Agria Horse of a Lifetime May Shortlist

Thank you to everyone who entered our Horse of a Lifetime competition in May. Read the stories for our four shortlisted horses below before casting your votes on social media.

Abby & Blue

Breed: Friesian

Age: 21 yrs

Discipline/activity: He was one of a trio of Friesian driving horses but now does in hand trekking and in hand showing.

I couldn’t have predicted Blue. I wasn’t looking for a horse as after the loss of my heart horses 11 and 12 years ago. I told myself I couldn’t love another horse like that again. But things are rarely that simple. Blue was a retired driving horse until I started working with him. Walking through the countryside and enjoying each other’s quiet peace, there was an instant connection. He became my reason to get up in the morning.

Blue is such a huge personality. He’s always there and loves to be around people. He’s a picky eater but his favourite treat is a punnet of blackberries. He is the ray of sunshine on the darkest days and has an infectious love for life.

In December, Blue lost his best friend, Rogus. It devastated everyone, including Blue. It was my turn to support him through his tough days. Slowly but surely, that spark came back. It was a worthwhile journey.

A few months later I asked if we could try in hand showing. I was asked if I was sure as he’d not shown before, nor worked alone. ‘I want to try’ I said ‘If I go, I go with him’. We were 5th in Veterans. That pink rosette is a treasured possession. It’s what we did together. I don’t need rosettes to tell me he’s amazing but it does feel good.

He's taught me it's never too late to start again. Sometimes I look at him and think ‘I am so grateful we met. You’ve changed my life and some days, I owe you my life. I’ll spend the rest of your life showing you how special you are’. He walks in the hoof prints of 2 very special boys, but he is very special in his own right. I believe there are 2 heart horses, one that

breaks your heart and one that mends it. Blue is healing my soul one day at a time. May marks 3 years clean and I couldn’t have done it without my big Blue boy.

Sarah & Lottie

Breed: Cob

Age: 10 yrs

Discipline/activity: Dressage

After giving up for 10 years due to an incident with a previous horse, I decided to get back into riding. Lottie has not only brought back a lot of confidence and trust in horses again but has helped me mentally too. She gives me a reason to get up and out of the house every morning.

After seeing her impeccable behaviour at her first ever show, we have been attending events I could only dream of years ago. This little cob is even attending Aintree racecourse in the summer to compete in a dressage festival. I owe this little pony the world and thank her every ride for looking after me.

Georgia & Freddie

Breed: Welsh Part Bred

Age: 19 yrs

Discipline/activity: Dressage

Freddie was only 4 years old when I started to ride him and just backed. I was 10 years old and was very very short (my legs only just came past the saddle!).

We learnt everything together and started a couple of local dressage shows and he just excelled at it and we knew then this was going to be his thing! We qualified for a number of different championships unaffiliated at prelim and novice and he took to them like a duck to water. We then joined BD and started getting regional points and again over the years we have attended summer national championships, winter national championships and finals. As well as representing Wales on BYRDS teams from C squad up to A squad and then represented Wales at senior level. We have taught each other so much and have trained up to PSG level and competed at Advanced medium.

Now at the age of 19 he is still in work competing at medium on riding club teams.

Without him I wouldn’t have the experience I have today. He was my 3rd ever pony only measuring 14.2hh luckily I didn’t grow much so I’m so lucky to be able to still have him in my life and ride him every day after 15 years of owning him. That’s why Freddie is my Horse of a Lifetime.

Holly & Millie

Breed: Irish Sports Horse

Age: 15 yrs

Discipline/activity: Eventing, excelling at XC

We purchased Millie in November 2014, when I was 12 and she was 6. I fell in love with her straight away, but when we brought her home, a lot of issues started to unfold, she was green, underweight and needed a lot of work. The first 2/3 years were very difficult, and a lot of times we wanted to give up but I persevered and we started progressing. From not being able to trot we competed up to elementary dressage, SJ 1 metre +, but we both found our love for XC!

We trained hard and entered our first BE Sept 2018 and we finished in the top 10 going double clear. Over 2019 and 2020, we progressed up the levels and entered our first BE100 at the end of 2020. We achieved our first sub 30 dressage score, show jumped beautifully, and was storming round cross country till 3 fences from home, we landed wrong from a large corner. We later found out she sustained a SDFT injury which stopped her competitive and ridden career.

We rehabbed her, and got her field sound and decided we would have a foal out of her. We had her confirmed in foal, but unfortunately two weeks later, she had a freak accident in the field and re-injured the same leg. Our options were to have her PTS, or intensely rehab her in the hope by the time she foaled she came sound. She is such a special mare, I wasn't going to give up on her, and on the 8th May 2022 she gave birth to a beautiful coloured filly. All the hard work had paid off. She thrived being a mum, but the time off allowed her to rest and recuperate.

This year, I have started bringing her back into work and she has beaten all the odds. Although she will never jump again, the prospect of being able to sit behind her ears again is something I never thought could happen. 9 years this year we would have been together, she truly has been my Horse of a Lifetime.