For anyone with young kids riding - advice please!

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showpony

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So Mini Me is a very talented rider for her age - very gutsy & determined etc, rides with kids WAY Older etc ( some of you may remember my post last wk about mini me practices some dressage )
Long story short she has he own pony BUT Ponio is going through some reschooling and will be for next couple mths as she has always been a lead rein & is not a suitable first ridden at the moment....

So mini me - is riding riding school ponies for the moment..... great BUT today was the first time I've seen her confidence dip. She was put up on a very large Pony whom she has ridden & jumped before BUT he decided to eh basically do a gallop to get back to the end of the ride...
Mini Me is only 6 & doesn't have the strength in her arms & she weighs very little so she just doesn't have the strength to hold a 14.2 back! How she stayed on I DONT know..

The other Ponio she rides is great but he like all small ponies has a bit of an " Attitude" & even with daisy reins on will drop the shoulder & she has had a couple of falls off him.....

There really isn't many options on who else she can ride, Id hate to see her loose her Gutsy & determined attitude!

What do I do!!!! Do I take her elsewhere with a bigger variety of smaller ponies/ look at loaning something else for 6mths....

She can jump a 2ft course of jumps, has such kind hand, nice position etc...

Really don't know what to do .... my heart was broken this evening as she actually cried for the first time after a lesson, saying she isn't good enough to keep up with the big kids etc:confused: which isn't the case at all....
 
I would get her something else for 6 months, I saw your pictures and she a plucky kid, but for her size I wouldn't have been happy with her on the bigger pony. You don't want her to lose her confidence. OR take her somewhere that has ponies suitable for her size
 
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i saw your other pics and didnt comment as you seemed so happy and so did she - but i really felt the ponies she was on were too big for her. Id look at getting something else.
 
Find either a first ridden on loan, or, as they aren't easy to find, look for a share, or rs with a suitable first ridden type. A standard shettie might also be an option, my daughter had loads of fun on one when she was first riding off lr, & although she had a few falls (gallop to graze transistions) shetties are small enough for being launched to be a fun game. I've also had her on my 14.2 from the start, but she's very saintly, responsive enough to listen to a tiny kid, & daughter has always known & rode her, so it was a gradual process of going from quick sits as a baby leading to cantering her off lr. Not just a case of whacking a small, just off lr child on a horse several hands bigger than they are used to & sending them for a blast. Kids confidence is so easily affected by the right/wrong pony, its really not worth risking it. Also rs doesn't sound much good if they don't have a single suitable pony.
 
showpony said:
I know this is the simple choice BUT I have my own horse on livery @ same place & Mini Me has been riding there for 2.5yrs:(
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Ah you didn't mention this. Then I'd look round for a suitable one to loan OR insist she doens't ride the one that tanked off for a while. Or take her somewhere else to ride, and put up with the fact it isn't the same place....won't be any worse than any usual after school activity if you pick one that you don't do any grooming etc but just ride.
 
I was very happy as was mini me. First Pony defo not to big but agree re second pony BUT as first Ponio dumped her twice the bigger & safer option was necessary for Mini Me to ride through the whole dressage test.

NeverSayNever said:
i saw your other pics and didnt comment as you seemed so happy and so did she - but i really felt the ponies she was on were too big for her. Id look at getting something else.
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Sorry should have said it in OP.....Mini Me is all about the prep, loves grooming & tacking up herself etc....AHHHHHHHHH Its so frustrating! :mad:


Dubsie said:
Ah you didn't mention this. Then I'd look round for a suitable one to loan OR insist she doens't ride the one that tanked off for a while. Or take her somewhere else to ride, and put up with the fact it isn't the same place....won't be any worse than any usual after school activity if you pick one that you don't do any grooming etc but just ride.
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Just looked at the dressage pics, & whilst they are lovely & she's very cute, if I was putting my child on a pony so much too big for her, I'd want to know it was as safe as houses. I don't wrap her in cotton wool, at 6 she was riding her rather lively just backed 4yr old, but 11hh isn't far to fall. And unlike a rs pony doesn't have a mouth dependent on rider strength. Also, the saddles are far too big for a small child, which has the effect of tipping them into an armchair seat. So instead of just learning, she'll be fighting against the position the saddle is trying to put her in. And please don't think I'm trying to pick apart your child's riding, I'm not, it should just be about fun at 6. But as a parent, it scares me how far through the stirrups her feet are. Not in an 'omg, your 6yr old should ride like Carl hester' way, but from the pov if she comes off, there's a good chance her foot will get stuck. I know kids don't always listen, or even remember, but a good rs would have had a safety issue like that sorted before going off lr. And, any decent instructor would pick up on it enough in lessons if she did slip her feet through so she didn't get chance to ride more than two strides without pulling them back out. Again, please don't think I'm assassinating your child's riding, I'm not, its the safety aspect of a dragged child that concerns me with the feet. And with the unsuitable ponies & saddles, she looks too happy & determined, (let alone the cost to you) to let a less than brilliant rs reduce her ability to learn.
 
