Have you seen Elephant Blankie? Much-loved child’s toy lost after Badminton cross-country adventure

Many people and animals had adventures at Badminton Horse Trials this year — including an elephant “blankie”, which has not been seen since.

The much-loved toy, an older and much loved version of that pictured and bought from Walmart in the US, is thought to have been dropped near the end of the CCI5* cross-country course on Saturday (7 May).

“Lily will survive, but she would love it if she got it back,” she said. “We’ve got a fair idea where we dropped it; near the egg-carton fence. But we then heard from an old family friend, who hadn’t seen my post about it on Facebook till it was too late, that she’d seen it. It had travelled into the main arena and was nestled in the flowers of the last cross-country jump. It’s travelled around a lot but I don’t know where it’s ended up, hopefully not in the bin!”

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

TOPICS

Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.

Have you seen Elephant Blankie? Much-loved child’s toy lost after Badminton cross-country adventure

Badminton final scores

Kate said she will pay postage to anyone who has found the blankie, in hopes it might be returned.

“Lily asked me where he was this morning and started to cry; I had to say he’d gone on an adventure,” she said.

“We had a great time otherwise; we’ve been a few times before but it was a first for Lily and she absolutely loved it. She says she’s going to do it when she’s old enough.”

Anyone with information on Elephant Blankie can email eleanor.jones@futurenet.com

You might also be interested in:

Which rider fell off their bike? And who ran to the start box beside their horse? Nine things you might not know about last week’s Badminton

‘I’m in a dreamworld’: Badminton winner Laura Collett reflects on record-breaking victory