Get a Welsh cob, I thought...

[palo1]

Having a high maintenance prince of a horse, I thought a few years ago that I would like a nice native type to balance out the hysteria and 'opinions'. 3 years ago my sweet Welsh mare, aged 2 was delivered. All was good in my world - she didn't need food, rugs, shoes, special sheepskin products on anything that was likely to be in contact with her skin for more than 10 seconds, no special bodywash, no obsessing over ingredients that 'might' give her an allergic reaction. It was all very relaxing in fact. She looked sturdy enough to contemplate several activities and she was exceptionally beautiful. She was even willing, compliant and interested in much of what I had to teach her. I was totally won over tbh.

Today...3 years on I wake up to find that I am obsessing over the pollen count or a variety of trees and shrubs that 'might' give her an allergic reaction, to find that she has a nose like a blooming monkey's hand and can get out (or over) cross ties that look as if they were designed to moor the QE2, that trying to fit any kind of nose net, nebuliser, inhalation mask results in a 20 minute unequally weighted struggle with madam asserting in no uncertain terms that she either doesn't like it thank you very much or that she can destroy it by smashing it, whiffling it, scraping it or hurling it. She can run, even in her knees up Welsh cob manner, MUCH faster than I would have ever believed, whilst still wearing the ££££ breathing aid whilst showing no sign whatsoever that she is 'struggling to breathe'. As I was trying to show the estate agent around this morning whilst emphasising the most excellent and tranquil nature of our property, we witnessed in horror said madam scraping her nose net on a fence rail only to get snagged (on what I have no idea; everything here is made of bubble wrap due to thin skinned prince of horses), engage in a furious 'discussion' with said fence rail involving standing on her hind legs and breaking it then run away, trailing nose net and clearly hysterical about 'that thing' on her nose. Which she has been wearing for several days...She has also, for no particular reason dented panels of the barn; I think she likes the noise when she double barrels them.

The good news is that she is not struggling with respiration. The bad news is that I have to keep her!!

 

[milliepops]

Oh, Alw!!!

she's clearly feeling quite well today then!

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Tbf, if you were looking for a tranquil life with no dramatics, I wouldn't have gone the Welsh route. ?

 

[palo1]

Tbf, if you were looking for a tranquil life with no dramatics, I wouldn't have gone the Welsh route. ?

Ah, yes. I think a couple of people may have said that before I bought her but I really didn't think a pony would be too much trouble...

 

[reynold]

Welshies can be a bit 'special'

 

[scruffyponies]

If a welsh is throwing a fit, you know it's not really that bad. They do like drama, but know what to do in a crisis.

Found mine with his leg caught over his rug circingle a few weeks ago. Who knows how long he'd been on three legs (all night?). He was so calm I almost walked past him without noticing.

Another was driven out with traces too short a while back (my bad). As we went downhill the carriage hit him repeatedly on the hocks. He shortened his stride, and when that didn't work, he just stopped, and waited for me to sort it.

 

[palo1]

Oh, Alw!!!

she's clearly feeling quite well today then!

The wicked Welshcake has an excellent respiration rate today, in spite of constant alarms and dire warnings on my phone and laptop telling me that today will be 'difficult' due to the very high pollen count!! Maybe retrograde Neptune or other alignment of the stars means that today she can run around like a 3 y/0 at Newmarket. Who knows? Clearly I need a team of residential scientists here in order to keep everyone healthy and safe. I had hoped a nose net might have been acceptable but now I have to explain to OH that there is a mysteriously broken fence rail...no idea how it happened but that I am sure it was probably his horse that did it...!!

 

[scruffyponies]

Have you tried smearing vasaline in the nostrils as an alternative to the net? Seems to work well.

 

[palo1]

Have you tried smearing vasaline in the nostrils as an alternative to the net? Seems to work well.

Ah yes. That is my daily workout...I hope it does help as we both find it somewhat 'inconvenient' to apply to a nose that is essentially a bizarrely powerful rubber octopus. I had hoped she could cope with both a net and some vaseline but perhaps that is too much to ask. Vaseline it is today.