Now I feel like a totally awful parent:( I know about the stirrup issue - which was fixed after I commented on the picture... stirrup was on the ball of her foot today and mini me despite riding a horse in a flat out gallop to be back to the horses managed to stay on ...
I feel so bad that I havent managed to get a Safe , confidence inducing pony for Mini Me....




Littlelegs said:
Just looked at the dressage pics, & whilst they are lovely & she's very cute, if I was putting my child on a pony so much too big for her, I'd want to know it was as safe as houses. I don't wrap her in cotton wool, at 6 she was riding her rather lively just backed 4yr old, but 11hh isn't far to fall. And unlike a rs pony doesn't have a mouth dependent on rider strength. Also, the saddles are far too big for a small child, which has the effect of tipping them into an armchair seat. So instead of just learning, she'll be fighting against the position the saddle is trying to put her in. And please don't think I'm trying to pick apart your child's riding, I'm not, it should just be about fun at 6. But as a parent, it scares me how far through the stirrups her feet are. Not in an 'omg, your 6yr old should ride like Carl hester' way, but from the pov if she comes off, there's a good chance her foot will get stuck. I know kids don't always listen, or even remember, but a good rs would have had a safety issue like that sorted before going off lr. And, any decent instructor would pick up on it enough in lessons if she did slip her feet through so she didn't get chance to ride more than two strides without pulling them back out. Again, please don't think I'm assassinating your child's riding, I'm not, its the safety aspect of a dragged child that concerns me with the feet. And with the unsuitable ponies & saddles, she looks too happy & determined, (let alone the cost to you) to let a less than brilliant rs reduce her ability to learn.
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I'd be looking round to see if someone has a pony you can loan for a few months while her's is away being schooled. Ask the instructors and ask around as someone, somewhere will have a good pony who has been outgrown
 
Don't beat yourself up, I'm sure she doesn't always do it, & tbh at 6 if she was bombing around with elbows & knees out or anything else I wouldn't comment, its just I've seen a dragged kid (not mine & not one I taught or had anything to do with) & it isn't pretty. If you're paying someone else to teach her, I assume you don't teach yourself, in which case its not your fault if the professional you pay hasn't noticed. It's easily sorted, but you shouldn't have had to comment on it, that's why you're paying an instructor. As for the confidence giving pony, my 14.2 I had donkeys years before daughter. Her current pony doesn't exactly match most peoples idea of suitable child's pony, but, it suits her, however she did need that initial time on reliable ones.
 
I appreciate your honesty:) I think after tonight I just need to find her a very much confidence giving, forward moving pony!


Littlelegs said:
Don't beat yourself up, I'm sure she doesn't always do it, & tbh at 6 if she was bombing around with elbows & knees out or anything else I wouldn't comment, its just I've seen a dragged kid (not mine & not one I taught or had anything to do with) & it isn't pretty. If you're paying someone else to teach her, I assume you don't teach yourself, in which case its not your fault if the professional you pay hasn't noticed. It's easily sorted, but you shouldn't have had to comment on it, that's why you're paying an instructor. As for the confidence giving pony, my 14.2 I had donkeys years before daughter. Her current pony doesn't exactly match most peoples idea of suitable child's pony, but, it suits her, however she did need that initial time on reliable ones.
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Just look for something small & safe, like I said earlier, a standard shettie could do the trick. Even though they can be cheeky, & lots haven't ever had really good schooling, they are small, safe, & any naughtiness is predictable & not scarily unexpected. And please don't think I'm a stickler for health & safety, my child does stuff & always has that would give a bhs yard heart failure. But some things I think are important.
 
Agree get something smaller and safe. Confidence is nurtured by success. Even a Shetland or something that as LL says, falling off isn't a big deal. My daughter has come on so fast since we got Titchy (we have 3 other ponies as well!) and it is because he is small enough for her to control easily by herself and also if she falls off, it doesn't hurt. She could easily be riding the 13.2 who is totally bomb proof and trustworthy, but she wouldn't be doing what she can on him.
 
Thanks to everyone for the replys, am going to look at a loan pony, I think that's the best way forward, mini me is a confident and capable rider, who despite her size puts most of us to shame with her guts and determination. Height isn't the issue - just need something safe for her to be able to jump a small course on and to come out hacking with me .
 
I wouldnt waste another penny on lessons from school that cant match her with a suitable pony! 14.2 without lead rein is way too big for a 6yr old if its not acomplete schoolmaster! could you look for a share pony in your area? Sounds like you want something a step up from a shetland although they are great fun! Maybe a sec a would be more suitable as they arnt quite as short paced andbouncy lol there must be someone in your area who has a childs pony for full loan or share, have a look on preloved
 
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