Woah there! Here’s Digby, Britain’s first guide HORSE
WHEN Mohammed Patel walks around town, he’s greeted with admiring gasps of ‘oooh’ and ‘ahhhh’ and ‘what a clever boy’.
However, the compliments are not for him, but for his faithful companion Digby, Britain’s first guide horse. The American Miniature is able to push the buttons on pedestrian crossings, seek out post boxes and even pick out natty shirts at the shops.
‘I plan to take him to restaurants and to work, even out clubbing if it’s feasible,’ says Mohammed, a BBC journalist. He was born with the degenerative eye condition retinitis pigmentosa and is now almost completely blind. But he was unable to get a guide dog because of a fear of canines.
‘I’m hoping Digby will change my life,’ he says. ‘At the moment, I’m reliant on people. With Digby I’ll be much more independent.’
The one-year-old colt is still in training with owner Katy Smith, and it will be another two years before he is ready to live in an 8ft by 8ft stable Mohammed is planning for his parents’ back garden in Blackburn. ‘Dad said at least Digby would be a good lawnmower,’ says the 24-year-old.
Digby is learning 23 verbal commands including ‘forward’, ‘wait’ and ‘leave’, and takes regular trips to the shops of Northallerton, North Yorkshire, where he’s something of a celebrity. ‘He’s a good shopper,’ Katy says. ‘I took him to the department store and he pulled out a pair of khaki trousers and two tops from the rails with his lips. They were lovely, but the price made my eyes water.’
Katy is the first UK trainer of guide horses and says one advantage is that they can live up to 50, compared to the eight-year working life of a guide dog, making them lifelong companions.
‘He’ll be such a magnet for people,’ Mohammed says. ‘I’m quite looking forward to that bit.’
Might he also attract the ladies? ‘I hope so,’ Mohammed laughs.
‘He pulled out a lovely pair of shirts – but expensive!’