EAST Yorkshire’s longest serving police horse is set to retire after dedicating more than 15 years service to the force.

Ross joined Humberside Police force when he was only one-year-old and was turned away for three years and broken in force as a four-year-old when he quickly became an established police horse.

Throughout his career Ross has covered hundreds of football matches and has worked in all the Yorkshire force areas as well as in Manchester, Nottingham, West Midlands, Lincolnshire and Northumbria.

In May 1992 he took part in “All the Queens Horses” - a collaboration of more than 1,500 horses from all walks of life including numerous police forces and The Kings Troop.

He has policed protests, strikes, demonstrations and marches including most recently the industrial dispute at BP Saltend, East Yorkshire for six weeks and the industrial dispute at the Linsey Oil Refinery, Killingholme for two weeks in the depths of winter.

Ross has attended protests by the English Defence League and animal rights demonstrations as well as working at numerous fetes and open days, patrolling at York Races and he even patrolled Teesside Airport when President Bush landed there.

All of this has been carried out alongside his everyday general patrol duties covering the whole of Humberside’s force area.

He has completed missing person searches, neighbourhood support patrols, public order patrols and has taken part in large public events, celebrations, major incident enquiries and public reassurance patrols.

PC Caroline Middleton, from the Mounted Section, said: “I can honestly say and speak for all mounted officers that Ross is the best police horse we have ever had. There is nothing that scares him or that he would refuse to go into.

“Ross is the only police horse I know to get excited in public order situations. They are what he thrives on.

“He actively wants to be involved in crowd dynamics and is in his element at the front of an escort.

“He is a joy to work around in every field. He is well behaved for everyone and he would load himself into the lorry if he could.

“He generally knows what you want from him before you even ask.

“His retirement is well deserved but he will be missed by everyone who has ever had the pleasure to work with him.”

Ross is set to head to The Horses Trust in Buckinghamshire in mid-February to enjoy his retirement.