Innholdsfortegnelse for 31-Dec-2025 i Horse & Hound

AS we usher in 2026, thoughts turn to resolutions, hopes and goals. Whether or not you subscribe to the notion of starting afresh, there's no harm in taking the opportunity to check in on what we're working towards and how we plan to get there. One obvious blocker to enjoying our horses or qualifying for a championship or getting selected, is mental and physical health. Oscar Williams asks the experts how we can help ourselves with the former as a community that can lean towards a “kick-on” mentality. It turns out that mental strength isn't ignoring how you feel, but recognising emotions, however bottled up, and establishing what you need (feature, p26). For those looking for marginal gains or simply an easier life, psychologists and top riders from William Fox-Pitt…

A “MAGICAL” horse who changed the face of showjumping and won grands prix and medals, and touched lives across the world has been cheered into retirement with “the send-off he deserves”. Ben Maher retired Charlotte Rossetter and Pamela Wright's legendary Olympic champion Explosion W in front of a sell-out crowd at the London International Horse Show. “There are no words to explain him,” Ben said. “He touched so many lives, in so many ways. He helped me achieve my goals and dreams.” OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS BEN and Explosion won European team bronze and individual silver in 2019, after which Explosion was sold to Ben, Charlotte and Pamela. He and Ben were individual Olympic champions in Tokyo. “He's an incredibly magnetising horse,” said Charlotte. “You witness it, feel it, and it gives…

Scottish showjumper Emma Crawford won the 2026 Ella Popely Award. She will have 12 months’ mentorship from William Funnell. Dressage European champions Justin Verboomen and Zonik Plus won the Frankfurt CDI5* freestyle with 91.2% and the grand prix on 81.59%. Eventer Lissa Green and her partner Giorgio Audino have welcomed their second child, Chiara Hope. The couple had their first baby, Emilia Rose, in 2024. Former FEI president HRH Princess Haya has received the FEI's order of merit, its highest distinction, in “recognition for outstanding life achievements”. Endurance organiser Dianne Luke won the British Equestrian medal of honour, “having completed acts of international endeavour” for horse sport.…

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Email to hhletters@futurenet.com Name and address must be included. Letters may be edited. A WELCOME BLAST FROM THE PAST KIERAN O'BRIEN'S article (vet clinic, 4 December) was extremely interesting and prompted me to reopen some of the ledgers that were stored away at home. My ancestors were blacksmiths, carpenters and undertakers in the Cornish parish of Mabe from the mid1800s and they kept fantastic records, which are now a social history of the period. The page shown (pictured) from 1880 gives a real insight into the shoeing of the horse for a local farmer or landowner. The blacksmith just does what is necessary to keep the horse shod in order to keep the horse working. I have yet to read “full set”, “fronts”, “hinds” in the records. The cost of…

THIS 18-year-old pony was first identified lame after a short Pony Club hunt. He had mostly walked and trotted with some low jumping well within his capabilities, but the ground was wet and heavy going. He looked unlevel in front during unloading at the yard after the morning's activity and was more obviously lame the next morning after standing in his stable overnight, at which point the entire lower limb was swollen. The vet was called and an ultrasound performed to examine in more detail the soft tissue structures of the lower limb (pictured; the darker grey area indicated by the arrow is fibre disruption within the check ligament). A check ligament injury was diagnosed. The pony began a rehab period of restriction to a crew yard, hand walking exercise…

Share your news story Call 0330 390 6386 Email eleanor.jones@futurenet.com @jones_eleanor_ CALLS for change to firework laws continue as horse owners prepare for New Year's Eve – but what is the solution? Every year horses suffer injuries – some fatal – in incidents involving fireworks. Although regulations exist on when fireworks can be bought and let off, problems still occur. As the year ends, H&H reviews the situation. Horse owner Joanna Barnett has been raising awareness since her mare Tallulah died after fireworks went off near her Surrey field on 31 December 2022. Tallulah “crashed through a fence in terror” and was found on the road. She could not be saved. “She was suffering and the only thing I could do was put her to sleep,” Joanna told H&H. “We've…

