New sessions offer dog owners in Pembrokeshire a chance to get fit alongside their pets through the fast-growing sport of canicross

A NEW dog-powered sport is coming to Milford Haven, giving local people and their pets a fresh way to get active together.

Dog trainer Tamsin Mathias, founder of Welsh Underdogs Canicross and Welsh Underdogs Dog Training, has introduced certified DogFit canicross classes to the area after qualifying as an instructor.

Canicross is a growing sport in which runners are attached to their dogs by a harness and bungee line, allowing the dog to run ahead and help create shared momentum. The sport combines cross-country running with dog handling and is becoming increasingly popular among owners looking for a more active partnership with their pets.

Ms Mathias said she was proud to bring DogFit training to Milford Haven.

She said: “I’m incredibly proud to be bringing DogFit training to the Milford Haven area.

“Canicross is such an empowering sport. It builds confidence in both dogs and handlers, improves fitness, and creates a real sense of partnership.

“I’m excited to help more people get started safely and enjoy it as much as I do.

“I’m also excited to be representing DogFit through Welsh Underdogs. They’re a fantastic UK-based company, and I’m excited to be working with them to help make canicross accessible to more people.”

Her new qualification means she can now offer structured canicross classes as well as one-to-one sessions, with the nearest certified training previously based near Cardiff.

Ms Mathias already holds professional qualifications with the Institute of Modern Dog Trainers and the Dog Training College. She runs with her spaniel-beagle cross Toby and has experience competing in events including Canix Fur Nations and Red Warrior.

She will be offering DogFit’s Couch to 5K canicross courses, helping dog owners of all abilities to get involved through group classes and personalised coaching. Training will also include guidance on equipment, running technique and dog fitness.

As a certified dog trainer, Ms Mathias said dog welfare and ethical training methods remain central to her work.

She said: “Toby is a very high-energy breed, and even though we do agility, I felt that he needed a job to do.

“Canicross has become his job, and our bond has strengthened as a result.

“I’ve also introduced my nervous collie to the sport, and he is coming on in leaps and bounds.”

Canicross is said to offer physical and mental benefits for both dogs and owners, while also helping improve behaviour and providing access to a supportive outdoor community.

Details of upcoming classes and training sessions are available through the Welsh Underdogs Canicross website and Welsh Underdogs Dog Training social media pages.

Caption:

Tamsin Mathias and Toby are bringing certified canicross classes to Milford Haven (Pic: Supplied)

Pembroke church will mark completion of major restoration project with ringing, refreshments and an exhibition of photographs

ST MARY’S CHURCH in Pembroke will hold a special service on Sunday (May 10) at 3:00pm to bless its newly restored bells and three new bells added as part of the project.

The service is expected to be a significant occasion for the church and the town, with refreshments available before and after, along with plenty of bell ringing to mark the celebration. Photographs showing the restoration work will also be on display.

The event will also reflect the long-standing link between the town’s mayors and St Mary’s bells.

Former Mayor of Pembroke, Councillor Dennis Evans, famously climbed the church’s narrow tower steps in full regalia to inspect the bells during his term of office.

Organisers say it is fitting that Pembroke’s new Mayor, Cllr Jonathan Grimes, County Councillor for Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, will take part in the service at the beginning of his mayoral year.

The celebration is expected to draw local residents, church supporters and those with an interest in Pembroke’s history, as St Mary’s marks the completion of a project that has preserved an important part of the town’s heritage.

Photo caption:

Tower visit: Former Mayor Dennis Evans views the bells at St Mary’s Church during a previous visit (Pic: supplied).

Dyfed-bred mare rose from a farm in Eglwyswrw to national ceremonial fame and became a trailblazer for the Household Cavalry

TRIBUTES have been paid across Pembrokeshire following the death of Major Juno, the Dyfed-bred Shire horse whose journey from a working farm in Eglwyswrw to the centre of Britain’s ceremonial life made her a source of enormous local pride.

Known at home as Willa Rose, she was bred at Dyfed Shire Horse Farm, where her size, strength and calm temperament quickly marked her out as something special. Born on May 10, 2013, she was part of the fourth generation of the Dyfed bloodline and would go on to become one of the farm’s most celebrated horses.

In 2021, she was bought by the Household Cavalry and sent to London, where she underwent two years of specialist training before being officially named Juno in 2023.

Her rise was historic. Major Juno became the first mare to pass out onto parade as a Household Cavalry drum horse, placing both horse and farm in the national spotlight. The achievement shone a light on Pembrokeshire and on the work of breeders in rural west Wales, with many locally seeing her success as something truly extraordinary.

She went on to appear in three consecutive Trooping the Colour parades, cementing her place among the most notable horses ever bred at the farm. For local people, she was far more than a ceremonial animal. She was living proof that a horse raised in Pembrokeshire could reach the very highest level of national service.

Major Juno came from a remarkable line. Her uncle Celt went on to serve in London as Major Mercury after joining the Household Cavalry in 2008, while another Dyfed horse, Ed, later became Major Apollo. In 2023, Apollo and Juno paraded together at Trooping the Colour, an extraordinary moment for the family behind Dyfed Shire Horse Farm and a measure of the farm’s unique reputation for producing elite ceremonial horses.

Despite her national fame, Juno never lost her connection to Pembrokeshire. She returned to the farm for public visits, drawing crowds of admirers eager to see the Dyfed-bred mare whose reputation had spread far beyond the county.

Her death, after a short illness, has prompted an outpouring of sadness from those who followed her story from the beginning. Dyfed Shire Horse Farm paid tribute to her as “our Rose”, while the family has asked for her to be returned to Pembrokeshire to be laid to rest alongside Major Mercury.

Among those paying tribute was county councillor Huw Carnhuan Murphy, who wrote: “Your journey is done, proud to have been there on the day it all began on May 10th, 2013 with Nikki Murphy & Anna Raymond.”

From the fields of north Pembrokeshire to Horse Guards Parade, Major Juno carried the county with her. In death, as in life, she remains a symbol of the care, quality and quiet ambition that took a Welsh-bred mare to the very heart of national tradition.