Bring Prince Home

Hi my name is Melissa. This is my first ever GoFundMe and I'm really nervous! So bare with...

I can't even begin to explain quite the emotions I feel in writing this - I have tears quite literally streaming down my face.

A few years ago we bought our beautiful boy, Prince (the grey in the right of the picture) home. From the word go, we knew he was a really special boy. He was kind, gentle and willing. A little while after we took the decision to move abroad and because I was pregnant, myself and my husband made the heart breaking decision to find a new home for Prince.

I remember the day a representative from the police called and asked if we would consider allowing him to go to Gloucestershire Police Force and my initial reaction was "Absolutely not!!". However on having further conversations with them, we were reassured that the level of care was second to none and that police horses were regarded as serving members of the force with all the care and the respect that goes with it. We were also guaranteed that at the point of his retirement, Prince would come home to us.

So fast forward.... (sorry I'm trying not to make this War & Peace!!)... In November 2024 (not that we knew as it was all top secret), Gloucestershire constabulary took the decision to shut down its Mounted Unit due to the £12.3million shortfall in their budget, but nothing was released publicly until towards the end of March 2025. I was then made aware by some friends within the force that despite internal recommendations from the equestrian team that 4 of the 5 horses should be retired (including our Prince), Gloucestershire Constabulary were pushing ahead with shoehorning them into West Midlands new mounted unit, despite knowing prince has been diagnosed with mild shivers and is traffic shy so moving there would literally break him.

I contacted the BBC in Gloucestershire who were kind enough to interview me on their local radio station and run a story about the plight of these horses!

Well... here comes some good news... after lots of pushing and shoving and some very unpleasant conversations with the Head of Legal at Gloucestershire Constabulary and a strongly worded email to Maggie Blyth (Temporary Chief Constable) on the 27th of May I was given word that they have decided the best place for Prince to go would be back home with me. However they suggested i make a donation to the Police of £4000 plus take on the £3000 to transport him - I was told I had one week to move him - ONE WEEK!! I explained that to raise the £4000 would take me a little time as with such short notice i could only just about cover the transport cost. I asked if they would allow me to pay in stages. This was verbally agreed with Donna.

Even better, the other horses which had been recommended for retirement (which was initially ignored by Gloucestershire Constabulary and underwent vetting's for transfer to West Mids) have now been confirmed for retirement and are going to live out their days at The Horse Trust - phenomenal news!!

So here comes the fly in the ointment. Having arranged all the transport to fit in with the tight deadline of ONE WEEK - Gloucestershire Constabulary decided they wont let Prince come home to me until they receive the £4000 and have now given us until the 20th June to raise it. We have been told that if we don't meet this deadline, Prince will go to West Midlands for a trial (which Gloucestershire Constabulary have already have already been advised by their team that 1. He is mentally and physically unfit for; and 2. he had been recommended for retirement) or he will be sold somewhere else, to the highest bidder.

I cannot begin to describe the emotional rollercoaster we are going through and the our huge concern over the uncertainty of Prince's future. The elation of thinking he is coming home with a cost that we are willing to pay over time to then be told that the police are once again going back on their word and just see Prince as a commodity with no concern for his welfare.

Donna Lawton, Assistant Chief Constable (who is now on annual leave) confirmed that she believed that the absolute best thing for Prince was to come home to us and said that she was delighted by the happy outcome. Sadly the importance of receiving the full £4000 in one lump sum outweighs the importance of what they believe is best for this noble police horse.

Matt Ulyatt, the CFO of Gloucestershire Constabulary explained that the reason for turnaround in terms of not allowing the £4000 to be paid over time was due to having a responsibility to the people of Gloucestershire to have every penny accounted for but was less concerned with the welfare of Prince.

We are hoping to raise this money in order to bring Prince home. Should we be successful in raising anything over the required amount for Prince, we will donate the rest to The Horse Trust who do such a phenomenal job in looking after so many horses including many retired horses from the Force. Having already paid and arranged for the transport of Prince the sooner we can pay the ransom to the Gloucestershire Police, the sooner we can have this wonderfully kind and gentle horse back safe at home.

Your support and kind generosity to save Prince is overwhelmingly appreciated.