TRAIL-HUNTING BAN IN STRATEGY THE Government's plan to ban trail-hunting has been reiterated in its new animal welfare strategy. The framework, published on 22 December, repeats a statement made in Parliament this autumn confirming a consultation would run next year on how, not whether, to bring in a ban, as was promised in Labour's manifesto (news, 6 November). The strategy states that using “large packs of hounds” could put wild and domestic animals and people at risk, and that there is a risk trail-hunting “could be used to facilitate illegal hunting”. The consultation is scheduled for early 2026, and the hunting community has vowed to fight back. TOOL FOR VETS IF OWNER NOT FOUND THE British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) has published new resources to help vets treat any UK…

WORD SEARCH Link is that they've all won the Hickstead Derby SCRAMBLED FACES 1 Donald Whitaker. 2 Laura Collett. 3 Justin Verboomen. 4 Robert Walker. 5 Sean Bowen. 6 Mari Durward-Akhurst. ANAGRAMS 1 Chestnut. 2 Bay. 3 Skewbald. 4 Roan. 5 Black. 6 Palomino. 7 Piebald. 8 Buckskin – all horse colours. SEEING DOUBLE 1 Fescue. 2 Muscle. 3 Spotty. 4 Scotch. 5 Hotbed. 6 Outbid. 7 Straps. 8 Forage. 9 Fished. 10 Bushes. Mystery rider: Scott Brash. WHO'S THE DADDY? 1 JL Dublin – F Diarado 2 Inothewayurthinking – A Walk In The Park 3 Zonik Plus – E Glock's Zonik NOP 4 Lambourn – B Australia 5 KBF Lucia – C Free Spirit 6 Hello Folie – D Luidam QUIZ ANSWERS EVENTING 1 True. 2 Cathal Daniels, 2019.…

Need to know JARILLO Stable name: Milo Mascot: a “unicorn drama llama” Age: 11 Breeding: Dutch warmblood by Dantos HBC out of Fiorilla (by Alicante) Rider: Tim Price Owners: Lucy Allison, Frances Stead, and Rachel and James Good Greatest achievements: 2023, third Blenheim eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S, second Kilguilkey CCI4*-S, seventh Boekelo CCI04*-L; 2024, first Thoresby Park CCI4*-S; 2025, first Pau CCI5*. RIDER TIM PRICE “THE first time I saw Jarillo, in a novice at Wellington when he was six, he was spooky and horse-shy but he just had something about him. I went to try him the next day. You can't tell if they'll be a five-star horse, but he was class-looking and had a lovely lightness about him, unlike anything I'd ever ridden before – so I didn't…

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HOW to create habits according to habit psychologist Heather McKee. Start smaller than you think. Most people fail because they set habits that are too big, too soon. Good habits tend to be: easy and enjoyable (even a little) attached to an existing routine (habit stacking, for example: “After I make my morning coffee, I'll write my top three priorities; after I untack, I'll stretch for two minutes.”) aligned with your identity (“I'm someone who…”) repeatable: self-discipline is a by-product of repeatable behaviours, not “motivating” ourselves or using our willpower to push through And how to make them stick… 1 MAKE THEM SATISFYING Our brains love immediate reward. Even ticking off a box can keep momentum going. Good riders often track short wins, such as calm/ smooth transitions, better balance/ position,…

AMANDA COURT and Jupiter C landed the large hack and riding horse spoils. “Fletcher”, 11, is owned by the Hoose family, who offered the ride to family friend Amanda. Amanda used to show, but gave way for her children's showing ambitions and later, her grandchildren's ponies, ensuring all are turned out immaculately. Fittingly, they also took the best turned out award in the class. “I'm 60 now, and I've probably waited 50 years for this,” she said. FIRST LONDON WIN…

AT this time of year, we are socialising more than ever. Work dos, family parties, dinners and drinks are coming up thick and fast to fuel us with the joys of the season. Sometimes it's refreshing to be with new people whose interests are different to our own. Sometimes it's wonderful to be with old friends or people with whom you share lots in common. Recently, Adam and I have been initiated into the gatherings of a very special subsect of Northumbrian life. These are fellow fans of the Toon (Newcastle United Football Club) from wider Northumberland, who meet in Harry's Bar in Newcastle before each home game. Unlike us two-season fledglings, these people are lifelong, sometimes generational, season ticket holders, many hailing from the nearby Tynedale and Morpeth hunting…

