Question about Exmoor ponies

flirtygerty said:
Thanks for all your replies, plenty of food for thought there, the kids are all novices (10-14yrs old) hence the walking alongside, while it would be nice to get rid of the nettles, our grass is so lush, our horses stood in all summer through the day to minimize their weight gain.
We do need a pony for the kids, but now I'm stumped as to what breed that won't get fat living here.
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all pony breeds will get fat if they have too much/too rich grazing, i would section field spray off nettles and get an older pony that has seen most of what life can throw at them and restrict its grazing. if you have lush grass on offer i would be surprised if anything would eat the nettles
 
Personally I would look for a Dartmoor hill pony. They are wonderful characters very gentle and good with kids and pretty sound. My uearling is 100% in traffic already. Exmoor ponies as said don't seem to make such a good kids pony there any a huge number of them and there often sent for conservation grazing ect in the wrong hands an exmoor could be lethal. If your worried about weight gain then I would use restricted grazing or a muzzle though mine has a habit of taking his off.
 
3CVA said:
He has been out on loan 3 times to families that wanted a pony for there children for pony club etc ... he's a star for me but he got sent home all 3 times saying he's not safe enough for the children and one was an 17 year old!!
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This happened to Henry, except one loanee was in her 30s and had owned horses all her life. He was known as Boomerang Henry, poor love. Well, when he came to me there was no chance of them having him back! I just don't think they appreciated that he wanted to be part of the decisions made and if he thought for one moment that the two-legs wasn't going to look after him, then HE would look after him!!! :D
 
Exmoors are an amazing breed. I fell in love with them 10+ years ago and wouldn't be without them :). They can build a fantastic bond with their young riders :)


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I'm now hooked on exmoors and got mine in January this year :) Yes, she can be stubborn - if she doesn't think she should be doing something then she won't - the trick is convincing her that she should be doing it in the first place! I have done a lot of groundwork with her, and she now leads on a completely loose rope, backs up with visual pressure, turns her quarters if I point at them - definitely not bargy anymore, although she does need consistent handling to maintain this :D She personally wouldn't be a great small child's pony, I dont' think she has the patience for very small people, and I'd worry that she'd very quickly pick up bad habits and become very bargy! However, as in any breed, some ponies are great for children!

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Goodshipblossom said:
Some Exmoors make great kids ponies- compete at shows doing jumping, dressage and everything. Having said that, mine makes small children cry... Still they are great fun, cheap to keep, nippy, strong and have very entertaining personalities. Plus you're helping to save a rare and unique breed! Don't understand why people want anything bigger and fancier ;)

And they'd eat nettles but watch out they get very fat very easily!
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Sorry made me giggle "mine makes small children cry...................
 
flirtygerty said:
Thanks for all your replies, plenty of food for thought there, the kids are all novices (10-14yrs old) hence the walking alongside, while it would be nice to get rid of the nettles, our grass is so lush, our horses stood in all summer through the day to minimize their weight gain.
We do need a pony for the kids, but now I'm stumped as to what breed that won't get fat living here.
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Get more than one and they won't get so fat;)
 
I have 2 exmoors-if I could find one at 15.2 it'd be my perfect horse ;)

I also had an exmoor as a first pony as a kid and he went on to two more families with young kids and later to a riding school where he stayed until his death in his early 30s. they are beyond hardy, very smart, very trainable in the right hands and no, they never forget a thing and I find them slightly less forgiving than many other breeds in that respect. my oldest is 17 and on permanent loan to me, I rebacked him at 13 and he was used as a lead rein pony for my disabled step son. The younger is rising 4 and will be a ride and drive for me. They are super but maybe not the easiest-I will always have them.


eta neither of mine are bargy on the ground and I've had one since an unhanded weanling-they are very biddable. the main 'problem' with the older one is he's bad in traffic, but then he never saw any until I got him-the younger one is very good.
 
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I got my first one 2 weeks ago. An unbroken 3 year old and so far she is proving unflappable. Even down to trying to open a large umbrella in the pub gardens. Traffic, other animals, flappy things, mud water , nothing fazes her.

In just 2 weeks she has been bitted, in hand work with a saddle on and let me lean right over her. Didnt want to push my luck by getting totally on board. She gets on with everybody else in the herd, lives on fresh air and has a coat that seems to repel mud. The width of her more than makes up for the lack of height, I doubt if my 5ft 1 frame will even fit round her.

Great breed , or maybe its just my little girl but i doubt it
 
I have had a number of exmoor pines over the years and they have all been very different. The reputation i would say is due to the fact that many of them start their lives as wild ponies and may spend many months or years unhandled. Saying that, my mare was on the moor wild until she was 4 and is a fantastic ride and drive pony. She is pretty bombproof. The only issue is that she is strong, but to be fair to her that is most likely my fault. She has been my fun pony pocket rocket for 13 yrs and doesn't see the point of slow. She's dead safe though. I've had ponies that would never get as far as having tack on let alone a rider but put this down to their early years of bad handling. My nephew had his first rides on a mature exmoor stallion, because he was safer than the donkey....... We had an exmoor mare that was an angel child's pony and were regularly offered large sums at shows for her, despite her crooked front legs.

I personally would look for a pony with the right temperament for your novice child riders. I would say a stocky exmoor could fit the bill but a dartmoor would likely be too small. My exmoor mare leads from my horse which is ideal. Oh and any equity will get too fat on your good grazing. My exmoor is well fenced into a fatty padock for the summer.
 
I had one once, that failed his foal inspection so was not branded. The Exmoor Pony Soc. came to look at him as a 2 year old and decided he was OK to register, so branded him there and then - it was pretty horrific. We then turned him out, a wretched dog chased him and he ended up doing a double somersault over a barbed wire fence and badly cut his ear. It was amazing that we were able to do anything with him after that, but we got him semi broken and then a young lad took him on and did very well showing him.
I had a an Exmoor X TB called Dora, who was stunning, and V talented, but also very nervous - however, she went on to be a smashing PC pony.
I now have 4 that we do conservation grazing with - We hardly handle them, but of the four I can catch 3 of them if I need too......there is one Boris, who was cut as a 4 year old, and is totally anti-human. We worm him when he is in the cattle trailer (being moved too and from grazing) and fortunately his feet have never needed any attention - he would need doping if they did.
They are great, though and we have had them for 4 - 5 years now. They skip into the cattle trailer when it is time to move them from the farm to the common and vice versa. In the winter they have nearly a 100 acres to graze, and I love seeing them in their winter coat, which is like a carpet. They have their best fun when about twice a year the hunt comes across our land, and they join in (almost as Hunt Sabs would, darting through the hounds, and generally harrassing the field!)
 
flirtygerty said:
Thanks for all your replies, plenty of food for thought there, the kids are all novices (10-14yrs old) hence the walking alongside, while it would be nice to get rid of the nettles, our grass is so lush, our horses stood in all summer through the day to minimize their weight gain.
We do need a pony for the kids, but now I'm stumped as to what breed that won't get fat living here.
Click to expand...

Don't look for a specific breed - look for an older established pony who has a good reputation locally for being sensible with novice children. If you have lush grass then avoid any that have had laminitis before, but I suspect you will have to restrict grazing in some way for most types of pony.
 
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