Innholdsfortegnelse for 11-Dec-2025 i Horse & Hound

VALEGRO and Uthopia, with their owners and respective riders Charlotte Dujardin and Carl Hester, changed the course of British dressage. For both horses, who spent their retirement together, as well as so many days on the road to greatness in competition, it was sad but right that they should also go together, following many happy years taking it easy at Carl's yard. Our thoughts are with all who cared for them. Both horses were legends in their own lifetimes, and fantastic characters to boot. The love from the public for Valegro particularly is like nothing else I've experienced in my more than 20 years at H&H. He wasn't just a record-breaker who fulfilled a young woman's dreams and inspired a generation, but a showman who loved the attention of an…

UTHOPIA was never meant to be the star of anyone's yard. Dutch producer Ivonne Lawrence had gone to see a different horse when she spotted a small black three-yearold with a chewed tail watching her from the corner of a barn. He'd been sat on a handful of times, but the moment she rode him, his power was unmistakable. “I've never felt a horse like it,” Ivonne said. “He had so much suspension it was like a trampoline, and cantering him felt like shooting off to the moon.” Around the same time, a cobby bay colt, who'd go on to be the greatest dressage horse of all time, was not accepted at his KWPN stallion grading. Valegro didn't match the tall, modern type the judges wanted, but he caught Carl…

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POTENTIAL new insights into equine lymphoma have emerged over the past few years, but study sizes are often too small to be able to offer definitive answers. For example, some studies have suggested a possible connection between equine herpesvirus-5 and lymphoma. However, Dr Hewetson is cautious about a causal link. “We need to take these findings with a pinch of salt, as equine herpesvirus-5 is prevalent in the general equine population,” he explains. “But further investigation might prove interesting.” He's also interested in a potential link between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and the alimentary form of lymphoma. “If causation was proved, we could follow those horses with biomarkers and catch the cancer earlier. “The holy grail would be to find a biomarker to identify the disease early. A 2021 study…

RACHEL GREETHAM, ACPAT (Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Animal Therapy) physio, explains how physiotherapy will work alongside veterinary management of developmental joint diseases: “On diagnosis, aiding pain relief and reduction of inflammation is the first step. Physiotherapy will help resolve any secondary muscle spasm and imbalance using manual techniques such as trigger points, myofascial techniques, reflex inhibition and stretches (pictured, right). “Long term, the most important aspect is building strength and stability around the joint – and holistically – to support it. Stability is vital in keeping joints moving within normal range. “A rehab and strengthening programme is created by the vet and physiotherapist, taking into account the horse's age and education level. This ensures that the exercises aren't progressed too quickly, harming the joints. “The rehabilitation programme may include…

YEOMANRY RIDE 29 November Edited by Catherine Austen catherine.austen@futurenet.com @cfausten123 Yeomanry Ride, Badminton, Glos BEAUFORT farmer Doug White captured his “home” hunt race, the Yeomanry Ride, aboard Fil D'Ariane, having led the 32-runner field throughout. Doug, who is responsible for preparing the track for this circular race, pulled off a remarkable hat-trick in the process: he also won the Grand Military Cup at Sandown in January and the members' race at the Beaufort point-to-point in March on the 10-year-old son of Gris De Gris. “He's a cool horse – very straightforward and a seriously good jumper. He does everything as fast as he can and is brave as a lion,” said Doug, for whom it was a third win in the Yeomanry Ride, having taken it in 2019 and 2014. Fil…

ARENA UK HIGH PROFILE 4–7 December Edited by Oscar Williams oscar.williams@futurenet.com @oscnwilliams Arena UK High Profile, Lincs AT the final High Profile of the year, Henriette Andersen and the “best horse she's ever had”, the 14-year-old Blue Hors Zack son Zackery II, closed out their year with real authority, posting two enormous personal bests: 72.72% to win the grand prix and 71.49% in the special. “I had a super ride,” Henriette said. “I did make a few mistakes, but it still gave me a really good feeling. His piaffe was probably the best he's ever done in the ring, and being such a big mover, he always scores well in the extended work. “He's got a super temperament too, but because he's such a big mover, things can get a little…

HIGHLIGHTS 1–7 December Edited by Jennifer Donald jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald Tingle Creek Festival, Sandown Park, Surrey IL ETAIT TEMPS proved a class apart to hand jockey Paul Townend his first success in the £175,000 Grade One Betfair Tingle Creek Chase. The Willie Mullins-trained son of Jukebox Jury is now unbeaten since finishing third in the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival last season and this is the second time he's overturned the mighty Jonbon at Sandown. “He is measured and clean. He is tiny, but he answered every question,” said the winning jockey of the “tough” seven-year-old. “I feel silly for not picking him so many times in his career now! “He is living up to all the promise he showed as a young horse. He's so relaxed now – in years past,…

