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Post by wabuska on Dec 24, 2009 13:51:30 GMT 1
What gorgeous pictures Varkie. Stunning girl. Thanks for the input. Fal's having lessons and riding my 13.2 mare at home on the lead and lunge line (she's too lame to be hers). Frankly, I think the formal lessons are rushing her on, as she's trotting off the lead and would canter if let! I will put her on the leadrein for a long time here despite her bravado but the balance and even a rising trot are now there. I just want to find THE right one and I think we can work around the 4" issue. Here she is with 12.2 Buddy at her first 'show' last weekend at the school. She had to mount and do a test at walk and trot. (I elected for her to be led). She's six at the end of next month. Practising obstacles on Goldilocks... 12.2
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daisysp8
Grand Prix Poster
People only see what they are prepared to see
Posts: 2,120
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Post by daisysp8 on Dec 24, 2009 14:28:44 GMT 1
Awwwww bless her .... she looks fantasic at the side of the 12.2 ... and about right on the ridden 12.2 ... i`d say you really wouldn`t go far wrong with the size you`re looking at as the extra couple of inches is neither here nor there. She can grow into, and build up a good relationship over the coming years, rather than just "click" and go well together and then outgrow with in a year or two. I like the look of the grey .... Looks a kind sort
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Post by portiabuzz on Dec 24, 2009 14:45:22 GMT 1
ahhh x
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Post by wabuska on Dec 24, 2009 16:47:12 GMT 1
Thanks, she's going well, but I'm insisted on things progressing slowly. I don't want her to be the ninny I am having had a few good scares. She's a weed Daisy, and will grow into something bigger, I'm sure you're right. I've made a loose arrangement to view after Christmas. Gawd... more poo picking.... argh. Ah well, if it's meant to be.
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Post by hazelhorse on Dec 24, 2009 20:44:36 GMT 1
As a mum of four girls who all ride, and were competant on riding school ponies before they had their own, can I insert a word of caution. I have found with the girls that although they can ride outsized riding school ponies with no problem, a pony without the level of work/training/boredom what ever makes a good childs riding school pony, was not so easy. I initially bought the girls two ponies to share between them, but found that the 12hh Sec B was way too much for my youngest, and the next up whose pony she really ended up as didn't really get to grips with her until she had really grown out of her at the age of 11.
I feel that if you want a tiny dot to have a 13.2 pony that they can cope with at the age of six it would need to be very much a ploddy type, and then your daughter would outgrow the ability of the pony very soon anyway. Small children do much better on ponies who are the right size for them as the pony will soon learn they can outwit the child and walk all over them. I have seen it many times at Pony Club too, that children on ponies that are too large and too strong, lose their nerve and either downsize or give up.
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natalia
Grand Prix Poster
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Post by natalia on Dec 24, 2009 21:41:47 GMT 1
Hazelhorse- i throughly agree! Children need ponies of the right size for them now! They get over ponies being sold very quickly too, esp. if anohter is there to take its place, its normally the adults that get more attached! I also think if your planning on doing pony club then you would be better tostart with a good 11.2 or 12hh then move on when she's ready and confident on that. Best place to start looking is local PC as good ponies are passed on through word of mouth.
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Post by wabuska on Dec 24, 2009 23:11:21 GMT 1
Thanks. Duly noted. I do feel though that I can use and school a pony for now and let Faelen do what she wants with it under my supervision for a year or two. I really loathe the idea of a 12hh pony sold on in a couple of years, that really worries me. I don't know anyone I would loan to here without being up the walls with problems. I completely understand what you're saying though. Appreciated.
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Post by portiabuzz on Dec 24, 2009 23:15:57 GMT 1
Kanga can you be my mum and get me a pony too??!
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Post by KoLaTo on Dec 25, 2009 1:03:46 GMT 1
LOL portiabuzz, thats what my daughters friends are always saying to her!
As you know Kanga, i have 12.2, 13.3 & 14.1ish at home now. Small is 11 nearly 12 and still on the 12.2 without a problem and she isn't a small kid either. The 13.3 is fine for her in an enclosed area but far too strong out hacking for her to be confident and take the lead, the 14.1 is way over her head even thou technically she is a perfect size for him, he is built very different to the 13.3 so she actually looks like a pea on a mountain on him.
Pony clubs are notorious for bigger and better all the time, they drive me simply mad as the kids only have the ponies for a yr or even less and then they are onto bigger all the time.
If a county judge tells my daughter that she has at least another yr on the 12.2 then i'm not arguing and she can stay on him as long as she wants or when her feet scrape the ground - LOL
Small ponies are so much fun for the kids when they can handle them all themselves, even a 12.2 has a mind of its own thou and sometimes completely takes the pee.......... it also makes a big difference when the pony is wide or deep barralled as they take up the leg and can make it difficult for kids to ride properly.
Looks like a nice pony but i wouldn't buy a first pony from a riding school, take them out of an institutionalised environment and they can change very rapidly, they work hard in the schools and it is a major difference to them coming to a private home and pootling about, some can have a major personality change.
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Post by jamesb on Dec 25, 2009 1:28:13 GMT 1
Kanga can you be my mum and get me a pony too??! Ditto - BTW I'm 38, 6'2" and about 13st 9 ;D so I'm guessing 12.2hh might be a bit small??
