Pauling star can recover from tendon injury without operation

Barters Hill will not require an operation as he recovers from the season-ending tendon injury sustained at Cheltenham's Open meeting.

Trainer Ben Pauling issued an upbeat bulletin on his flagbearer on Monday morning, tweeting a picture of the six-year-old taking a pick of grass out in the paddock.

Pauling said: "We're thrilled. The operation was going to be carried out to allow the tendon to come completely off the hock rather than be half on and half off.

"Over the last four or five days it looked like that had happened naturally and it has been confirmed by the vet."

No operation means nature can take its course in Barters Hill's recovery, and eliminates the dangers of putting the horse under general anaesthetic, which can lead to complications.

However, a return to the track is by no means guaranteed, and Pauling added: "It's a much better position to be in than we were. It doesn't mean we are out of the woods, we won't know if he will come back as a racehorse until we get him back next season and see what power he retains but it's a much better prognosis than it was."

Prior to being pulled up on his chase debut at Cheltenham earlier in the month, Barters Hill had won seven of his eight previous starts, the other defeat coming when fourth in the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.