 

[scruffyponies]

Carrot in left hand, vasaline in right. Be sneaky.

 

[Tarragon]

Palo - I am sorry to hear your sad tale (honest!), but then you wrote it in such a funny way it did make me laugh! She does sound like a bit of a character

 

[Ratface]

Beautiful, talented and highly intelligent as they are, I'd never have one. Several of my friends and acquaintances have. Eventually, most of those people stopped owning/riding them. They explained that they felt that they "weren't a good match".
I rode a friend's Sec. D for a few months whilst her she recovered from a horse- related fall. I found him OK as long as request were clear and consistent. Kind and firm.
She gave him to Riding for The Disabled. He did really well and was much loved. Probably because he was given a job to do and the staff there prevented him becoming too bossy.

 

[DawnS]

Carrot in left hand, vasaline in right. Be sneaky.

There's a bit of advice that needs context, if ever I saw one...

 

[palo1]

Beautiful, talented and highly intelligent as they are, I'd never have one. Several of my friends and acquaintances have. Eventually, most of those people stopped owning/riding them. They explained that they felt that they "weren't a good match".
I rode a friend's Sec. D for a few months whilst her she recovered from a horse- related fall. I found him OK as long as request were clear and consistent. Kind and firm.
She gave him to Riding for The Disabled. He did really well and was much loved. Probably because he was given a job to do and the staff there prevented him becoming too bossy.

Yes, they certainly have a repuation and I think people find them very much marmite!! I love my mare and she really is the sweetest, sunniest character but definitely has the Welsh attitude when things are not going according to her plan!! She is, to be fair to her, extremely polite and has considerable charm. When she is not having a tantrum. I am now sadly addicted though and would absolutely have another Welshie...

 

[milliepops]

The KWPN I have on loan is much more hysterical than my sec D, and she is fairly ridiculous!

I also crave another welshie, very much hoping i might grow my own I do enjoy the way they think.

 

[palo1]

The KWPN I have on loan is much more hysterical than my sec D, and she is fairly ridiculous!

I also crave another welshie, very much hoping i might grow my own I do enjoy the way they think.

Grow-Your-Own Welshie sounds akin to the cultivation of mandrakes as described in Harry Potter I fear but a completely wonderful idea

 

[Fruitcake]

I absolutely adore our Welshies. I totally agree with the comment above about how they do like to be a bit dramatic but when it counts, tend to be sensible. (At least the ones I’ve known have been anyway). I love how clever they are - even if that does cause me problems sometimes. One of ours can open door handles so can’t be trusted tied anywhere near the feed room door and does have a bit of a thing about pulling rugs down and weeing on them if they’re not his! He’s also cost a fortune in various odd veterinary issues (but did stand like an angel for his nebuliser when he needed one, so I suppose that’s something!)

 

[palo1]

I absolutely adore our Welshies. I totally agree with the comment above about how they do like to be a bit dramatic but when it counts, tend to be sensible. (At least the ones I’ve known have been anyway). I love how clever they are - even if that does cause me problems sometimes. One of ours can open door handles so can’t be trusted tied anywhere near the feed room door and does have a bit of a thing about pulling rugs down and weeing on them if they’re not his! He’s also cost a fortune in various odd veterinary issues (but did stand like an angel for his nebuliser when he needed one, so I suppose that’s something!)

Mmm, Alw has learnt to open the vents on the nebuliser (or push out the valve completely) and starts whiffling away as soon as I put it on her. I have heard some folk say you can leave them to 'enjoy' whilst you do other tasks but when I tried that yesterday not only did Alw open the vents and remove the valve with her nose but then also got into a pickle with the cross ties. She can open bolts, knots and some gates as well as remove her friends' clothing when she is bored. Thankfully she has grown out of emptying the water out of the field troughs/or overrunning them - that was something of a puzzle for us to deal with and irritated the heck out of the other horses too!! But she is always very sweet to deal with. I adore how smart she is. I just wish I was a bit sharper lol!! I trust her to look after me so I agree that 'drama' is not indicative of good sense too.

