Whaddya Think? Ponies!

FreyaB

FreyaB

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Hi everyone,

We're currently looking at a few ponies for my stepsister, who's about 5 ft 3 and 12 years old. She's not a complete novice but isn't exactly anything else...? She started riding my older mare (21) after a nasty fall and Genna has really given her back her confidence but now she's looking for something to jump and maybe do a bit of *dare I say it* competitions - which Genna isn't really upto due to an old injury. I want a confidence giving ride, who isn't gonna spook or dump her and I'm happy to do any schooling, jumping, competing etc while the pony is adjusting or maybe hasn't done a lot. We don't have a very large budget - basically the cheaper the better but obviously something sane and bombproof, even if it's more of a project! Anyway, we spent sometime trawling through ads and turned up these three...just wondering if any of these might be suitable for her?
http://www.horsedeals.co.uk/horses-...ny/14-1hh-Grey-Connemara-mare__15-5-13-551493

http://www.preloved.co.uk/adverts/show/108175786/beautiful-142-coloured-mare-6yr.html

http://www.horsedeals.co.uk/horses-...eyhouse-Royal-Gem-PC-alrounder__1-5-13-724665

We don't want anything to sensitive or sharp, but not a complete kick along!
 
personally i think the last one would be too old if you wanted the pony to last i would defo go for something younger,2nd one would be brill as long as you think you have enough experience to bring on ect , cant beat a good cob for novices! number 1 is your best bet i reckon! as long as not to forward!
 
You can't really go wrong with a Connemara - fabulous ponies. I also like the look of the last one, a good age for your sis to learn from.
 
Give us a chance to look at the ads:)
1 and 2 are both going to be very green, unproven types, they may be quiet but are not experienced at doing comps or PC and may have actually been ridden very little, so are in my view not really ideal, neither are really cheap for what they are.
3 seems the complete opposite, plenty of miles on the clock, probably easy to track her record with the name, contact local PCs for references but may be older than you really want and has ended up at a dealers yard, this may be for genuine reasons but it could be that she has been hard to sell privately for some reason.
I would keep looking, the PC site is good, they are more expensive but there are still some in a lower price range, NFED is good but maybe not in your area.
 
My problems with the last pony were that she might be a bit too much of a competition pony? Ie sharp, too forward etc She liked the second one, I would mainly do all the competing during summer - get her fit and ready to for my stepsister to take over properly in September when I go off to big school! I like the connie, thought she seemed a nice stamp and quite sweet. Think the first one would be a bit much! Agree that the other two sound quite green but it'll be a while before anything competition wise with her on board will be happening!
 
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Number one as a safe option, Connemaras in my experience are lovely, honest ponies :)
Number two if you have the time/ability/confidence to bring on as you can mold them to your required riding style/behaviour more easily :)
I wouldn't really choose number 3 as they may become unsuitable just as the rider gains confidence in/gets a taste for competitions..
So you choose which of the first two categories you fall into.. :)
 
Pasture Mix said:
Number one as a safe option, Connemaras in my experience are lovely, honest ponies :)
Number two if you have the time/ability/confidence to bring on as you can mold them to your required riding style/behaviour more easily :)
I wouldn't really choose number 3 as they may become unsuitable just as the rider gains confidence in/gets a taste for competitions..
So you choose which of the first two categories you fall into.. :)
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I think it'll be up to her in the end, I'm happy to bring on the pony etc so I'm easy either way! :)
 
For someone getting their nerve, you don't want a horse or pony who will, at some point, rely on them. The saying "green plus green makes black and blue" does tend to fit very well, especially with children who have lost their nerve.

An older pony isn't a bad idea for your budget. A 15yo+ will be cheaper, but will have seen it all before and won't be requiring hand-holding from an already nervous rider.
 
Lolo said:
For someone getting their nerve, you don't want a horse or pony who will, at some point, rely on them. The saying "green plus green makes black and blue" does tend to fit very well, especially with children who have lost their nerve.

An older pony isn't a bad idea for your budget. A 15yo+ will be cheaper, but will have seen it all before and won't be requiring hand-holding from an already nervous rider.
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She's confident now, just I'm worried about her losing it, that does make sense but we've been looking for an older pony but I feel the first mare might be too much! I haven't really found an older pony that suits and is in her price range! At least not on the last four websites, I'll check some more.
 
FreyaB said:
She's confident now, just I'm worried about her losing it, that does make sense but we've been looking for an older pony but I feel the first mare might be too much! I haven't really found an older pony that suits and is in her price range! At least not on the last four websites, I'll check some more.
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I'd ring about the first horse then, I don't think the other 2 will be suitable... Although the 17yo is considerably better than the youngster.
 
I would be very wary of buying one which is listed as private seller from what is clearly a dealer.
A quick google of the phone number can often be interesting.
The second one is too green & I can't see which you are looking at on the third link.
 
The Connemara seems to be coming from a dealer as stated above, not that that is necessarily a bad thing. Reading between the lines on both the connie and the cob they would both require schooling: COB "just bringing her back into work going well in the school a little bit green but safe" and CONNIE "She is back in full work".
So you will have to be very honest with yourselves about whether you and your sister can provide this schooling. Even if the ponies are safe you may not have the experience to turn them into the ideal competition pony in a couple of years time, which would be frustrating for your sister. It depends on the abilities of you and your sister and your support network.:)
 
So, googled the number for the connie and it turned up all over the place, nothing negative but a lot of ponies, stallions etc Not against buying from a dealer, just wondering why they would advertise as a private seller...? :confused:

The second mare is quite green, nice but if you guys are thinking too green...? The third mare is a competition pony which we seem to agree is going to be too sharp, forward etc for my sister! I'd consider myself a reasonable rider, currently I ride two horses already - a schoolmaster and a a 6 year old, and have been riding for 7 years. We have a large amount of support from are YO, she'd be happy to ride the pony and school her a bit to help iron out any issues and she would also have a look at them before we buy if we asked her!
 
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