DYFED Shire Horse Farm is unbridled in its delight after its five-year-old shire horse, Ed, has been chosen to hoof it to the Queen's Household Cavalry.

Ed was bought on impulse at a Staffordshire auction in September 2015 when only a yearling and it soon became obvious that he displayed an excellent attitude towards learning.

By the age of three was fully broken into both riding and also driving and by age four was trained to work horse drawn farm machinery.

Last summer, when only four years old Ed was used to transport HRH The Duchess of Cornwall in a horse drawn cart during a Royal visit to the farm in Eglwyswrw.

He has now been chosen to follow in the hoof prints of the farm's Celt Mercury Drumhorse into Royal service and will be the newest member of the Household Cavalry.

Mercury joined the Cavalry back in 2008 and has since participated in eight Trooping the Colours as well as other state events and the world-famous musical ride of the Household Cavalry.

Mercury, still known by his farm name of Celt when not on official duty, is believed to be the youngest Shire to participate in Trooping the Colour and is known for his ability to understand commands in both Welsh and English.

In 2017 Celt's brother called JR was flown to Oman to be trained in the same role for the Cavalry of the Sultanate of Oman.

"Those who will have met our five-year-old Ed since we bought him as a yearling in 2016 will know that he is the most calm, laid back and relaxed of the gentle giant breed," said the farm's owner Huw Murphy. "We know that he will go on to do great things in London.

"Dyfed Shires have a proud history of breeding and working this magnificent but now rare breed of horse and also, over the past decade, supplying them to prestigious organisations for ceremonial roles.

"The Shire is a rare breed of native British animal with numbers now less than the Panda; today they number only a few thousand.

"The work by Dyfed Shires and other breeders to preserve this magnificent animal is critical to prevent their extinction and their use for prestigious ceremonial roles is vital in profiling the breed and its beauty while giving the public the opportunity to appreciate the vital role performed by Shires in years gone by."