Share your news story Call 0330 390 6386 Email eleanor.jones@futurenet.com @ jones_eleanor_ THE horse world is mourning the loss of dressage legends Valegro and Uthopia, who set the world alight with their performances and captured hearts wherever they went. On 1 December Carl Hester and Charlotte Dujardin announced that the much-loved pair, known at home as Blueberry and Uti, had been put down, aged 23 and 24 respectively. Valegro and Uthopia will be fondly remembered as two of the greatest horses of our generation. They helped win Britain's first European team gold at Rotterdam in 2011, then the following year they captivated the nation in London, when they helped seal Britain's first Olympic team gold and Charlotte and Valegro were crowned individual champions. At the Rio Olympics, Charlotte and Valegro…

BIRDS To a jumping show, where a pigeon was keen to be part of the action, wandering round the ring all day to give riders added excitement as they tried to dodge it. Gives a whole new meaning to “going on a flier”. PRESENTS Overheard at the yard: “If anyone's wondering what to get me for Christmas, I take a size 16… hands.” Sounds perfect. Any colour, and a size 17in saddle. Contact details, p13. SINGING A group of Christmas singers was invited to perform at an animal sanctuary – and a donkey joined in. Whether in protest or appreciation isn't clear, nor what it was singing. A Bray in a Manger perhaps? MOTS A rider disgruntled at her lorry's failing its MOT on non-working windscreen wipers tried to persuade…

Email to hhletters@futurenet.com Name and address must be included. Letters may be edited. @ horseandhound instagram.com/horseandhound facebook.com/horseandhound A HEAVY BURDEN I HAVE been involved in the riding school and livery yard industry since 1980, and have owned and run a successful yard since 2002. It has grown to become a thriving partnership of four, with excellent staff, including a government apprentice. We are also a work experience placement faculty for colleges, universities and neurodiverse young adults in the community. “It is incredibly hard to keep up with costs” SUE ORPEN During the past three years, since the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 was passed, the industry has become increasingly difficult. It is incredibly hard to keep up with the costs, not least the hikes in the national minimum wage, particularly for…

THE plan had always been to sell both horses after London and speculation grew as Valegro's results soared. It was his 2013 European golds, followed by a world-record freestyle at Olympia, that convinced Carl and co-owner Roly Luard they had to find a way to keep him. When H&H reported they were forming a syndicate, Anne Barrott came forward and in 2014, she became Valegro's third owner. While Valegro entered his golden period, Uthopia faced a far more uncertain path. Financial difficulties within Sasha Stewart's family meant he became a ward of the court, and even who was allowed to ride him grew unclear. “With the court case in full swing, they said I shouldn't compete the horse,” Carl said. “I presumed – wrongly – that by then I was…

Horse: headcollar and rope (spares), stable rugs, basic first aid, passport Owner: vet mobile number, referral hospital number and postcode, insurance details, emergency contacts Vehicle: know your method of transport and check tyres, fuel, ramps, partitions, lighting and bedding Loading: practise loading when calm – not for the first time in an emergency Handler: an experienced, calm handler is important…

VET SPECIAL 2025 USING the term “developmental” when describing an orthopaedic disease brings forth the notion of growth and change. This idea of transience, says H&H veterinary consultant Dr Karen Coumbe, is the crux of the matter – literally – when we consider bone, be it the bone of a foal, youngster or an older horse. “Bone is living tissue, just like any other part of the body,” she explains. “It's not inert; it develops and changes all the time. It is continuously calcifying, resorbing and putting down new bone – this is how fractures can mend themselves.” Dr Richard Stephenson, Associate Professor at the University of Nottingham vet school, reiterates this point. “Joints repair themselves all the time,” he remarks. “There are processes in the joint to remove damaged…

CHILLI was just a three-day-old filly when presented to Bell Equine Hospital with a history of not suckling. She had also been non-weight-bearing lame on her left hind. Upon admission, she presented with marked effusion of her left hock and stifle joint. Dr Janine Terschuur, the attending vet, says: “A blood sample showed that Chilli had a low immunoglobulin G (IgG), a type of antibody made by the immune system to fight off infection in foals, and obtained from their dam's colostrum. “Both the hock and stifle were radiographed, and no bony abnormalities were noticed, ruling out trauma. A sample of the joint fluid confirmed infection within these joints. “She underwent two joint flushes under general anaesthesia and also had one litre of hyperimmune plasma administered intravenously. She made a…

