stall comes into the aeroplane, the grooms open the flaps at either end to allow the air in, and check the name stickers on the quarters. It heats up quickly in the aircraft and the air is soon thick with the familiar horsey smells of manure and haylage.

The gloom inside seems to steady the horses — there’s no neighing or clattering, and the grooms’ calmness seems to rub off.

“The ideal scenario is not to disturb the horses too much, just for the four-hourly drink checks,” says Jim. “It’s like a matron on a ward at night. You want a relaxed environment and to leave the horses alone.”

Travelling gear

As I’m shivering, I notice that all the horses are clipped out and travel without rugs — however, with the stalls flaps buttoned down, they are toasty warm. They are clipped in the UK, because, if they emerge into the 40°C heat of Singapore and Melbourne with thick, sweaty coats, clipping is impossible, and overheating is enormously stressful. The horses travel with no hind shoes, unless they have brittle hooves.

Dealing with problems

Besides loading, the staff also keep tabs on any trouble in the stalls. Early on, a warmblood gelding starts banging, and vet Katie Wilcox is quickly on hand to give it a dose of sedative.

“It lasts for two to three hours, but they usually only need one dose,” says Jim. “We don’t use much sedative [three during this loading procedure], but it puts them in dreamland, so they can relax and not upset the others.”

Jim, who is also busy intervening at the first sound of a kick, says horses falling over or rearing is rare: “A good groom makes up for a lot of sedative. We have very good horsemen, who can calm the horses down. Some even sleep under the horses’ heads.”

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Shipping fever

The main concern is shipping fever — statistically, one in six will suffer from this form of pneumonia on a long-haul flight. The infection, which starts in the windpipe and spreads to the lungs due to the horse not being able to do postural drainage with his head up, is exacerbated by the bacteria in the faeces in a confined space, the warmth of the stall and limited airflow.

“It’s rare for a horse to die of it now, and quite rare for it to develop into serious illness, unless it is not detected and treated with antibiotics and fluids,” explains Jim. “We give all the horses three doses of electrolytes during the 24-hour trip, which incentivises them to drink. If they keep drinking, they should stay healthy. The grooms encourage the horses to put their heads down, by feeding them on the floor.

“We have intravenous fluids on board, and we do blood pictures on any horse that’s not bright and straight into its food and drink when it arrives, which warn us if the fever has taken hold before the temperature rises.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

There is only one way to possibly describe this country haven — exceptional. Comprising a detached home with some dreamy equestrian facilities, Sandicroft House is located in the heart of Cheshire.

The property lies within the picturesque village of Church Minshull, a stone’s throw from Crewe, which offers rail links to London and Manchester.

The city centre of Chester lies just 19 miles away, while Manchester Airport can be found within 26 miles and the M6 is 13 miles.

Equestrian centres in the local area include: North Cheshire (32 miles) and Bold Heath (25 miles). The well-known Southview EC is a mere seven minute drive from the front door (3.5 miles) and Reaseheath EC is 10 minutes (5.5 miles).

Nantwich Saddlery is situated 12 miles away.

Use the fantastic cross-country facilities at Kelsall Hill (10 miles) or Smallwood Livery Centre (14 miles). Somerford Park Farm is also just 13 miles away.

If you want to hunt, there are the Cheshire or the Cheshire Forest hunts and if showing is your sport, sign up to BSPS Area 2A for a range of local fixtures. The Royal Cheshire Showground is a 25 minute trip (13.5 miles).

There are several riding clubs in the area including the Delamere Forest Riding Club and the South, East and North Cheshire riding clubs.

Offered for sale by Fine & Country (also marketed by Wright Marshall Estate Agents), this heavenly home is on the market for £1.85m.

Could you imagine setting up base here?

Set in grounds of 10.41 acres, the property boasts some stunning equestrian facilities, including 16 stables.

Ensure your training is on point all year round with this Olympic size manége with Charles Britton surface.

There is also a sand paddock and a horse walker so your horses will never be short of exercise.

The land is currently divided into five separate paddocks. Of the total acreage, 3.4 acres is woodland.

The house is something of a country dream. It has six bedrooms and five bathrooms, and the accommodation is set over two levels.

The kitchen/garden room is an unquestionable highlight of the home…

At first floor level there are the six modern bedrooms, each as glorious as each other.

The present owner has created a gym in one of the outbuildings, the contents of which is included in the sale price.

When can we move in?!

For all the latest equestrian news and reports, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A horse found in agony due to a 25cm bramble lodged in his mouth has started a new life at Redwings Horse Sanctuary.

Boris, a 16-year-old cob, was found “in a terrible state” in an Essex field and was unable to eat due to the thorny stick wedged in the soft tissue under his tongue.

He was assessed as having a body condition score of 0 to 0.5 out of five and was taken to House and Jackson Veterinary Clinic where the stick was removed and his mouth cleaned.

No owner has come forward to claim Boris, so Redwings has offered him a “safe forever home” at its Norfolk base.

Redwings’ senior field officer Jo Franklin said Boris was in “absolute agony” when she first saw him.

