Ian Stark at Fence 17, 18 and 19 (Gatehouse New Pond) on the 2016 Cross Country Course of the Badminton Mitsubishi Motors Horse Trials, in the grounds of Badminton House in the village of Badminton near Malmesbury in Gloucestershire, UK on 18th April 2016 , Ian Stark at Fence 17, 18 and 19 (Gatehouse New Pond) on the 2016 Cross Country Course of the Badminton Mitsubishi Motors Horse Trials, in the grounds of Badminton House in the village of Badminton near Malmesbury in Gloucestershire, UK on 18th April 2016
Following verbal cues from Mr Morris, Butterscotch then starts the car and puts it into gear using his muzzle.
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He then places his hooves on enlarged pedals within the vehicle and slowly drives down the road.
Butterscotch sounds the horns and turns the steering wheel from time to time, also with the use of his muzzle, following Mr Morris’ commands.
“It was said a horse could not be trained to drive an automobile. That was many years ago,” said Mr Morris on the video clip. “But this is the second horse that I’ve trained to drive.”
It took Mr Morris a year and a half to teach Butterscotch to “drive”.
“You have to go through your brain and into the animal brain. In other words, he functions through my brain,” he added.
“You have to know when to quit and not to tire the horse out”.
A video clip showcasing Butterscotch’s unusual talents also appeared on Jeremy Clarkson’s Motorsport Mayhem in 1995.
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Rachael joined Horse & Hound in 2014, initially as a digital sub editor then became part of the news team as a writer in 2015. The philosophy graduate studied journalism at the Press Association before working as a local reporter at the Brentwood Gazette. Rachael is now a mum of two and still loves all things equestrian, including hacking, dressage and jumping with her cob Bert. Rachael left the H&H staff to go freelance in June 2019, but still contributes to our magazine and website, as well as our sister magazine Country Life, among others.