ARENA UK WINTER CLASSIC 27–30 November @jen_donald DO YOU WANT TO BE ON THIS PAGE? HAVE YOU WON A CLASS? Email jennifer.donald@futurenet.com within 24 hours of your event and please include a contact telephone number Arena UK Winter Classic, Lincs CORVETTE VH REUKENIS Z continued his impressive trajectory, claiming his and Joe Trunkfield's first grand prix win of the winter season with an effortless performance. The gelding owned by Srikumar Balasubramaniyam began the year as a low-mileage eight-year-old but fast gained ground for a collection of Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) tickets, a summer grand prix win and the British Showjumping 1.40m title at the nationals. He showed his quality again here when, drawn last of five clears, he crossed the line a cool two seconds ahead of Friday's…

IT was one of those weeks where the forecast for the weekend gets progressively worse with each day: dry and fine on Monday progressing to two big raindrops by Friday. It was already drizzling when I woke up on Saturday morning – no lightening skies on either horizon to suggest that this would blow over – and the rain was drumming heavily on the stable roof as we tacked up. A friend's daughter, Isla, was here to hunt Mary's pony Issy and arrived in the stables encased in 20 coats, to which I added two more. We set off briskly down the road, me saying pathetically optimistic things like, “It's always worse up here. It'll be a different climate at the meet.” There is no doubt that it was a…

DSP FIGHTING LINE Austrian eventer Lea Siegl's championship ride, whom she took from youth squads to the Olympics and World Championships, has retired aged 18. HAWK WING The miler who gave trainer Aidan O'Brien his first Lockinge winner in 2003, has died aged 26. He won the 2002 Eclipse Stakes, and was runner-up in The Derby and 2000 Guineas. MELLIVER WILLY WONKA Francesca Ovens' Fell pony was crowned supreme champion at the first The Showing Register Amateur of the Year Show. He was ridden by Daisy-May Ovens. Report, p52. HEXAM The Greater Manchester Police horse, who won an Animal Hero Awards title alongside two stablemates, has retired to Simon Constable's Equine Vets aged 18. CHELSEA LAD The gelding who competed for The Diamond Centre at every Riding for the Disabled National…

Five-star British-turned-Zimbabwean event rider Julia Norman is retiring from the sport after she sustained a severe head injury in training. Racing TV's Nick Luck was named broadcaster of the year for a 10th time at the Horserace Writers and Photographers Association awards. Leading five-star event rider Bubby Upton is back in the saddle, just over four weeks after her latest spinal surgery. She sustained multiple fractures in 2023. Endurance rider Emma Martin and Nightfire Hallelujah Louis are the Endurance GB 2025 overall champions, 39 years after Emma's first national title. The Donkey Breed Society has a new chair; long-standing member, panel judge and registrar Pam Moon takes over the role from Rosemary Clarke.…

TWO new showing classes will run at the 2026 London International Horse Show. Qualifiers for the working sports pony performance classes will be open to non-BSPS members, although riders will need to join to compete at the finals. The first will be for mares or geldings not exceeding 148cm, riders not to have attained their 18th birthday on 1 January. The second will be also be open to stallions, with an upper height limit of 158cm but no lower height. This class will be open to riders over the age of 16 but with no age limit. Fences will be set at a maximum of 85cm and 95cm respectively. “We are delighted to work with LIHS, to add these two new classes into London following the overwhelming success of other…

@oscnwilliams OPINION FOLLOWING my critique of British Dressage's (BD) national championships, I note that the showjumpers' equivalent (Graham Fletcher comment, 6 November) similarly lacks sparkle and spectator appeal. We can't expect the big broadcasters and mass media to warm to us unless we get our own house in order and demonstrate how enthralling equestrian sport can be. I'm still awaiting the call from Jeremy Clarkson… but, seriously, we need an X Factor-type operation, perhaps at four or five big centres around the country, with everything from liberty horses to scurry driving on the programme. We need entertainment and fun brought back to our shows. There are plenty of home-grown heroes with masses of personality, humour and charisma within our sport. Yet the public rarely gets to see them. There will…