“He wouldn’t open his mouth at first, even to take a slice of apple, but then he allowed me just enough of a glimpse to see the stick — it was like he was desperately asking for help,” she said.

“I usually try not to get upset, but to see a horse in so much pain was heartbreaking.

“The fact that this type of awful situation can so easily be prevented by regularly checking your horse makes it that much worse.

“At the end of that day, I left the veterinary clinic with Boris in a warm stable, chewing away on some soft feed, and I thought, ‘this is why I do what I do’.”

She added he will “never lack for love and care for the rest of his life”.

An RSPCA spokesman added the charity is “delighted” to hear Boris is on the mend.

“When our officer and Redwings found him he was in a terrible state and we are pleased that he is now on the road to recovery and has found a forever home with Redwings,” he said.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday

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A four-star event horse with a “heart of a lion” has been put down aged 16.

Kiwi Olympic rider Caroline Powell paid tribute to Onwards and Upwards who was put down on Sunday (24 February). The chestnut gelding, owned by Cameron and Mary Crawford, had been suffering with “soundness issues”.

Caroline, who started riding “Flash” when he was seven, said the gelding’s bravery, talent and athleticism were “truly unique”.

“He was such a courageous horse, he always wanted to do stuff – he wanted to compete.” Caroline told H&H.

“A few issues had crept up on him and we thought ‘we’ve got to do this – it’s time’,” she said. “Cameron and Mary have been very loyal owners of mine for a long time and have been very supportive.”

Flash and Caroline achieved a number of top-10 placings, including Burghley in 2016 where they finished eighth.

Caroline said Flash “showed how talented he was” as a young horse.

“He was such a jumper. Two showjumping rounds really stick out; one at Pau as a nine-year-old, and Le Lion as a seven-year-old. He jumped the height of the wings, he was stunning,” she said.

“To jump a small fence at home he was nothing – it was pretty hit and miss if he was going to do it but to do a big jump was just magic.”

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Caroline added the gelding was “very high maintenance” but the “most beautiful horse”.

“He was very insecure. You couldn’t travel him on his own and he would really struggle to do things on his own – he had a few issues, but he was the softest horse when you got him settled down,” she said.

“He had a heart of a lion, he was a competitor – he certainly wasn’t a happy hacker. He was a lovely horse once you got into the crux of him.”

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More details have been released about the devastating fire that tore through the Rothenberger family’s elite dressage yard yesterday (28 February), with confirmation that five horses died in the blaze.

Gestut Erlenhof, in Germany, is home to home to international riders Sven and Gonnelien Rothenberger and their children Sanneke, 26, Sönke, 24, and Semmieke, 19. It was Sanneke who was first alerted to the fire around 5.45am when she was woken by the family’s dog, Nera, barking.

“That was our luck in misfortune — if Sanneke had not been there just then, everything would have much worse for our horses,” said the family. “Within a few moments the fire had already developed so far that a heat wall hit them, and any help came too late for the horses that stood in the front of the stable.”

Most of the approximately 35 horses on the yard were released to safety, but the Rothenbergers have confirmed that five could not be saved: the promising five-year-old mare Fayola; 24-year-old Paso Doble, Sanneke’s former young riders ride; 27-year-old Kid Gentleman, Sonke’s showjumping schoolmaster; a Swedish-owned dressage pony and the six-year-old licensed stallion Zum Glück. Two more mares, Luna and Kantate, are in a critical condition after suffering burns and St Anton was also injured, though less seriously.

Sönke’s World, Olympic and European gold medallist Cosmo was saved.

“As wild as [Cosmo] can behave, if he feels like it, he followed Sönke yesterday — without a halter — from the burning stable, like a lamb. He put his nose between Sönke’s shoulder blades as if to give him breath, and followed him up the hill,” reported the Rothenbergers, who went on to thank all those who had assisted.

Both Sanneke and Sönke suffered minor burns in the blaze, and Sanneke was treated in hospital for smoke inhalation. Sven and Gonnelien were in Belgium at the time the fire started, with Semmieke, who was competing at the Lier CDI.

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The damage done by the fire is huge — the family’s indoor arena has been destroyed, along with a stable block.

“The fire led to the complete destruction of the stables and a significant damage to an adjacent riding arena,” said a police statement. “In the evacuation of the horses, three of which were injured and had to be taken care of by veterinarians, two stud employees or relatives were injured and had to be hospitalised with suspected smoke poisoning. As part of the extinguishing work, which was still ongoing at the time of the report, two of the approximately 250 firefighters in action were injured and had to be medically assisted.”

The cause of the fire is not yet known.

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One of Britain’s most successful international dressage horses is set to make a long-awaited comeback next month, at the Keysoe CDI3* (15-17 March).

Carl Hester has revealed that he plans to compete his Olympic, World and European silver medallist Nip Tuck at the show, the first British international of 2019.

The 15-year-old Don Ruto x Animo gelding, known as Barney, has not competed since finishing in individual fourth place at the 2017 European Championships in Gothenburg, but Carl has reported that he is on top form.

“He is feeling really good — hot as hell — and I’m really looking forward to competing him,” Carl told H&H.

