Harrison was wounded in the war and sent home earlier than Charlie. But it wasn't long before Charlie was shipped home to Harrison, and he arrived at the train station a few miles from Harrison's farm. When Harrison rode Charlie toward home, Charlie seemed to remember where he was. Just to test this, Harrison tried to ride him past the gates to the farm, but Charlie refused to go and headed straight for the gates.
An unexplained incident happened on Charlie's homecoming, as told by Baker in Animal War Heroes. Charlie had a stablemate from his pre-war days—a small, old pony that was normally quiet and docile. Charlie's old stablemate rarely neighed or carried on.
Yet two hours before Charlie returned home, the old pony started neighing, as if calling out to Charlie, and he restlessly trotted around the paddock. “This may seem almost incredible, but the simple fact remains that the little pony behaved in a most peculiar manner for two hours previous to Charlie's return, and stood leaning over the hedge close to the gates waiting to welcome him. He could not possibly have seen Charlie coming, since there were two hedges, a tennis court, and some gardens completely screening the paddock from the road” The two old friends made a big fuss over each other for quite awhile.
After the war ended, horsemanship schools were started to give the soldiers something to do while they waited the months it could take to be shipped home. The soldiers learned how to compete in horse shows; in pulling competitions, jumping, polo, and equitation, which is a working competition that includes dressage (horses move to music); and in ease of handling, such as overcoming obstacles that they would encounter in a field within a certain period of time. The riding style might also demonstrate the styles used in different countries.
"The two old friends made a big fuss over each other for quite a while."