The soldier who looks after Dudley is known as Horse's Groom. He is the one responsible for turning Dudley from being just a very large animal into a drum horse. He exercises Dudley by taking him for a couple of walks around the yard as the drum horse gets to be ridden only on parades. The Horse's Groom assists the rider with tacking up and getting the horse ready for parades. The drum horse has an unusual steering mechanism. Normally, horses' reins are steered with the hands. Drum horses' reins are steered with a rider's feet.