“He hasn’t been out since Gothenburg as we gave him a holiday last year — his owner, Jane de la Mare, has been riding him and having fun with him.”

The tall bay gelding, who is famously spooky, has been with Carl since he was a yearling and the pair know each other inside out. They have been lynchpins of the British team in recent years, helping claim medals at the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Caen, the 2015 European Championships in Aachen and the 2016 Rio Olympics. They also finished third at the World Cup final in Omaha in 2017, and have racked up an impressive total of 17 international victories.

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Carl says he aims to campaign Barney on the World Cup circuit next winter, but has not ruled him out of his plans for this year’s Europeans in Rotterdam, although his 2018 WEG partner Hawtins Delicato (Del) will remain his top ride.

“From a team point of view, Del is the stronger horse for this year, but Barney will be here and I can potentially aim him for the team as a back-up if I need him,” he explained. “But I really just want to have some fun on him this year, and aim him for the World Cup final in Las Vegas in 2020.”

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Carl Hester achieved one of his 2019 resolutions when he debuted the 10-year-old Ekitof at grand prix recently. The Zucchero son now joins Carl’s top level string of horses, scoring 71.4% at Hartpury’s show on 20 January.

The gelding, known at home as Blackie and described by Carl as a “black roan” due to the white flecks in his coat, became advanced medium gold national champion with Charlotte Dujardin in 2017, but has been very lightly competed as he is particularly quirky — his first grand prix was just his seventh British Dressage test to date, having done just one prix st georges test since his national title.

“He’s basically gone from advanced medium straight to grand prix and he was excited to be out,” said Carl of the horse’s first competitive outing in over a year.

“He’s not a horse for the faint-hearted – you definitely have to have a sense of humour to ride him,” Carl told H&H. “When he went to the nationals with Charlotte it took three of us to get him through the archway into the arena — and then he went and won the class!

“We always felt that once Blackie was fully trained he would become more obedient. He’s just taken a long time to learn it all — at first he felt untalented for everything, then he learnt to do it and now he looks really talented. He can be incredibly lazy — after Charlotte rode him at the nationals she said ‘never again’ — but there’s a lot of things I really enjoy about him; he is so soft in the contact,” added Carl, who owns Blackie along with Isabel Barber — “who luckily also has a great sense of humour” — and has had him on the yard since he was a two-year-old.

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“He has such a funny personality — he doesn’t really like other horses, but he loves people and he eats tuna sandwiches and bananas. He’s a little like Liebling [Carl’s 2009 European medallist] in terms of his character.

“We have no expectations of him — Blackie’s definitely our pet and it’s all fun. We’ll do some national grands prix with him this year and then possibly step him up to some internationals.”

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A cyclist has been convicted after a horse and rider were hit during a triathlon.

Iain Plumb, 32, of Chaucer Road, Crowthorne, Berkshire, was found guilty of one count of riding a cycle on a road without reasonable consideration for others following the incident which happened during the Windsor triathlon on 17 June 2018.

The rider, Jennifer Katherine, shared hat camera footage of a number of cyclists undertaking her which has receieved more than five million views. She said one of the cyslists hit her and her horse, causing him to jump sideways and pull off a hind shoe, but the cyclist did not stop.

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Plumb was voluntarily interviewed on 10 October and charged with the offence on 20 October. He appeared at Wycombe Magistrates’ Court on 21 January and was ordered to pay total costs of £926.

Plumb received a lifetime ban by event organiser, Human Race, which pledged to improve signage, communication with the equestrian community and education of its competitors as a result of an internal review.

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PC Peter Dorling of Thames Valley Police said: “Plumb was competing in the event, when he attempted to undertake a horse and horse rider in Oakley Green Road, Dedworth.

“While attempting this maneouvre, Plumb cycled into the horse, causing it to [spook], and thus putting other road users in danger. The rider, a 29-year-old woman, sustained bruising to her ankle, and thankfully the horse was not injured.

“Plumb’s cycling fell well below what is expected for a cyclist and I am glad he has been convicted for his offence.

“I would like to thank the victim, who has been helpful in assisting with the investigation.”

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Mass deaths of wild horses have been reported in Central Australia following a record 12-day run of temperatures in excess of 42 C.

The Ltyentye Arpurte Aboriginal ranger team discovered the bodies of 40 brumbies at a dry waterhole near the remote town of Santa Teresa last week.

A further 50 “dying” horses had to be destroyed by the Central Land Council (CLC) — which represents the Aboriginal people of Central Australia — at the Apwerte Uyerreme site.

“Horses and other feral animals are dying of thirst and hunger because many reliable water sources, such as Apwerte Uyerreme, have dried up in the current heatwave and areas overpopulated by feral animals suffer erosion and vegetation loss,” a CLC statement said, adding that the horse carcasses also posed a risk of fouling water holes that other wildlife depended on.

The CLC said it is “very concerned” about the threat to animals posed by the extreme weather and that it is also consulting with another remote community over an emergency cull of around 120 horses, donkeys and camels that were in “too poor a condition” for mustering or transport.

