A police force has welcomed a critically rare Suffolk horse as its latest recruit after she successfully passed her training.
The nine-year-old mare, Rose, passed the recruitment process on 19 June and joins the Police Scotland mounted unit.
Sergeant Lesley Winchester told H&Hthe force was “quite taken” with the 16.3hh mare when she arrived at the unit’s headquarters, Blairfield Farm, in Kilmarnock.
“We thought she was huge. She’s very wide – she might not be the tallest at 16.3hh but she’s very big built and will certainly make a good impression and have presence on patrol,” said the sergeant.
“She has the right temperament; she’s friendly and has good stable manners. She wasn’t fazed by the nuisance training with things like flags and plastic sheeting on the ground.”
Rose was owned and bred by Bill Ireland and spent her early years in the show ring with producer Richard Telford before it was decided she needed “a more varied life” and she was put forward to Police Scotland.
“We have some retirements coming up so we’ve been looking for horses to increase our establishment,” said Sergeant Winchester.
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
“There’s a lot of horses that come in and go straight back out – they’re just not suitable. It takes a special type of horse to make the grade; it’s a long list to tick off, but the temperament is the big one – and being good in traffic and noisy crowds. After a trial period it’s still a work-in-progress and they still have more training to go through.”
Sergeant Winchester said the force was “delighted” to have a rare breed join the stables.
“We appreciate they are a critically endangered breed and we hope to make Rose into a good police horse. It’s a good thing for the breed, which has many uses,” she said.
“She’s come at the right time and we think she’ll adapt quite quickly. We’ll build up her work gradually and she’ll attend some of the lower profile football matches to start. We don’t like to throw our horses into too much too soon.”
Rose has been assigned to PC Fiona Campbell and will be assigned an official police horse name.
“All our horses are named after places in Scotland so she will receive that soon,” said Sergeant Winchester.
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
Since joining H&H in 2018, Becky has covered a broad range of equestrian news including welfare matters, veterinary studies, FEI Tribunal hearings and road safety campaigns. She has also interviewed top riders including Scott Brash, John Whitaker and Ian Stark, to name just a few. Becky’s reporting has taken her to Canada for Spruce Meadows and France for Pau five-star, as well as the Royal Highland and Blair Castle International Horse Trials closer to home. She was also a key part of the remote reporting team for the Tokyo Olympics and the Europeans.
