Heavy-horse specialist

Annie Rose runs Cumbrian Heavy Horses, providing riding and working to safeguard rare Suffolks and Clydesdales

- Briony Reed

I have always had horses – I was one of those kids who would jump on anything – but I haven’t always worked with them. I’m a qualified nurse and also love to travel. For years, I’d take off on my motorbike between nursing stints in the UK. One trip took me overland to Israel, another around India for a couple of years and another through Africa – although my bike had been nicked by then, so that was by more conventional transport.

I returned to the UK to study at Edinburgh and a while later moved to Skye. It was there that I acquired my first two heavy horses and learnt to drive them. But I also started to ride my Clydesdale, Max. I discovered that he was amazing under saddle and I thought, “Why on earth aren’t people riding these horses?”

At that stage, I was a single mum with two kids and two horses, which was certainly grounding, and then I thought it would be a super idea to get two more horses! I started offering riding and getting qualifications; it’s so important to do things properly. We were initially approved in Scotland, followed by British Horse Society (BHS) approval. I was beside myself with happiness; we were the first – and I believe are still the only – BHS approved heavy-horse centre.