CLC director David Ross said it is able to go ahead with aerial culls “without consent if necessary” in emergency situations.

“With climate change well and truly upon us, we expect these emergencies to occur with increasing frequency and nobody is truly prepared and resourced to respond to them,” he said.

Mr Ross added that the CLC was helping traditional owners to develop management plans and that the Northern Territories government had committed funds to help over the next two years.

The plans include ways to keep down the numbers of horses, donkeys and camels and “allow traditional owners to muster and sell healthy animals where they can find a market”.

The CLC added that a meeting has been scheduled for next week to discuss how the carcasses in Ltyentye Arpurte could be removed and further mass deaths avoided.

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The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has reported that the current heatwave is unprecedented in terms of its scale and duration.

January is likely to be the warmest month on record for mean maximum and minimum temperatures in Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territories.

The highest recorded temperature of this summer was at Marble Bar in Western Australia, where the mercury hit 49.3 C on 27 December.

The weather has also impacted the health of other wildlife, with ABC reporting that up to 2,500 camels had been culled in the Goldfields region as they gathered at water sources.

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A rider who was diagnosed with cervical cancer nine months after she had missed a smear test is urging other women to ensure they take up their appointments.

Frances Long had to have a radical hysterectomy in October and all traces of the disease were removed, but she hopes her experience will encourage others to ensure they take up screening appointments.

“There’s always something that seems more important, but when it comes to it, there’s nothing more important than this,” Fran told H&H.

“I had a tumour but didn’t realise until part of it came away. If I’d had my smear test when I was supposed to, it wouldn’t have got to that stage.”

Fran went to her GP, who sent her to A&E, where she was seen by a registrar and a consultant. She was sent home, but within 45 minutes, got a phone call telling her to return to the hospital, where she was given her diagnosis.

“It was quite horrific,” she said. “I had an MRI scan, which picked up a shadow on my bowel so there was concern it had spread. In the end, there wasn’t anything so they decided it was probably caused by the way I was lying, but for a while, that was terrifying.”

Fran’s surgery involved removing not only her reproductive organs but also surrounding tissues and some of her lymph nodes. As the healthy tissue showed no signs of cancer, it was decided she did not need further treatment, although she is having regular check-ups.

She was back on board her event horse Mama Mia III, on whom she also competes in dressage and showjumping, within five weeks, albeit just walking, and returned to competition in a British Dressage class at Keysoe last weekend (19 January).

“She really looked after me,” Hayley said. “She won the class, with over 72%. I wasn’t sure how it would go as I was so excited, I thought she might be, but she held it together for me.

“I think I was crying before I even went down the centre line.”

Hayley hopes to return to eventing by April, if she is strong enough.

But her other priority is to raise awareness of the importance of cervical screening, especially now during cervical cancer prevention week (21 to 29 January).

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“Just don’t put it off,” she said. “As riders, we’re such a strong group of people who have these horrific falls, then get back on and do the next class; we think we’re invincible and that nothing will happen to us.

“My horses are my absolute world. I spend hours researching the best feeds for them, if they do so much as look at me differently in the morning the vet is called, they see physio and chiropractors, have all the latest rugs and tack and are pampered beyond belief. They’d never be a day late to see the farrier or for their teeth to be rasped, for their yearly jabs or worming — I just wouldn’t dream of it. But I often think how riders/horse owners push their own health way down their list of priorities. I am definitely one of them.

“But nothing is more important than your life. This has made me really aware of that, and how easily it can be taken away.

“Whatever reason you’ve got for not going for your smear test; if it’s uncomfortable or you’re embarrassed, or you haven’t got time – the possible consequences of not going are so much worse than any reason you could have.”

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The United States’ lead endurance body’s stand against controversial “desert racing-style” endurance has backfired, leaving its riders with the prospect of no FEI rides on home soil.

Last week the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) voted to disaffiliate from US Equestrian (USEF) at the end of 2019. But within hours USEF announced it was suspending AERC immediately, initiating permanent termination proceedings.

USEF is setting up a task force to examine new ways of running its FEI ride calendar outside AERC. Like all the FEI’s 133 member national federations, USEF must guarantee the conduct and regulation of all its international shows and events.

AERC president Monica Chapman was not optimistic about the chances of finding replacement organisers – the US’s smaller, more regional groups could not afford to run stand-alone FEI rides.

She said: “AERC is happy to continue to co-sanction rides with FEI/USEF. We put the 1 December, 2019 end date [for affiliation] to ensure the rides already scheduled for the 2019 season would not be cancelled.”

AERC was founded in 1972 and has nearly 5,000 members. Most of AERC’s 200-plus national rides take place over scenic natural trails, while the traditional sport is battling for survival against the high-speed endurance promoted by the Middle East.

Seven FEI rides were listed for the US this season, the only opportunity for the country’s riders to qualify for 2020 FEI world championships without the expense of travelling abroad.

AERC has been speaking out about Middle Eastern endurance for the past five years, and has been frustrated that USEF did not support them publicly.

