Standing outside of the office I frequently see two police horses walk by. Magnificent beasts they are.
Horses are not very common in Central London outside of grand state occasions. There used to be a stables and riding school a few doors away from me, and Saturdays in particular would see a procession of small children trotting off to the common for their Pony Club induction ceremonies.
I acknowledge that police horses are chosen for their temperament and trained to be stoical non-panicking things. Nevertheless, I believe it is a fundamental of the Highway code and of common sense to pass them slowly. I watched as a BMW driver accelerated past them; I watched a taxi driver and a van driver slow to a crawl. When the offside officer signalled they were pulling out to pass a parked car, the taxi that followed them stopped. Bad move: a 4x4 took that opportunity to emerge from a side road, push in, and, engine revving, accelerate past the horses as they were overtaking the parked car.
Am I being stupid but isn't three-quarters of 'common sense' equivalent to self-preservation. I would go slowly and carefully past horses, even professional working horses, not because the Highway Code says so, but because I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of a frightened rearing beast.
How much does an 18 hand police horse weigh?
