This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/dorset/8084964.stm
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Man amazes locals by riding zebra | Man amazes locals by riding zebra |
| (31 minutes later) | |
| A racehorse trainer has been causing a stir in Dorset by riding a zebra down to his local pub. | A racehorse trainer has been causing a stir in Dorset by riding a zebra down to his local pub. |
| Bill Turner had always wanted a zebra after being told they were incredibly hard to be broken in and ridden. | |
| He bought Zebedee from a wildlife park in Holland and after just two-and-half-weeks amazed locals by riding him to the Kings Arms pub in Sherborne. | He bought Zebedee from a wildlife park in Holland and after just two-and-half-weeks amazed locals by riding him to the Kings Arms pub in Sherborne. |
| Mr Turner says he hoped to attach a harness to Zebedee in the future and train him to jump. | |
| He added: "The first two or three days I had him I thought to myself 'you silly old devil, I've bitten off more than you can chew here'. We were having real problems. | |
| When people saw me me going down the road they were stopping, jumping out saying 'I don't believe what I'm seeing' Bill Turner | When people saw me me going down the road they were stopping, jumping out saying 'I don't believe what I'm seeing' Bill Turner |
| "The landlord down the pub and customers reckoned it would take six months to train but after two-and-half-weeks we did it. | "The landlord down the pub and customers reckoned it would take six months to train but after two-and-half-weeks we did it. |
| "When people saw me me going down the road they were stopping, jumping out saying 'I don't believe what I'm seeing'. | "When people saw me me going down the road they were stopping, jumping out saying 'I don't believe what I'm seeing'. |
| "A few of the pub customers came out and saw him and quickly went back in saying 'I'll have another pint of that, it's better than I thought it was'." | "A few of the pub customers came out and saw him and quickly went back in saying 'I'll have another pint of that, it's better than I thought it was'." |
| Mr Turner said he had always wanted to train a zebra after being told they were almost impossible to ride. | |
| "We have broken everything else, we've broken donkeys, ponies, race horses, carthorses, every other type of horse available, and it was just a challenge I wanted to do. | |
| "They are hard to train as they panic very easily. | "They are hard to train as they panic very easily. |
| "Also, everybody that has had something to do with them before tells me they have no brain, but I am not convinced with that because some of the things we've done with him shows he has got a brain." | "Also, everybody that has had something to do with them before tells me they have no brain, but I am not convinced with that because some of the things we've done with him shows he has got a brain." |
| Mr Tuner's daughter Kristine Turner said: "Everyone says it's impossible to break in a zebra but it has been done before," she added. | Mr Tuner's daughter Kristine Turner said: "Everyone says it's impossible to break in a zebra but it has been done before," she added. |
| "In the 1800s there was a man who used to ride around on one. | "In the 1800s there was a man who used to ride around on one. |
| "It's down to a number of factors such as the animal's age and other things that meant it worked." | "It's down to a number of factors such as the animal's age and other things that meant it worked." |