I didn't imagine I'd become British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) president. It has always felt like a role for someone more eminent – a specialist, a researcher, someone at the top of the academic ladder. I'm not that. I'm a general equine practitioner, a “worker bee”, out on the road most days doing everyday vet work. But that's why I think it matters. The majority of our profession are people like me – doing the routine, first-opinion, hands-on work. And I wanted them to feel seen. Most weeks, I spend one or two days on BEVA business. Some weeks it's full on with meetings and consultations, and others it's quiet. You might be asked to represent the profession in an industry conversation, such as responding to consultations like the recent Competition…

THE London International Horse Show takes place 18–22 December at the Excel. Visit londonhorseshow.com for tickets and further information. H&H will be creating extensive online coverage in addition to that in the magazine report, including breaking news, reports and exclusive interviews from all the showjumping, dressage and showing action. ● To keep reading after five articles, readers will need to buy a subscription either to the website or to the magazine. To buy a Horse & Hound website unlimited subscription, visit horseandhound.co.uk/join. Or, for great value, visit magazinesdirect.com/XHH-brandsite for a magazine subscription that includes unlimited website access plus the digital magazine. If you are already a magazine subscriber, find out how to activate your website access at horseandhound.co.uk/subscription-benefits MAGAZINE Note our Christmas issue dates: Tuesday, 23 December: a bumper special…

A HORSE'S quality of life will be specific to the clinical form of lymphoma, explains Dr Hewetson. “For example, if you've got a horse with multicentric lymphoma involving the liver, then it's in liver failure. It's not going to have a quality of life.” But his recent case of corneal lymphoma will hopefully have an altogether different outcome. “We simply removed the superficial layer of the cornea that was infiltrated with the tumour cells – a keratectomy. The prognosis in this type of case is generally more favourable and the horse can have a good quality of life. “But, of course, we can never be sure that the cancer won't come back and that is a risk that owners need to factor in carefully when considering treatment. “It's a discussion…

TOOKA is a two-year-old warmblood/ cob gelding who presented to Bell Equine Hospital with a history of swelling over the right stifle and lameness. A lameness examination and radiographs were performed, confirming the presence of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) fragments of the lateral trochlear ridge of the femur, within the stifle joint. Hospital vet Dr Janine Terschuur says: “Given the joint swelling and lameness, surgical intervention was recommended. Removal of the fragments was performed arthroscopically under general anaesthesia. “Tooka underwent several intra-articular injections of IRAP (interleukin-1 receptor antagonist protein therapy), which is a biologic treatment designed to reduce inflammation inside the joint and promote healing of the cartilage. “It has been six months since surgery, and he is lameness-free and will be backed next spring.” His owner says: “I have the…

@cfausten123 ANTHONY MARTYN was the perfect example of a traditional master of foxhounds in that he settled in his home county of Glamorgan and took on the mastership of that pack of hounds, which he hunted and bred himself for 30 years. A lightweight and fine horseman, he was also a gifted huntsman who consistently showed a remarkable standard of sport. His friendly and outgoing nature made him a popular master and he took on the duties of a magistrate, high sheriff and deputy lieutenant in the county. In an article he wrote in his later years, Anthony remembered the surge of excitement that he felt as a small boy on first seeing the Glamorgan hounds sweeping down a field a few seasons before World War II and longing to…

TSR AMATEUR OF THE YEAR 29–30 November Edited by Bethan Simons bethan.simons@futurenet.com The Showing Register (TSR) Amateur of the Year, Stoneleigh Park, Warks THE 10-year-old showman Melliver Willy Wonka gave Daisy-May Ovens, daughter of owner Francesca Ovens, yet another centre-line moment, sweeping through his card to claim the mountain and moorland (M&M) large breed final, the first day's overall championship, and the inaugural supreme of show. Consistent performers, Daisy and Willy were 2024 Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) junior M&M large breeds champions, and they are the reigning UK Ponies and Horses amateur riders ridden M&M final winners at Hickstead. “He always comes out and performs,” said Francesca. “He's so consistent. He's one of those special ponies – an absolute star that just keeps on giving. We're so lucky to…

“ONE OF THE BEST I HAVE EVER HAD” WORLD number seven Laura Kraut landed the $750,000 (just over £560,000) Coachella Cup at the Desert International Horse Park, California, USA, riding Cherry Knoll Farm's Bisquetta in the sixth leg of the Major League Showjumping. “There was not a slow one in the group,” said Laura of the 11-way jump-off in which she beat team-mate McLain Ward (High Star Hero) into the runner-up spot. “I went as fast as I could, which is normally not nearly fast enough. I got a bit lucky and put enough pressure on them that they had to give it a go and mistakes were made. Over the past year, Bisquetta has turned into one of the best horses I have ever had.” WHITAKER IN THE MONEY…