Last September, AERC asked USEF to withdraw funding for rides outside the US, and to present AERC’s concerns and online petition to the FEI. However, USEF first wanted to wait for the FEI Equine Community Integrity Unit report into the cancelled WEG ride, and now for the findings of the new FEI temporary committee, chaired by Britain’s Dr Sarah Coombs, which are due in April.

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AERC also disputes USEF’s right to enforce new conditions on AERC, and withheld its affiliation fee.

USEF rejected AERC’s transitional year proposal because it could not be “certain that AERC will comply with USEF’s affiliate requirements, including compliance with bylaws, rules, decisions of the Hearing Committee, and not impeding athletes’ ability to participate in international competitions.”

AERC had hoped for an agreeable separation with ongoing communication about horse welfare, drug testing and safe sport.

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Two riders who fell off their horses when they were chased by a loose dog have called for owners to keep their animals under control.

Lindsey Baldwin was hacking her 10-year-old gelding Darcy on a bridlepath near Chipperfield woods, Hertfordshire, on Monday (14 January), when the “German shepherd-type” dog approached and spooked her friend’s horse Oscar.

Lindsey told H&H: “We ride out on a regular basis together, our horses are the babysitters of the yard — nothing bothers them. We were 20 metres into the woods on the bridlepath and I was in front. Suddenly a black dog came from the right-hand side down a bank but there was no owner.

“The dog chased us. Oscar spun and bolted – my friend lost her stirrup and fell off. Darcy rushed forward and shot into canter when he realised Oscar had gone the other way and he veered off the path. The next thing I knew I hit a branch, heard a bang and blacked out.”

Lindsey said when she came round, she could see Darcy cantering away.

“I had come off backwards with the force, it really knocked the stuffing out of me. I sat up and checked myself and nothing felt broken but my hat probably saved my life,” she said. “When I looked round I saw the dog running off in the direction where we came from.

“My friend and I saw both horses cantering toward the road and we just thought ‘they’re gone’. When we got to the entrance of the bridle path we couldn’t see them.”

Lindsey phoned her husband, who was at the yard, and he went out to look for Darcy and Oscar.

“The horses were found five minutes from the yard, walking side by side down the road; they had travelled one and a half miles. They would have had to turn left at a junction on to a busy road – anything could have happened in that time,” said Lindsey.

Both horses were uninjured but Lindsey suffered bruising and mild concussion, and her friend suffered bruising.

Lindsey said she noticed a car in a lay-by at the woods which she thinks might have belonged to the dog owner.

“My husband and the yard owner drove to the woods and saw the car leaving. They could see a dog in the back but the windows were blacked out and when they asked the female driver if it was the same dog she acted very cagey.

“We can’t prove it was this woman but I reported the incident to the police who said they will take it seriously.”

Lindsey said she has had “flashbacks” since the incident.

“I’m trying not think about the what ifs. Darcy is a saint, he’s my dream horse and is usually not bothered by dogs but with his friend cantering off the flight instinct kicked in. Thank god it wasn’t my daughter on him, she rides him at home and is now frightened but I’ve told her it was a freak accident,” she said.

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Lindsey wants dog owners to be more aware of horses on bridlepaths.

“I don’t understand the mentality of some dog owners – they don’t think something will happen but it can, even with the best horse in the world. They need to have some common sense, get the recall sorted and if not, have it on a lead – for the sake of the dog and the horse, you don’t know what a horse will do,” said Lindsey.

A spokesman for Hertfordshire Constabulary confirmed the force is investigating. Anyone with information is asked to call 101, quoting ISR 491 of January 14.

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Show jumper William Whitaker has started his new job as a rider for Rushy Marsh Farm and will now be based in Germany and the US.

The 29-year-old has spent the past two-and-a-half years in Belgium working with Ludwig and Yasmine Criel but started his new role with Monica and Frank McCourt last week.

“I took a holiday with my family the first week of January and then came out here [to Germany] and I’m just getting to know the horses at the moment,” said William.

“We will then fly out to Florida next week. I’ve never done the Wellington circuit before, so I am looking forward to going out there to experience it.”

William’s new rides will include 10-year-old RMF Cadeau De Muze and 14-year-old RMF Echo, previously ridden by Ireland’s Denis Lynch.

“We have three horses here at the moment and a couple more in America — the plan is to use Wellington as a bit of a training ground and then see how these horses get into a programme,” he added.

William’s time at the Criels’ included championship appearances with their 14-year-old stallion Utamaro De Ecaussines. It was a partnership that had a fairytale ending when they landed the biggest win of William’s career in the Longines FEI World Cup at the London International Horse Show, Olympia last month.

“I was delighted with the way Uti jumped there — all my horses jumped well that week and to come away with that result was extra special,” William said.

The Criels’ horses have now been taken over by Belgian rider Niels Bruynseels.

“Uti was difficult to say goodbye to, he’s been a fantastic horse for me for the past two-and-a-half years and it wasn’t just him — it all the horses I had there,” William added. “It’s never easy when you change place, both for me and my groom Benoit, but you move on.”

William said the move to Rushy Marsh had not been something “he was looking for” but that the “opportunity came up”.

