Dippy’s story: from rescue centre foal to stunning event horse

World Horse Welfare Norfolk Swing – Dippy to his friends – was born at our Hall Farm Rescue and Rehoming Centre in 2008 after his mother was rescued from neglect. He thrived in the care of our expert team and was first rehomed as a youngster to his groom, Briony, before current rehomer Stella took him on in 2018 and the pair formed a great partnership.

Youngsters are often overlooked in favour of older horses and ponies but can be extremely rewarding for an experienced rehomer. Thoroughbred gelding Dippy thrived in his first rehomer’s expert care and was backed to ride when he was old enough.

Dippy and Briony’s partnership flourished, with the pair competing successfully together in a number of disciplines and even representing their club at the Riding Club World Championships in 2016. However, in 2018 Briony realised her new job meant she didn’t have enough time to keep Dippy competition-fit – but having rehomed him, she knew he could return to World Horse Welfare and find another rehomer to continue his career.

Dippy’s new rehomer Stella clicked with him very quickly and the pair have been going from strength to strength ever since. The pair spent their first winter together getting to know each other and working on their showjumping skills. Their first eventing season together proved to be a great success, with the pair progressing speedily and flying the flag for rescue horses everywhere.

“Dippy was named Dippy for a reason! He’s quite a character and very playful – he’s 11 but you’d have thought he was about four. I’ve had him a year now and he’s really boosted my confidence: we’ve got from BE90 to Novice together, which I’m really pleased about.

“We’ve got lots of training planned and have high hopes for next season – we’re aiming to get to Novice again, with our sights set on 2* eventually. We’ve been showjumping at 1.10m over the winter, as that’s our weakest discipline so hopefully some practise will help us go on to do bigger things when we go eventing again!

“People are really surprised when they see the World Horse Welfare logo – nobody can believe he’s a rescue horse and they’re always in awe of him, just like I am. Anyone looking to rehome a horse should definitely do it: World Horse Welfare is so supportive and rehoming is just such a great thing to do – it’s so rewarding.”
Stella, Dippy’s rehomer

If you’ve been inspired by Dippy’s story, why check out our horses and ponies ready to find new homes today?