MIKE Branch, a horse whisperer from Tennessee, worked his magic with Dartmoor ponies at the show, wowing crowds at the Lady Clinton Ring, writes Tom French.

Mike was at the show after forging a close friendship with Charlotte Faulkner, who runs the Friends of the Dartmoor Hill Pony organisation. A British student that attended Mike's wild horse school in America told the FDHP about his work. Following a visit in March where Mike worked on two of Charlotte's ponies, she invited him back for the county show.

The lead-up to the show is something Mike won't be forgetting. He said: 'They had probably the most memorable horse of my entire career. It was a little pony that they had brought in as a yearling, and gelded. Then when they turned it back out the herd stallion rejected it, and so it took flight, and left, and they hadn't seen it again.

'Two years went by, and just out of the blue the pony showed up just two days before I came back to England for the Devon County Show. They had three ponies there waiting for me to take my pick, and see which one we'd want to use at the show.

'I said let's use the one that just came back. He's going to be wild, and let's just see what we can get done with him. By the end of the three days we were riding the pony free out in the Lady Clinton Arena, riding him over obstacles, riding over a teeter-totter, over a bridge — he would even mount the little pedestal where they put their little feet up on. I could hear a few people in the background saying, "oh, that's one of Charlotte's ponies she's been training for a couple years already!" — 'but he wasn't! He was just that eager to learn. He appreciated someone taking him in and having a leader. That's one of the things I try to teach to horses and ponies alike, I am a leader.

'I don't do that through being a dictator, but I do that through demonstrating that I can be a leader, I can keep them safe, but I need them to do as I ask. They understand that.'

As well as forming a strong bond with the Faulkner family and their ponies, Mike felt a great affinity with Dartmoor. He said: 'I love Dartmoor. It's like I can't see enough of it! I live in Tennessee. When I first moved there, I was completely fascinated by the Great Smokey Mountains. Then I come over here and when I see Dartmoor it's like going to the Great Smokey Mountains every time! Even though they're very different, it's that same type of attraction.

'Of course the Faulkner family has made me feel like it's home to me. 'I love looking at all the different tors, and different rock formations, and the walls that have been there for centuries and centuries. 'And then the little landmarks from the Lords from hundreds of years ago. I even talked with one fellow who told me of an experience he had with pixies, and gave me all that deal! It's quite fascinating. It's so beautiful.'

l The Friends of the Dartmoor Hill Pony recently gained charity status. Their work helps to preserve the long-term future of the Dartmoor pony and allow future generations to enjoy them. For more details, call 01364 631 036 or visit their website on http://www.friendsofthedartmoorhillpony.co.uk">www.friendsofthedartmoorhillpony.co.uk