“I really enjoyed my time with Ludwig and Yasmine, they really took care of me, and this move is something I gave it a lot of thought to. I just felt it was a good opportunity to move forward over the next couple of years,” he explained.

William told H&H that representing Britain on championship teams will remain one of his “big goals” while working for his American employers.

“My aim to compete in the Olympics stays the same, and it’s something I will be talking about with the owners of the horses and the trainer here,” he said.

William’s opportunities this season already include a place on the Miami Celtics team in the Global Champions League, which was co-founded by his new employer.

“It means it will open the door to jump at Global Champions Tour shows as well,” he said.

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William’s arrangement with Rushy Marsh Farm is not exclusive and he will be available to ride horses for other owners. His youngest brother James will be continue to manage his rides Lammy Beach and William’s 2016 Hickstead Derby winner Glenavadra Brilliant from the family’s Harrogate base.

William’s wife Elisabeth and children Isabella and Oliver will also remain in the UK and he plans to visit during school holidays. He confirmed that they would be travelling out to Florida at half term when a trip to Disney World would be likely.

“The great thing about having kids is that it’s a good excuse!” he said

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A rider who was injured when she and her horse became stuck in a “dangerous” bridleway gate wants to raise awareness of the issue.

Natalie White was hacking her 16.3hh part-bred Knabstrupper mare Kinna on a bridleway at Turville Valley on 1 January when she had difficulty opening a gate.

Natalie told H&H: “At the top of a hill I noted the gate was weighted but I thought I could get through it. It had a chain connecting one end of the gate to the post and a massive hinge on the chain so it automatically pulled it shut.

“The gate opened towards me, and there was a fence on my right which created a channel. I didn’t realise how weighted it was and when I opened it I couldn’t throw it enough to open fully. Kinna got impatient and went to march through and it immediately slammed shut on us. Because it opened toward me, the more Kinna pushed to go forward the tighter it shut on us and the metal pin of the latch went into my foot,” said Natalie.

“It was incredibly painful, the pin was getting pushed deeper into my foot. All I could do was hope she took a step back; luckily she did and either Kinna or I kicked it out of the way long enough for us to get through.

“Gates have always been tricky with her, she’s so big I can’t get off unless there’s somewhere for me to get back on again, and I shouldn’t have to.”

Natalie had to ride 30 minutes back to the village, where she asked a passer-by to hold Kinna while she checked her.

“She had ripped her exercise blanket which I think protected her from any grazes. I had to take my boot off and figure out if my foot was damaged, I thought I’d broken it but it turned out to be seriously bruised,” said Natalie.

“I had Kinna checked over by the vet and she has pulled some muscles and her shoulders are a bit bruised where she knocked herself against the fence as she panicked.”

Natalie has reported the gate to the council.

“It’s very dangerous. I could have fallen off and been trampled, or the bolt could have impaled Kinna. I’m very lucky it was me who got hurt and not her, it would have been carnage if it had gone into her side and there was no one there to help,” said Natalie.

“I’ve had problems before with other gates and people tying pallets to them or putting electric fencing next to them so you can’t get through. You report one thing and something else crops up.”

Horse injured on ‘dangerous’ footpath gate

An owner is calling for others to be aware of the potential danger posed by a type of footpath gate

Dangers of self-closing gates to horses and riders highlighted

The British Horse Society has conducted a trial to look at the dangers of self-closing gates to horses and riders

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Natalie said there is a lack of knowledge among riders and landowners.

“People don’t know what the gates on bridleways should be like – I didn’t know until I read the British Horse Society guidance. A lot of people hack out and see a gate and think that’s normal, and landowners think because no one has complained there’s no problem. I think riders need to be aware of their rights when it comes to public rights of way,” she said.

“Gates don’t have to be expensive. I prefer a large cattle gate to a small one. Because I have a big horse she hates the little gates.”

A spokesman for Buckinghamshire County Council said: “We are aware of the defective gate and are taking appropriate action with the landowner concerned to restore public access as soon as possible. We have kept the resident who reported the issue informed about the council’s proposed action.”

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

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A woman who watched in terror as her horse was chased into the sea by a dog whose owner refused to call it off hopes will be able to identify the culprit.

Tracey Berryman took her niece, Milly Evans, to Exmouth beach with her 16.1hh British sport horse mare Spring on 7 January when a Hungarian Vizsla escaped from its owner and chased Spring causing Milly to fall off.

Tracey told H&H: “Milly has been riding Spring for around a year and takes lessons on her. She had just turned 17 the previous day and had always wanted to ride along the beach and it was the last day before she went back to school. Milly helps with Spring in all weathers so I took her as a reward.

“We walked to a deserted part of the beach where she had a couple of canters and we took some photos in the sea, then walked back to the trailer.”

Tracey said on their way back a tan-coloured dog “flew out of nowhere”.

“It was lunging at Spring’s back legs; she kept spinning round to try to face it. You could hear its jaws snapping but credit to Spring; she didn’t kick out,” she said.

“I shouted to the owner: ‘please call off your dog’ but he said ‘no, I won’t’.”

Milly fell off Spring during the incident.

