“Rescue horses can”, is the message from the rider of a horse who was found as a malnourished, wounded yearling, and who won the 2024 Cotswold Cup 90cm championship.
RSPCA Kastone and Bethan-May Greave finished on their dressage score on 30 September to take the series final. Bethan-May told H&H that had she been told what Kastone would go on to do, when she collected him as an 18-month-old, “I never would have believed it”.
Bethan-May first heard of Kastone when she bumped into the head of rehoming for the RSPCA.
“He said ‘I’ve got the perfect horse for you’; I went to see him and he was lovely,” she said. “But then I broke my ankle and couldn’t take him on. Three or four months later, he was still available but they said they were saving him for a TV show.
“He appeared on ITV’s Give a Pet a Home so I had to go on TV but I got him. After a six-month trial, they signed him over to me and I’ve had him ever since.”
Bethan-May said Kastone was found shut in a barn with other youngsters, skinny, wounded and “living in poo”.
“When I took him on, they thought he’d get to about 14.2/15hh and be maybe a companion or a happy hacker,” she said. “We thought he could hack or nanny the babies but he just grew and grew – and he’s turned out to be a little superstar.”
Kastone’s delayed growth may have been owing to his lack of appropriate nutrition early on, Bethan-May said, and may have caused other issues.
“He had to have tendon surgery a few years ago,” she said. “He was about 1/10 lame and we investigated but couldn’t get to the bottom of it so they went in with a camera and found a tiny longitudinal tear. They repaired it and he did a year of rehab and hacking, and came back better.”
Kastone, who eventually grew to 17hh and is now 11, did not do too much as a youngster but it soon became apparent what he enjoyed.
“He absolutely loves jumping,” Bethan-May said. “We just thought we’d see what he could do. He qualified for the Cotswold Cup in limited outings and I knew he had the potential to win but it was whether he and I could hold it together on the day.
“He normally does a good dressage test, if he doesn’t get excited and do a random flying change or buck because he’s having a good time, and he can go a bit green across country. He’s absolutely brilliant showjumping but with all the marquees and distractions, sometimes his concentration goes to them rather than the fences, and the pressure was unreal.
“It was so exciting to win; I cried and cried because I was so proud of him. He loves being in front; I talk to him and had said ‘We’re in the lead and if you want to lead the lap of honour, you need to jump clear’. I think he listened because he loved doing the lap of honour! That was his favourite part of the day as he loves a crowd.”
Bethan-May said she hopes Kastone’s story might show what rescue horses and ponies can do.
“Even though he had such a poor start in life, such a hard time, it hasn’t limited him,” she said. “He’s able to go out and do all this, and he loves it. That’s why I do it.”
You may also be interested in:
‘He is a fantastic example of how much potential rescue horses have, if only people will give them a chance