What was your most memorable horse or pony?

Princess Rosie

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26years ago I had a 14.2hh strawberry roan gelding called nugget, he could be an absolute swine at times, breaking 3 of my ribs trying to barge out of his stable when he though I had unlocked the door and squashed me! He used to lean on you and squash you against the stable wall given the chance and when you had your hair in a ponytail his favourite trick was getting hold of it and then holding his head up really high so you were on tiptoes/almost hanging from your hair and the only way he'd stop was for someone else to tickle him behind the elbow. He taught me a lot about riding and I regularly used to do crazy things on him like jump on him with just a headcollar on and he'd tank off back up the 15acre field to the stables with me clinging for dear life (I never learnt) and used to beat all my other friends on their ponies doing "chase me charlie" and we would always manage "barrels up" (the thought of which would terrify me now!).

I have fond memories of hacking him back late from the local shows (no high viz in them days and didn't know anyone "rich" enough to own a trailer, with my dad following faithfully behind us in his Austin allegro with his hazard lights on!

He was sold when I went to college around the late 80's to a girl in Rainhill and I always missed the hell out of the little monkey.

Who do you remember from your horsey past and what was the most memorable thing(s) about them?
 

loopy3585

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I've got 2 and they were both from the same time of my life from 12-18! i wasn't lucky enough to own my own but was luckily enough to live on a country estate where the family had horses and a groom and the daughter wasn't interested in riding her pony so the groom asked me to help exercise him! his name was bertie and he was the naughtiest thing going an absolute donkey to take away from the yard but point hsi nose in the direction of home and you just had to cling on for dear life even to the point of if his stable door was open you just had to tuck as he was getting straight back in to the food.
The 2nd pony was my best friends pony Rusty and he was the one that we would just jump on bareback to take up to the field and do all the fun games stuff on.
without these two ponies i don't think i would still be riding now
 

BeingKate

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I've been really blessed with some absolutely wonderful horses and loved every single one of them unconditionally. But my one in a billion trillion horse has to be my lad I have now...

I brought my boy 6 years ago. He came from a top yard but had been produced very, very quickly, by the age of 5 had learned Piaffe and Passage, and consequently is covered in windgalls, splints, and ended up with a busted suspensory. On top of all that, he was stick thin, windsucked like a trooper, had awful front conformation, a misaligned jaw and poll from draw reins, and was petrified of the stick.

When I saw him i'd actually gone to look at a 2yo to back and break but when his little face poked out of the stable, I asked if he was for sale. I was told no, he's knackered, if he doesn't stay sound when he's back in work he'll be shot. So of course I had to buy him. Everyone asked me what the hell i'd brought and why... shall we say gut feeling that everything would be ok...

I had his back done immediately as looking at him his stiffness seemed to be higher up which I was guessing was a result of his previous lameness. I had remedial dentistry to correct his poor mouth, remedial shoeing to gradually support and strengthen his legs, a diet review as I was certian he had ulcers... and after a years long and low work and hacking out and huge amounts of TLC he blossomed... from a scrawny 17h hat rack to an immense 17.2 powerhouse! OK we'll never make the Olympics (haha) but he's now winning Mediums, my vet has eaten her words and thinks he might even have PSG/GP potential (firstly not in my hands haha and secondly I wouldn't want to risk that suspensory even if I was good enough) and everyone now says what a wonderful horse he is. He's a quirky little (big) git and has the most amazing, wonderful character, is the kindest horse I've ever had the privaledge to ride, and I adore him so much!
 

Annagain

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This ol' fella. The most arrogant, stubborn, pig-headed, wilfull git you'd ever come across. He'd walk over you rather than round you, did not care where you wanted to go - he'd go where HE wanted, would trot round you in a 5m circle as you tried to catch him and then leg it if you took so much as a step towards him, would sometimes go on the trailer, sometimes not. He was ridiculously strong and excitable to the point of certifiable (we were banned from gymkhana games at pony club "for the safety of others" and would have to go into show juping arenas backwards, back up to about 4 strides away from the first fence and then I'd spin him round when the bell went.) He was also the most soppy, lovable, loyal boy who would try his heart out for you (if he liked you!) and talented to boot. He had the heart of a lion and as daft as he was, was the safest horse I ever sat on. He never put himself in danger, so never put me in danger. I thought I was John Whittaker, and Mary King rolled into one, until I had to ride other horses, then I realised I'd been a passenger for 14 years. I've missed him every single day since I lost him nearly 10 years ago. This was a few days before he had to be pts, very unexpexctedly, due to colic. He was 27 in this photo.

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hotair

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Mine was my first pony a 12.2hh grey welsh b gelding called Dandy. He was crazy and very very cheeky i got him when i was about 7 or 8 and he used to throw me every time i tried to canter, once he realised he could no longer manage it what a fantastic little thing he was! We did abit of everything in my 8 years of riding him pony club, mounted games, camp, xc, wh, sj all kinds, he had bundles of talent to match all his cheek! after this i kept him for his retirement and had him for the rest of his days :) sadly we lost him at the begining of 2013 after a happy 5 years of retirement, gosh i miss him!!
 

