Buying a first pony

S

stanley101

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Hello, I am new on here and would like some advice.

I am thinking about buying my daughter a pony, I have been looking on horsemart etc for a while and there seems to be a huge differnce in cost. I have seen anything from £500 - £8000.

Now she only wants a pony for fun not showing or anything. I was wondering if I could get away with buying from the cheaper end of the scale or is it a case of you get what you pay for. Is it possible to get a safe bombproof pony cheaply?

What would your lower limit be?

Oh and any other advice you have feel free to throw in!

Thanks

S
 
interesting post - im at the opposite end as i will be selling a first pony in the spring. He is 12.3 h, will be 6 years old and is an absoloute gem. He is NOT going to win any HOYS showing classes, being a heinz 57 coloured hairy monster however he is a cutie!
I have no idea how much to sell him for - hes bomproof in traffic, pops a small course of jumps, goes off voice commands alone, gentleman in every way etc etc, lives in or out - perfect little scruff for having fun on. i have been given conflicting advice on how much to sell him for ranging from £500 to 4k!! Its very hard to put a price on safe sound little ponies, my little man is worth his weight in gold but yet is never going to be a world beater...
 
Hi,

it is very possible to get a bombproof pony for a reasonable price, you dont need to spend ridiculous amounts of money on a first pony. Your daughter will want to have fun and build up her confidence on her pony before getting something she can go further on.

You may find that the lower end of the scale are for ponies approaching or in their golden years! but to be honest i think age doesnt matter as long as the pony is in good health and been well looked after. What sort of thing are you looking for height, breed age etc, as you may find many HHO'ers will like an excuse to browse horsey ads helping you look for a pony!
 
I am no expert on breeds etc but it must be able to live out all year as that is the only livery option available.

I'm also not that good with sizes my daughter is 10 and say's roughly between 13-14hh.

THANK YOU

S
 
To be honest there is no reason a £500 pony wouldn't suit you any less than a £4000. sometimes people are not worried about the money and just want a good home, but it also does work the other way, some are cheap because they have problems! The main thing I would do is set your self a LIMIT then look at anything that is suitable and take an experinced person with you!! Personally i think anything over 13.2 could be a lil strong for a 10yr as their 1st pony.
Good Luck and have fun looking!!!
 
Also have in mind that 10yr old girls can grow a lot very fast. Obviously you know your daughter and she might not grow until she is 14 or more, but I shot up around the 9/10yrs mark and haven't changed much since so...
 
I think its worth buying an older pony as a first one. They can cost a bit more to run but if they have 'Been there, got the tshirt' they are worth their weight in gold. Over 13 tends to bring the price down anyway.
smile.gif
 
The other thing to consider is a loan pony - my daughter did this, we were lucky to find an 11.2 companion pony at the end of our road needed a rider to keep her weight off. Has been a huge learning curve for both of us, but it has meant we have now just progressed to owning a bigger pony.
(my daughter is a tall 10, so I'd suggest something about 13.2 would be about right for the average 10 year old)
 
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