At what age do New Forest ponies mature?

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HaffiesRock

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I know its a how long is a piece of string type question, but I know some breeds are slower developing than others.

I am potentially taking on loan a 4 and a half year old New Forest mare as a companion for my pony and a ride for my sharer (pony backed 3 months ago) Shes standing at 13.3hh currently and just wondered in your experience if she would grow/fill out any further? Iy makes no odds to me as I wont be riding her, just curious.

Thanks
 
my pony is 6, rising 7. i bought him when he had just turned 5, he hasnt grown at all, he is 13.2hh. of course that doesnt mean he had finished developing internally and he certainly hasnt matured behaviourally! he still acts like a baby.
so, you may have a year of growing but certainly my pony had stopped by age 5.
 
my guys certainly slowed in the whole growing upwards by that age, but they still looked quite babyish, and mentally were quite babyish too, by 6/7 my guys have beefed up and look a whole lot more like an adult pony, and they have settled into being really brave, confident ponies :)
 
Really depends on the start they have had in life.... I have known them to continue growing and filling out up to 7. But I've also known a 4 year old that was the finished product.
 
Yep, I had a two year old [rising three] to play about with over winter, he got plenty of feed and plenty of things to do, he won the local spring show champion and judge remarked how well behaved he was.
He went home looking full grown though still immature in some ways.
I went to buy a 4 year old to replace him...... guess what the 4 year old was a poor little thing, looked about 18 months old, I told the vendor [who fancied himself as a dealer] my opinion, not to mention the poor old mare in the corner also for sale, advertised as Section D, looked more like a carthorse that had had a hard life!
 
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