larger native breeds - temperamental differences?

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bluewhippet

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I'm new on here, but have been lurking and reading for a while. Mostly get all my questions answered this way but, ...

I am going to buy a large pony when my littlest child starts school. I am lightweight and have always loved ponies best and think I will definitely like the cost a lot more as well. I may end up getting a complete crossbreed but think that the native ponies are a good starting point. Just have some questions:

Is there a definite personality type to each of the breeds, ie New Forest, Connemara, Welsh D (since I want something at the top pony height)? Are there definite advantages/disadvantages to each of these breeds, or does it very much depend on the individual?

Why are connemaras so expensive? Is it just because there are less of them since I am looking in Southern England? - New Forests seem by far the cheapest. I am looking for a young pony - I have no interest in competing but do love forward going, fun ponies and enjoy jumping.

Would love to hear your experiences.
 
The Welsh D's that I have known have always been quite hot, forwards thinking and fun to ride. We always used to joke that they are TB's in a cob's body. :D
 
I'm voting for the New Forest. Love them they are so much fun without being stupid. I've got 3 at the moment! They are quick learners, very affectionate, have amazing jumps and are nice forward going hacks plus the price is better than the others
 
All horses are different, there'll be different personalities in every breed. But if you want to generalize I find Connemaras to be the most sensible, straight forward types. I have a Welsh D and he's not particularly easy.
 
I have 2 welsh d's,a 1/4 NF and have also had a 1/2 connie,welshies are can be hot and arn't always straight forward rides,you generally have to be a confident rider otherwise they take the mick! NF's can also be cheeky and sharp but if you get a good un they make fantastic all rounders,i really love connies and they are prob more of the level headed type out of your above choice but like you say they can be expensive,they are quite sought after for the the exact reason i said level headed but also talented most of the time. You could get a older one for a good price,they have fab jumps and most are honest with it.
 
Just my experiences

Welsh D - can be hot and often very silly nervy types but fantastic versatile horses that turn a hoof to anything. Only for confident experienced types usually. Seem to stay sounder than many.

Connemaras - can be sharp, good jumpers, hunters, pony club. Do tend to take the pee given half a chance :D Very clever.

New Forests - not a lot of personal dealings with these but the few I've ridden I've found that they aren't what I like, I feel like I'm sitting on the edge of a cliff! Seem to be nice natured and fairly amenable to most things.

Highlands - my faves :D sensible, sturdy and very trainable. 4WD of the horse world, go anywhere and do anything. Can be hard to keep sound between lami and tendon/ligament problems.

Dales - again sensible types, comfortable to ride with a lovely stride, can turn their hooves to most things. Can be hard to find.

Haflingers - I know they're not a native breed but bright, athletic, sensible and as a huge bonus half the price of a good Highland or Dales.

All the above are generalisations :o and despite my love of native types I try and remember to look for the HORSE I want not just the BREED :)
 
So is the large price differences between the breeds as a rule, not because the Connemara is more workable than the New Forest - but simply because of supply and demand?
 
Connemaras can be stubborn and you can't force them to do things just show them they are being silly and keep your sense of humour and they will come round. They often have a thing about water.

Great all rounders They are a mini eventer , as despite their often shorter stride they can do a nice active dressage test a good SJ round and some are like lightening xc

They have a strong sense of self preservation but they may not always include you in it.

Generally very easy to handle, good doers, mostly too good. Mainly grey so a pain to clean for early starts.

As to cost yes I suppose its the lack of them over there and the high prices the breeders had been expecting here.
All that is changed here now and at last years Clifden sales very nice 4YOs were going for around €2000.

Very often they are so easy to back they just have the saddle put on them to go to the sales if they are sold as broken don't presume they will know everything you would expect them to know.
 
I have a connie and he is fab in my opinion (just posted a thread on his second attempt at show jumping) he is very willing and wants to please, in general he is also forward and fun but safe at the same time. They are not all that expensive if you are willing to put the work in and search through the ads, mine was certantly not expensive.
I have also ridden a few new forests but didnt find them as willing to please in general or as cheeky but still nice ponies. Cant say much about welshies as the only big ones I have ridden have been slow and ploddy but according to most on here they seem to be the exception. But each pony is an individual so I wouldnt discount any breed in particular just go to see what you like the look of :)
 
Thanks, Ramblin, you answered my question!

Appearance wise, I can obviously see the huge differences between them - especially Welsh Cobs next to the other two, but I do think they are all very desirable - especially action shots of Welsh Cobs.

I am sure I will just end up falling in love with a pony and will not care which breed it is, or if it is a breed at all! But I've got to start somewhere, so thanks very much.

And, sorry for not mentioning Fells, Dales and Highland - just don't see many advertised in the South West - actually far more Haflingers!
 
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Connies are generally very quiet and are able to turn their hand at many things (I'm biased). I think newfies are pretty under-rated though. Not a great fan of Welshies as most of the ones I've known have been bargy and firey (appreciate this is just my experience!)
 
