Can I afford a Shetland Pony? (Help)

[rascal]

I was also a horse mad child, I had my lesson every week and like you helped out. My parents were not horsey (in fact my Mother hates horses) and although I really wanted one, I had to wait until I was 18 and working.
The amount of land you have available is not enough for a pony, and they need compamny. you would need to rent secure grazing, and that will add up. Our horses live out with a shelter, but we have almost 2 aces per horse/pony. Please think about it. One day you will be in a position to have one, but not yet.

 

[harribea]

Hi Shauna, it's lovely to hear how passionate you are about horses and I have no doubt that you would pour your heart and soul into caring for any you owned. I've been horse-mad all my life and was thrilled to get my first ponies - 2 miniature Shetlands - about 4 years ago. I look after them at home and I also now have a Connemara in a livery yard nearby. BTW I have to say that my sensitive Connemara is much easier to handle than the cheeky Shetlands!

I hope you're not disheartened by all these posts because they really are full of great advice. There's nothing wrong with what you want but you would be wise to be patient. The problems that have been flagged here shouldn't put you off in the long-run but they must be resolved before you can go ahead and bring any ponies to your home. You wouldn't bring home a baby without making sure you had all the practical things needed day-to-day, the knowledge to handle any emergencies and the money to support both regular and unexpected costs. And, in some ways, horses are trickier because not everyone will know how to help you if things go wrong.

It's really hard when you ask a question and don't get the answer you were hoping for. I'm sure many of us on here have ended up with horses that weren't quite right for us because we've not been able to take the advice of others! But you don't need to look at this as a yes/no situation. You could take all this information and put together a list of things you'll need to work on over the next few months or years. That way, you'll still be making progress towards your goal and you'll know that you're going to provide the best home ever for your ponies when you do finally get them.

So hold onto your dream but don't rush into a purchase - you owe it to your future ponies to handle this planning phase really well. One day, it will all come together. Good luck.