“The dog took off after Spring – all I could think was her hitting someone, or going up on to the road. She galloped into the sea until the water was level with her back, I thought she was going to keep swimming out,” said Tracey.

“There were people on the beach trying to help and blowing whistles to try to call off the dog – it was hunting my horse, it was terrifying seeing it lunge up at her.”

Tracey said the dog eventually lost interest and ran off.

“People stayed with Milly who was still on the floor and winded and I ran to get Spring,” she said

“Someone confronted the man and asked how the rider was and he just shrugged and walked off. I could see him in the distance and he was beating his dogs.”

Spring was unharmed but Milly suffered bruising.

“My sister took her to hospital. She hasn’t broken anything but the doctors said she may have chipped a bone in her pelvis but there isn’t anything they can do for that apart from painkillers,” said Tracey. “I’m amazed Spring doesn’t have bite marks, she was so nimble evading the dog.

“Milly got back on Spring this Sunday (13 January), she’s a very brave and competent rider. She absolutely loved her time on the beach before that happened, the worst part for her was seeing a dog attacking the horse she loves.”

Tracey said she won’t go back to Exmouth beach.

“Milly could have broken something, or Spring could have kicked the dog. How would I feel if that had happened? All the man had to do was call his dog off and the worst thing is, he point-blank refused,” she said.

“I’ve had a lot of support from people since the incident and people have said they recognise the man. I hope he is identified, he needs to be made an example of.”

Teenager thrown from horse after owner refuses to call off out-of-control dog

Police are appealing for video footage after the rider was chased for 15 minutes

Rider attacked by dog and its owner in terrifying assault

‘The man was attacking me and I thought, the dog’s going to join in in a minute, and I’m going

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A spokesman for Devon & Cornwall Police said investigations are ongoing, and asked anyone with information or video footage to come forward.

Police are keen to retrieve any footage of the incident and to identify and talk to this man,” the spokesman said.

The man is described as white, aged between 60 and 65, wearing a green waxed jacket, corduroy trousers and a checked flat cap.

Anyone with information is asked to email 101@dc.police.uk or call 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 quoting CR/2334/19.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

World champion eventer Ros Canter is expecting a baby this summer – and hopes to be eventing again before the end of the 2019 season.

Ros told H&H she and partner Chris McAleese are delighted by the news.

The baby is due on 1 July, and although of course that rules out this year’s European Championships, Ros still hopes to be in contention for an Olympic place in 2020.

“I’m certainly aiming to do something this year,” she said. “I hope to be back on track for Tokyo, that’s the plan.”

Ros said she will not event before the baby is born, but she plans to ride at home, and take part in some dressage and showjumping “as long as I feel I want to”.

She has plans for all her horses, but her European and double World gold medal-winning ride Allstar B (Alby) is to stay with her throughout.

“He’ll have a quiet year; he’ll do some dressage, and maybe some [eventing] towards the end of the season,” she said. “Then hopefully he’ll come out ready for next season.”

Ros said that as the 14-year-old KWPN gelding has taken part in two championships in the past two years – winning a total of three gold medals – it will not hurt him to have a quieter season.

“I don’t think horses of his age forget,” she said. “He’s had two amazing years, and was competing at that level anyway so I don’t think it’s going to do him any harm to back off for one season. Hopefully it will give us a good chance to crack on next year.”

And asked when she might start looking for a handy Shetland, Ros laughed.

Continues below…

‘It gives me goose-bumps’: Zara Tindall aiming for another Olympics

The eventer spoke of her aim to get back on the British team

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‘A different kind of breeding programme’: top British rider expecting first child

The international grand prix dressage rider has revealed that she is pregnant with her first child

“I’ve got lots of nephews and nieces, so we’ll have to see if they’ve got any ponies by then,” she said.

Don’t miss the current edition of H&H magazine (10 January) for a special feature on training with Ros.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Feeding supplements to horses is negligent, the FEI has reiterated after two dressage horses failed dope tests, owing to the possibility of contamination or the fact ingredients lists may not be accurate.

US riders Kaitlin Blythe and Adrienne Lyle’s rides, Don Principe and Horizon respectively, both tested positive for banned substance ractopamine at a show in Wellington, Florida, in February 2017.

As stated in its report published last month the FEI Tribunal ruled that although the presence of banned substance ractopamine was caused by contamination of a supplement fed to both horses, and that neither rider bore “significant fault or negligence” for the positive results, the FEI stated it is “of the opinion that by using a supplement in the first place, the PR [person responsible; the rider] is already negligent”.

“One cannot claim that the PR is totally without fault, since she actually used a supplement on which they had carried out no research on,” it stated.

The tribunal heard both horses were fed a supplement called Soothing Pink, made by Cargill Inc which admitted responsibility and found by testing that the supplement the horses had been fed before the test date was contaminated by ractopamine, a drug that reduces fat content in animals reared for meat.

Cargill then withdrew the supplement from the market and has discontinued the use of appetin, an ingredient of Soothing Pink found to be the cause of the contamination.

The tribunal report states that both riders and the horses’ owners “took responsible measures to ensure their horses were not exposed to banned substances”.