I have a new forest - I wanted a connie but in the end just could not afford one so ended up with a new forest, he was much better value for money as I could get a really well bred new forest for half the price of a similar quality Connemara. However the prices of connies seem to be falling and the prices of good new forests seem to be rising. The stallions out on the forest over the last couple of years have been really top notch which helps.

Connemara are very successful in the show ring and that has pushed their prices up along with their reputation at being good jumpers. Demand is higher than supply and they are not breed in such large numbers here compared to the new forests and that is why connies are the most expensive of the natives.

You can pick up welshes for similar prices to the new forests again as they are bred in large numbers.

I would say breed is only part of the equation, how they are managed and schooled also makes a huge difference, in the show ring welshes are encouraged to be like a welsh dragon all firery and fiesty but they are not necessarily all that way.

my new forest has a lovely gentle nature and a big jump on him whilst he is very amenable and will give most things a go he has a very stubborn streak and if he really does not want to do something it isl very difficult to get him to do it. Thankfully there are not many things he refuses to do - stabling overnight is one thing and there is a certain bridleway he refuses to go up but other than that he tends to be willing.
 
I have a Sec D - he's not silly or fiery but definitely a bit 'precious'... He needs calm, confident, quiet handling. Quiet kids could fuss him all day long and he'd love it but I'm not sure I'd be happy to put small, novices on him just because he looks to you for guidance and he'd probably get unsettled but on the leadrein he'd probably be fine.

The only other Sec D I've had anything to do with was a mare and she was a bit of a nutjob - would still be boinging around, yanking your arms out at the end of a 3-4 hr hack!

My old pony was a New Forest x Connie who was 13.2 of self opinionated stubborness and built like the brick proverbial!! A firm believer in looking after number 1, he wasn't too fussed about you - but that generally worked in my favour as he never did anything too stupid but wasn't averse to bogging off back to the field (he was very strong) or dropping a shoulder and tipping me out the side if he'd had enough. I learnt loads from him though - he was bombproof in traffic, did a bit of everything, was as tough as old boots and lived on fresh air.

Good luck with whatever you go with - at the end of the day they are all different.
 
Taffy my new forest is like that he has a very strong survival instinct and if something seems dangerous he will do all he can to avoid it probably worked very well when he was a forest run stallion but it does mean he will turn and walk away from something or plant if he does not like the look of something and it is hard to get him going again. Also with the stabling he would just jump out or rear trying to break the door down if he had a grid up, very determined little pony.

Thankfully he is quite brave and good natured as he is very strong and could easily take advantage, he is no walk over that is for sure.
 
Get a Fell or a New Forest they are the easiest and most versatile of the larger native breeds.

Welshes tend to be fire breathing dragons, forward going and not novice rides.

Highlands are lovely but can be stubborn (I'd love a Highland).

Connies make fab allrounders, they are more small horses than ponies these days and most are overheight. The only ones I've known have been either very awkward or very spooky.

Fjord ponies and Gypsy cobs are usually reasonably quiet, hardy and make good allrounders.

I don't know any Dales ponies.
 
Even thouth I own, ride and dearly love my Highland mare, for what you want I'd recommend a connie. Yes they can be stubborn, but so long as you can make them think it was their idea, they are athletic, sturdy and fantastic characters that will serve you well.
As Rambling says there are a lot of greys, but my fave is bay, or Blue eyed cream, and a nice buckskin is stunning, too. You can even get palomino!
 
I have had a couple of NFs, they have been quiet, capable, bombproof and not at all stubborn. What I found they lacked is a bit of flashyness (not my NF x TB though, he was very flashy!) so if you want something sensible and useful but ordinary, an NF will be perfect.

I have a connie cross now, he is like a little horse, long striding, scopey, good quality, willing but a little sharp, so a connie is probably the one to go for if you want to be competitive.

All the sec Ds I've known have been pretty firey.
 
I like highlands most of all, they are strong willed but once on your side they will do anything for you. Have also had a fair bit to do with connemaras and like them very much too, just a bit too fine for me. My highland actually came from Devon, his breeder would be more than happy for you to take a look at her little herd if you wanted!
 
As a teenager I rode for a connemara stud and have to say that, in general, they were quite sharp and opinionated, but that could have been in that particular breeding. I've also had 2 x conny x tb and both of them were the same. Again could be the tb that made them that way, I don't know. While I think they look nice, I personally wouldnt go out of my way to have another.

My mum had a section D and she was a cracker - yes she was sharp and had a very strong self preservation streak, but she was also very kind and lots of fun to ride
 
rambling said:
They have a strong sense of self preservation but they may not always include you in it.
Click to expand...

Oh that did make me chuckle!

I have ridden Connies, Haflingers and NF's. Out of the 3 I would say get a NF, they are fantastic ponies. The connies I rode were all very quiet and biddable, and my friends haflinger is a stubborn bugger. We have a bit of joke with him -
K: "I;ve got a haflinger..."
Her mum or I: "Yes, emphasis on the 'fling'"

He chuck her off at regular intervals but is still a cracking pony with a hell of a jump in him!
 
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