 

[Caol Ila]

I keep meaning to ask you this, Palo, but how do your pronounce her name? I can get my head around Gaelic, but Welsh baffles me.

My low maintenance native has strong views about the yard staff catching him. I can get him. OH can get him. Other liveries can get him. Staff…. Nope. So anytime I want to leave town, I have to call in all my favours. Needless to say, I spend a lot of time doing things for other yard friends.

 

[palo1]

I keep meaning to ask you this, Palo, but how do your pronounce her name? I can get my head around Gaelic, but Welsh baffles me.

My low maintenance native has strong views about the yard staff catching him. I can get him. OH can get him. Other liveries can get him. Staff…. Nope. So anytime I want to leave town, I have to call in all my favours. Needless to say, I spend a lot of time doing things for other yard friends.

Alw is pronounced 'Aloo' but with that particular and rather difficult to demonstrate Welsh contraction of the vowel sound that the w makes. It is a lovely name for her as it means 'Song' or possibly more accurately 'Call' in the sense of a pleasant and melodious sound. It is sometimes apt that Alw as pronounced Aloo means potato in Hindi... My vet however struggles with the name Alw and always calls her Alwa which I find very entertaining as it is sort of phonetically reasonable. I love the Welsh language so I was very happy to keep Alw's Welsh name.

ETA - I have learnt a very small amount of Welsh so that when madam misbehaves in public I can discuss things with her discreetly lol...

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

I've had 2 welsh ponies for last 20 years, I adore their ridiculous dramatics, I'm now down to one Welsh and I recently got a Fell pony to be the old Welsh boys new friend, I'm constantly amazed how calm and civilized the Fell is, I'd forgotten how easy it is to have a normal pony who's idea of dramatics is stamping his foot and refusing to move.

I can take them somewhere new and the 3 year old Fell will calmly walk off the trailer next to you and have a look round while his 20 year old welsh friend who is supposed to be a good influence on the baby throws himself down the ramp and spins round snorting with his tail over his back. He's also an escaping genius he can go over, under or through and scales stone walls like a mountain goat, his only good point is that once he's escaped he always wants to get back in again and if he does get himself stuck somewhere while on his adventures he will always stand like a rock while you get him unstuck and then follow you back so nicely. He may be dramatic but he's not stupid he knows when he needs help and has to behave himself the rest of the time he's an absolute idiot ?

In his younger days before we reached an understanding on the acceptable level dramatics there were many tears and tantrums from both of us, one memorable occasion when I arrived to find the neighboring farmer herding him back down the road in front of his tractor after another successful escape where he sailed over the full height post and rail fence I cried at him to just keep herding him to somewhere, anywhere else but my field, luckily he declined because he's actually an amazing pony who can jump impressively high considering he's only 12.2hh.

 

[GoldenWillow]

Mmm, Alw has learnt to open the vents on the nebuliser (or push out the valve completely) and starts whiffling away as soon as I put it on her. I have heard some folk say you can leave them to 'enjoy' whilst you do other tasks but when I tried that yesterday not only did Alw open the vents and remove the valve with her nose but then also got into a pickle with the cross ties. She can open bolts, knots and some gates as well as remove her friends' clothing when she is bored. Thankfully she has grown out of emptying the water out of the field troughs/or overrunning them - that was something of a puzzle for us to deal with and irritated the heck out of the other horses too!! But she is always very sweet to deal with. I adore how smart she is. I just wish I was a bit sharper lol!! I trust her to look after me so I agree that 'drama' is not indicative of good sense too.

I cross tie and get on with jobs while J has his nebuliser on but have to rescue the bits he's popped out if he's in certain mood, the bottom valve is a favourite followed by the aerosol chamber! Fortunately he's more likely to go to sleep with it on. Good luck, I love Welshies when they are other peoples ?

 

[PSD]

If a welsh is throwing a fit, you know it's not really that bad. They do like drama, but know what to do in a crisis.

Found mine with his leg caught over his rug circingle a few weeks ago. Who knows how long he'd been on three legs (all night?). He was so calm I almost walked past him without noticing.