“All four individuals were well acquainted with the warnings issued by both the [US equestrian federation] and the FEI regarding the administration of supplements to horses, and all four followed every reasonable step to guard against the risks those warnings address,” said the report.

“Indeed, both Horizon and Don Principe had been drug-tested before February 2017 while on the same feed and supplement diet as they used in February 2017 and they never tested positive. The difference, we now know, is that a limited quantity of Soothing Pink was accidentally contaminated before it left Cargill, and the four individuals charged in these cases were unfortunate recipients of that accidentally tainted product.”

The report added in both cases that: “The FEI does not doubt the fact the PR is a very good person with good intentions in relation to her horses, who is in a very difficult situation.”

The PRs and the FEI reached agreement with the FEI by which each rider has to pay a fine of 3,000 Swiss francs (£2,414) as well as their own legal costs, and was suspended for three months, backdated to 2017.

The riders both accepted the penalties but do not agree they were negligent in feeding the supplement, as they “firmly believe” they “did no wrong”, and accepted the settlement agreement in order to put the incident behind them and incur no further costs or disruption.

In a warning over the use of supplements, referred to in the tribunal report, the FEI states that PRs are responsible for whatever their horses ingest, that elimination of suspensions on the base of “no fault or negligence” does not apply if the presence of the substance concerned comes from a “mislabelled or contaminated supplement”.

The warning adds that PRs should “be aware that it is not unusual for supplements, herbal remedies etc. marketed within the equine industry or over the internet to contain banned substances or controlled medication substances that are not disclosed on the product label.

“It is also possible that those substances are contained in different amounts in the supplement, herbal remedy, etc than stated on the label, or the product used may have been inadvertently contaminated with a banned or controlled medication substance.

Continues below…

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“There is no guarantee that the ingredients list on any supplement, herbal remedy etc. is accurate.”

The statement concludes: “The FEI’s message is: ‘If in any doubt, do not give it to your horse’.”

Read the reports on Don Principe and Horizon, and the FEI warning, in full.

For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Dear Diary

Well, it’s all over – thank god. The season of tinsel terrorism, Santa hat horrors and antler abominations is drawing to a close, but I ask how many of you escaped? Not even I, with my finely attune sense of danger avoidance, athletic prowess and legendary reactions managed to avoid the ritual annual humiliation of being draped in decorations and made to pose for photos.

My mother quite frankly is like a tinsel-wearing terminator – she will NOT stop – and eventually it’s easier to just get it over with. As can be observer from the string of photos she posted, I went from mildly put out to full-on suicidal over the space of said little “photo shoot”, so much so that the last photo does resemble a terminally-depressed Eeyore complete with flat back ears and a “someone please shoot me now” look in my eye. To be fair a “someone shoot mother” look would have been preferable, but I did just want to the suffering to end.

She then added insult to injury by posting a video she took of me as she tried to cosy back up to me a few short minutes later and pretend to be friends again. I was peoples, less than amused. With “friends” like that I sure as heck don’t need enemies…

I was hoping for revenge on Boxing Day if we went for a little hack out, but sadly my uncle Lee was visiting along with the entourage, so we didn’t get to go. We are, however, going out with Aunty H and my lady love this morning (I’m writing this by candlelight on Thursday for you all) so who knows. I may be a total bronco from the moment she gets her substantial rear end near the saddle or lull her into a false sense of security only to spook violently at a blade of grass halfway through our little jaunt. I haven’t decided yet, but revenge will be mine…

So, what did Santa Paws bring you all? I was hoping for a couple of fine fillies, a moral-less mare or two, a week-long break at Casa de King and entry to Badminton. Instead I got some treats from my mum’s Secret Santa (who was clearly an individual of impeccable taste as they know who I am), some parsnips and a swede from mum (who once again thinks I can’t read the “ooops” sticker from Chavda – because nothing says “I love you, my fine steed” like past the sell by date vegetables…) and a bag of treats from mini-mother, who I still haven’t forgiven me for two-timing me with the little dude she won’t let me eat. I mean MEET.

Me and the big man clearly need some mano-y-mano time to discuss his idea of suitable gifts. I am an equine philanthropist, a fund-raising heavyweight and all-round good guy – if that doesn’t get a gelding on the “good horse” list, I’m not sure what does?

Continued below…

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So, now Kissmuss is over we turn our attention to New Year and the annual question about New Year’s revolutions. Do I do them in the school? The field? The road? When mother is mounted or when she’s leading me? Humans seem to seem a lot of time making these revolutions so I want to make sure I’m doing mine right. I have heard many people say they don’t last long but, how could they? I’m ¾ tonne of equine muscle not Darcy-bleeding-Bussell. I can only spin for so long before I get all dizzy and discombobulated. Which is not an issue to be taken lightly not least because it can lead to Herman the German sticking his hand in unmentionable places. Which is absolutely no way to see in a New Year…

Decisions, decisions.

Well however, whenever and with whom you choose to do you revolutions, enjoy the tail end of 2018 and here’s to an awesome 2019. See you in the New Year

Laters,

Hogmanay Hovis x

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now