shetland ponies

[sallypops]

can small adults ride larger shetlands, not for like long periods of time but for fun??

i asked a breeder they said that shetland are the origional quadbike for terrane a quad can't get over ha ha!! they are so cool

 

[Ottinmeg]

my daughter is 5ft 8 and weighs about 8 stone and she jumped on our 10.2 shettie and rode her around the yard...she did have to lift her legs up though! pony didnt seem to mind either.

 

[sallypops]

lol i'm only 5ft 1 well jealous lol

 

[JadeWisc]

YES! You can !

I used to ride Charlie all of the time!


My Amish Farrier rides his Shetland sized ponies himself when they need to be trained and he weighs about 140 ( or a bit less) I would say



As long as they are mature and strong I see no reason not to ride them short distances once in awhile. They are much stronger than you think!

A person on HHO one time actually posted saying that they were bred to carry grown men into the mountains (don't quote me as saying I knew this though)



I found a chart one time that said the average Shetland sized pony can carry about 130 lbs with comfort

I suspect you would quickly know if your weight was not being tolerated

 

[Selkie]

Yes thats what they bred for. They were also used as pit ponies pulling huge weights

 

[Christmas_Kate]

I'm 5'6 and just over 9 stone and have ridden my children's 9.3hh shetland before.

 

[sallypops]

should i get one lol?? we have a highland and becky our 24 year old arab. she on loan to us and i am very worried for the winter, we don't have stabling she will feeze. i have been considering gettin a wee shetland on loan and now i know i could ride it sometimes makes me even more keen.

 

[Christmas_Kate]

I wouldnt get one specifically as a riding pony for an adult. Ours is stocky (see siggie) but I wouldnt ride him on the road or for more than about 5 or 10 minutes. As a companion, they're fab, and very very hardy, but need treating like any big horse in terms of handling training etc. What about getting one that drives and learning to drive yourself?

 

[sallypops]

i'm in the process of breaking poppy to drive so that was another one of my considerations, i wouldn't ride it like you would ride a horse just for a bit of fun in the field etc

the are just so bloody cute

 

[pixiebee]

im thinking of getting one too!! out of interest, could a standard sized shetland (10-11 hh) pull two adults. i am looking at getting one to drive.

 

[Selkie]

Should pull two adults easy, think pit pony, and 42in shetlands were bred to carry adults

 

[joanne1920]

my 36" shetland mare, can carry an 8 stone adult at walk and a little trot for about 20mins, she however loves driving and when fit can pull me and my oh so a combined weight of about 20 stones, and shes only little as shetlands go!