Another was driven out with traces too short a while back (my bad). As we went downhill the carriage hit him repeatedly on the hocks. He shortened his stride, and when that didn't work, he just stopped, and waited for me to sort it.

ahh this reminds me of my welsh. Got his rug stuck to his haynet and god knows how long he’d stood there, still as a statue because he was feeling sensible that day.

Today, a bag rustled slightly in a bush and I nearly went out the side door. He’s very dramatic and I absolutely love it! They’re one of a kind. Exactly how everyone’s described them!

 

[conniegirl]

I love my welshies!
its not dramatics, its just thier dragon coming out to play!

My cobby jobby is the sweetest most reliable pony ever but his dragon is so close to the surface.

On sunday i put ellie on his back and walked him round the school. Ellie is 11 months old and showed her pleasure in a series of ear splitting squeals, leg kicks and clapping. He didnt even flinch bless him.

on monday i long reined him out on a hack where several rats jumped out of some crops and at his legs. Rather than freak out as i was fully expecting, he very deliberately stomped on one, killed it and then danced off, tossing his head and showing the world how wonderful he is!

 

[McFluff]

Sorry to laugh at this Palo, but love your telling of the tale. I love my Welsh boy. He judges when to be dragon perfectly and seems to know when he has to be sensible.

 

[chaps89]

Alw is pronounced 'Aloo' but with that particular and rather difficult to demonstrate Welsh contraction of the vowel sound that the w makes. It is a lovely name for her as it means 'Song' or possibly more accurately 'Call' in the sense of a pleasant and melodious sound. It is sometimes apt that Alw as pronounced Aloo means potato in Hindi... My vet however struggles with the name Alw and always calls her Alwa which I find very entertaining as it is sort of phonetically reasonable. I love the Welsh language so I was very happy to keep Alw's Welsh name.

ETA - I have learnt a very small amount of Welsh so that when madam misbehaves in public I can discuss things with her discreetly lol...

In my head she’s always been Al-oui/wee. So I’m glad that someone else asked (not that it really matters and I think I might think of potato curry now when I see her name!)

My share horse (Welsh x Hackney) owner described them well - you need an appropriate sense of humour to have a Welsh on the yard! It sounds like Alw is no different

 

[smolmaus]

Alw meaning song and also potato is... very funny ?

We have two Welsh-ish at the sanctuary and both very big personalities. Neither confirmed breeding of course but both have the look and the opinions. One is a the only stallion who has ever been allowed to remain so, he has two people he likes and everyone else could die as far as he cares. He is absolutely stunning. The other is a very sweet little mare who is scared of absolutely nothing (except shavings bags) and remains obese no matter what anyone does. I love them both and if the mare Gwyn was a hand higher I'd have her in a heartbeat. Between them I have a very high opinion of the breed; difficult, too smart, gorgeous.

Where are the Alw pics????

 

[Rosemary28]

I love the Welsh dramatics. P is Welsh x Dartmoor and most of the time he acts like a Dartmoor, until he gets excited and then he remembers he is half dragon pony!

 

[palo1]

Alw meaning song and also potato is... very funny ?

We have two Welsh-ish at the sanctuary and both very big personalities. Neither confirmed breeding of course but both have the look and the opinions. One is a the only stallion who has ever been allowed to remain so, he has two people he likes and everyone else could die as far as he cares. He is absolutely stunning. The other is a very sweet little mare who is scared of absolutely nothing (except shavings bags) and remains obese no matter what anyone does. I love them both and if the mare Gwyn was a hand higher I'd have her in a heartbeat. Between them I have a very high opinion of the breed; difficult, too smart, gorgeous.

Where are the Alw pics????

Oh well , if you really insist...

 

[maya2008]

So funny! They do like to keep us on our toes!

I feel your pain though…get a sweet little cobby pony, I thought. It will be low maintenance, sweet and gentle for the 7 year old child, I thought. Well…it IS sweet and gentle, but low maintenance it is not! First we had the surprise baby (who requires special fencing as she likes to jump) and now, a year after she arrived, we have lice. I mean…how did she manage that? Cue shampooing 7 ponies (two of which are yearlings and were more than a little displeased at the whole charade).