IN THE NEWS VERDADES The Olympic, world and Pan American Games dressage medallist, with US rider Laura Graves, has died aged 23. They were the first US pair to top the dressage world rankings. BALOU DU REVENTON The 19-year-old who jumped at championships and World Cup Finals is standing at Zangersheide Stud, Belgium. His riders included Harry Charles and Darragh Kenny. MAHLER Coolmore's National Hunt sire, whose progeny include The Real Whacker, has died aged 21. He won the Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot and was second in the St Leger.…

SPOOKING To the Show That is Not Olympia, where warnings were issued as each Christmas finale ended. “Not many shows where Father Christmas and his sleigh are a spooking issue,” a rider quipped. CATCHPHRASES Talking of the big man at Not Olympia, and some of the horses’ reactions, a wag said: “Maybe he should say ‘whoa, whoa, whoa’ instead?” FUN Throwback to a video of a lovely man at the races, who took a while to click it wasn't the same horses in every race. “We kept backing number two and he didn't win!” he said. But he'd had a lovely day; that's all that matters. BOOTS Overheard, a rider at a show had used baler twine for her broken boot zip. “It's just till Mum gets here,” she said,…

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jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald THE London International is always a good show; it would be whatever time of year it was, but Christmas makes it the icing on the cake. It would have been impossible to recreate Olympia at the Excel but the show works, they've kept the atmosphere the same, you get more people watching and you're not unloading the horses on the street. Everything is easy. Sunday's World Cup (report, p46) was a good class. It was a big course and a tight time; for the size of the course, probably a bit too tight. “The atmosphere when I go in is unbelievable” ON THE LONDON CROWDS Having said that, it's difficult to get it perfect, and it was a good jump-off. If the time had been longer, there could…

EQUESTRIAN sport has always prized grit and resilience. But more riders are realising mental health isn't something you can leave at the stable door. The pressures of work, relationships, finances and competition follow us into the saddle and flow straight into our horses. “It's a misconception that mental strength is about ignoring how you feel,” says equestrian psychology coach Charlie Unwin, who has worked with elite riders and now shares the tools used by them with grassroots equestrians via Peak Rider's bank of practical resources. “Real resilience is about awareness – knowing when your internal world is helping or hindering you, and having tools to shift it.” Horses, he explains, are emotional barometers: “They read your body language, micro tensions, even your breathing. You might think you're hiding stress, but…

EVENTING Harry Horton HARRY'S results in 2025 may not have been super-flashy, but he has enviable consistency with his top horse, Cooley With Ambition (Dash). The pair have never had a jumping fault internationally in either phase and were in the top 15 at two CCI4*-Ls during 2025, as well as leading the British team to third on their Nations Cup debut at Lignières. Dash, who is rising 11, is owned by Harry and the Ambition Syndicate. “He's the most unassuming four-star horse you have ever seen,” says Harry. “He's not big or flashy, but he's completely unflappable and we trust each other. “He saves it for the big days – at home he's difficult to get fit, lazy, hard work, a bit uninspiring, but as soon as you get…

catherine.austen@futurenet.com @cfaustenl23 IN March 1946, Hugh Percy, 10th Duke of Northumberland, set out from Alnwick Castle on a mission. Over four days, he rode his hunter more than 100 miles to Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfriesshire. Upon arrival, he proposed to Lady Elizabeth Montagu Douglas Scott, elder daughter of Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, eighth Duke of Buccleuch – and was accepted. Hughie Northumberland was master of the Percy for 48 years, following in the footsteps of his older brother George Northumberland and their father, Alan Northumberland. Hunting was his great passion – and served as a way of getting around his enormous estates. It had even intersected with his war. In April 1941, then foreign secretary Anthony Eden turned up in Greece to see Hughie with a letter from Alnwick. He…