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Post by anastasia55555 on Dec 25, 2009 1:50:21 GMT 1
have to say size isnt everything ( sounds dodgy!!) i think it depends alot more on whether they 'click' make a good partnership, of course for example of 5 yr old on a 15.2hh TB isnt going to be a good match, but im sure u know what i mean! A 11hh could be the right size, but tempermant etc may mean it is too much, where as a 13.2hh who is much more responsive and 'trained' to a smaller rider might be more suitable. I think be open minded, within reason of course, and dont worry too much about size (apart from being practical). as a 14yr old and approx 5' 5", the first horse i ever rode in a proper lesson was a 16hh shire x TB, and since then i have varied from 16.2hh to 12.2hh. ive ridden 14hh that i have felt so unsafe on, and then ridden a 16-16.2hh and felt totally safe. The pony on the link looks lovely :-) good luck!! Varkie, those last two pics are adorable :-D, both daughter and pony!
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Post by portiabuzz on Dec 25, 2009 15:06:17 GMT 1
i asked Kanga first!! x
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Post by clara81 on Dec 27, 2009 13:07:32 GMT 1
My Dad could ride that grey pony! He'd last you forever! Glad you are being so sensible about buying your daughter a pony. As a breeder of Welsh Mountain ponies I am amazed at how many mums think a four year old is a suitable pony for a four year old child (they can grow up together etc). They see the flashy ponies in the LR ring and they get this idea about dressing up and joining in but they don't realise how much work goes in, or how unsuitable Welshies can be! (or that 4 year old kids can't school their own pony) They don't think either how easy it is for a child to lose their confidence, and how hard it is to get it back. The number of times we've had to say look you'd be better with a 15 year old been-there-done-that type of pony. It doesn't matter what it looks like! I had one family come to look at a "lightly backed 4yo" and the kid got out of the car in a riding hat, smacking her whip on her boot! Needless to say they didn't get the pony! Good luck finding a suitable, safe and fun pony!
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Post by wabuska on Dec 27, 2009 14:51:27 GMT 1
James.... I can't be your Mummy.... pull your socks up.... I'm going to look (without Faelen) IF the ice ever melts! Thanks all... yes, freshly backed or young was never an option. I want the Mary Poppins type and we're not pony club mad here, so I'm not looking for a speedy, flash type by any means at all. And.... if there's an underlying feeling that Kya is buying a second horse and calling it the child's pony.... ehem, well, er, of course that's nonsense.
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Post by sunnylynn11 on Dec 27, 2009 17:43:04 GMT 1
We bought our first pony, Hippo when my son was 6 and my daughter was 3, he suited both but they both grew out of him in ability, he was a fantastic lead rein pony and would hack out great off the lead rein but not very well schooled off lead rein (and both kids were ready to be off lead rein), so we decided to sell him and buy a first ridden type. Along came Peppermint, she was bought for Emily (who was coming up for 6) and Charlie aged 9. Charlie soon decided that horse riding wasnt for him and although he rides Pep from time to time, he's not really that interested so I dont push him. Emily, however is the opposite, he loves Pep & would be with her 24/7 if she could. Peppermint is 12.2 and a perfect first pony.... .....BUT, she's no jumping pony, she'll do 2ft OK, but thats about it, which is fine for Emily now but I do wonder in, say 2/3 years time, Emily will be ready for a slightly more forward going pony with slightly more jumping ability. Emily wont have outgrown her though. As it stands at the mo, I plan on keeping Peppermint until Emily is around 10 (maybe more), but, we'll have to wait and see. The trouble with Emily riding Peppermint when we first got her was that Emily's legs didnt go past the saddle flaps so Peppermint found it hard to know what Emily was asking, Emily then got frustrated as she was flapping away & getting nowhere. Peppermint is honestly as good as they come but up till fairly recently, when the menage gate was opened & Emily was walking her in, Emily didnt really have the strength to stop her, which was OK, Pep didnt bomb off or anything, just walked the way she wanted to! , so I would always be there to help out, but this was a slight backwards step for Emily as she used to handle Hippo all the time on her own (obviously with me close by!). It largely depends on what your plans are and what type of parent you are. Personally, I want Emily to do as much as she possibly can on her own. I encourage her to tack up and untack on her own and also groom and handle Peppermint as much as she can on her own. Peppermint is too big for her to do this really but we are lucky as Pep is very very accommodating! Emily also does LOTS at pony club and all her friends of her age are off lead rein and very independent, Emily is very confident and so the fact that Peppermint is a bit too big at the moment, they both cope OK. However, if your child is not quite as confident, I would say go for one the correct size now as children can lose confidence very easily. It will be hard to sell the pony on after a couple of years but if your child loses confidence then a bigger pony will end up being sold on anyway! You also need to consider the pony, a 12hh strong pony can be worse than a 13.2 easy pony. Be careful when buying, there are people out there selling "first" ponies that arent really "first" ponies. I had Peppermint on a 3 week trial. I'm posting LOTS of pics for you to see what sizes our ponies are/have been and the ages that the children are/were. Emily age 3 on 11hh Hippo Charlie, age 6 on Hippo Charlie age 8 riding Hippo just before we sold him Emily age 5 riding 14.2 Zico (she was on lead rein at pony club camp) Emily age 5, leading Hippo, just before we sold him Charlie, age 8 riding Peppermint when we first got her Emily age 5 leading Peppermint, she seemed quite a step up from Hippo! Emily riding Peppermint when we first bought her Charlie riding Peppermint aged 8 (nearly 9) Emily age 6 1/2 riding Pep in the summer Emily riding 14.2 Zico in the summer (I would not let Emily ride Zico anywhere apart from the menage, he'd be far too strong for her) This is the most recent of Emily, she's almost 7 now.
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