Is pony too old to increase jumping height?

[Marigold43]

Daughters pony is 21, although she has more life in her than my 7 yr old horse! She's in great condition. No lumps or bumps and no history of any joint problems, respiratory problems etc. Never had any meds other than routine vaccinations. She is in light to medium work. My daughter is 11 and has a very petite frame. The pony is 14hh. They are currently jumping 70's and 80's and the previous owner jumped that height too. My question is, at 21, is she too old to be looking at maybe moving up to 90's? I don't want to overface her or cause her any physical harm. She's a wonderful pony and if 80 is her limit, then that's totally fine. Her welfare is what matters. Many thanks

 

[PaddyMonty]

I dont consider 21 to be old in a pony. My wife was doing adv med dressage on her 14.1 when she was 24 and only stopped because the girl had had enough years of doing it mentally, not a physical problem.
Add to this that 90cm (less than 3 foot in old money) is not big or significantly demanding then I would give it a go and see how she copes with it.
There is a danger these days that we ask too little of our horses and age then prematurely due to lack of fitness.

 

[Marigold43]

Thank you for this. I have to say, when the pony is jumping 80cm, she loves it. She seems more focused and listens more to my daughter. She seems to respect the fences.At the lower levels, she rushes and is less attentive. I think my concern is the extra stress on her joints, ie, the higher she jumps, the greater the impact when she lands. She's not over weight and a fine built little thing so there shouldn't be any weight related stress factors

 

[PorkChop]

Pony sounds fab

She's not too old, you will soon know if she is finding it a bit too much

 

[Marigold43]

Thank you. This little mare definitely has a very strong mind of her own, so yes, I guess she will soon let us know if she's not happy. On two occasions, she has refused a fence and it was because she was coming in too fast and knew she wouldn't make it. This is when my daughter first got her and they were getting used to one another. Guess we will take baby steps and see how we go 😊😊