Madam Min

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I love our current nags to bits especially as one is my very first "own" horse, ridden since I was a child on all sorts of ponies and horses but never had my very own till 5 years ago.

When I was a kid my favourite riding school pony was a little 12.2hh Welsh Sec A, grey mare called Crystal, she was an absolute monkey but I thought the world of her even though she carted me around the big field once when hacking, binning me half way across and galloped all the way home! She had pink nose and loved mints, her nickname was Miss Piggy!
 

beryls2001

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My current boy, luckily for me. An OTTB with the brain of a manic depressive and the heart of a lion. I've never had a horse that stresses as much, but nor have I ever had a horse more willing to try new things, jump in the deep end and explore. I ADORE him.
 

Dave's Mam

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My piebald cob, Arthur. Wayward, cantankerous, grumpy, serial feed theif (little sod could undo door bolts & screw top feed bins). Safe as houses, taught me loads. Miss him always.
 

Slightlyconfused

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The one I have now, well actually he is my brothers but since his laminitis four years ago I'm the only one light enough to ride him.

He has given me back my confidence in so many ways, I trust him 110% and we went to the beach this year for a holiday for five days with half the yard. Cantering and then a good gallop with my sister/brother and friends on him along holkham beach will be treasured for the rest of my life.

He is broken at the moment and I don't know if he can pull through this time so I'm holding on to those memories and him very tight at the moment because he is one of those one in a billion horses that you will never be able to find again.
 

Sukistokes2

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I think it's your first pony that stays with you, my current boys are wonderful and Ffin, who I have just retired was my horse of a life time, however my first pony Star really sticks out as the character I remember most. We bought him aged nine from a riding school on Blue Bell Hill in Kent. He was a super looking pony, bright bay with one white foot and a tiny white "star" on his forehead. Hence the name, we called him Starbar. We were total novices and he taught us everything, usually the hard way! I remember going to see him and sitting on him, he gave me cramp because he was so fat! He was bought for me and my sister but in the end became mine. He was super fast, totally safe, although he would bomb off with you, you knew he would stop in the end. He was honest and fun and loved his job. We didn't really do shows back then, we were not rich so did not have a box. You'd hack to the local show, enter the jumping, stop 3 Times at the first fence, because you had been jumping hay bales and buckets at home, have an ice cream and go home. Happy days. Star lived until he was 31, he was hacking lightly up until the week before. If I close my eyes I can still see those pert, black tipped ears, it is the image of my childhood.
 

HollyWoozle

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For me it's my first pony, Misty. She was a beautiful little 11.2 grey that my mother picked up in the village. She had been suffering from laminitis for 6 weeks and pretty much left to her own devices (I'm not sure if my mum even had to pay for her). My older brothers enjoyed her and then she came to me and she was a dream. She could be naughty but she was loving, cute and super nippy when it came to gymkhanas. She lived into her 30s and was always an absolute pleasure, how lucky I am to have had such a childhood with her.

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leggs

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my soulmates;
MIst; came to me at 3yrs, if I didn't buy her she would go to the market (kill market) she was beautiful, but (as I later found out- found previous owner) she had been handed down in the PC because no one could ride her. I was kicked out of the PC because we "disturbed the lessons too much with her only on hind legs" Even just before she died at 29 she made me eat mud, the wildness never stopped, walking was not in her dictionary. I rode many horses in my life (and I started out on steeplechasers when I was 10- my parents weren;t horsey people :) ), but she was the most difficult horse i've ever rode. This is her, 2 months before her death at nearly 30yrs old (colic), just about to go for a ride
ry%3D400

and Gardy, the one I lost 2 months ago. a rescue foal, skin over bones when I got her, grew out to 18.2hh (mare) she was my boss, she knew what was best for me, no negotiation possible, she run my life for 26 years. She was my best mate, my chaperone, my everything
ry%3D400

although I love my 3 remaining horses, no others will ever creep so deep into my heart as these two.
 

happyclappy

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All of mine are/were very special in different ways, and choosing a favourite is impossible, but my most memoriable has to be my beautiful first pony, a dapple grey section a mare. She was nigh on perfect for me, she taught me so much. Tragically she died aged 11 of Grass Sickness.
 

Paint Me Proud

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At age about 9 or 10 there was a pony at my riding school, a little strawbery roan mare, must have been around 13h I recon. Her name was Blossom and I will always have a soft spot for that pony for the rest of my life.
She was a whizzy little mare, super fast and super fun! I was always very small for my age but very strong and fearless so I used to get Blossom for the lesson almost every week and I was thrilled. She's jumped fast, cantered fast and was just altogether the kind of pony you would storm pony club with.
 

pennyturner

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Dancing Brave. 13.3hh welsh part bred. Golden palomino, traffic-stoppingly pretty.
Introduced with the words 'are you happy to sit a buck'. I bought him for next to nothing when he was due to go to the sales, having been rejected on trial by two local riding schools, following his latest incident "he's just dumped another customer and taken off 'round the cross country course. If there's an insurance claim I've not got a leg to stand on, because my accident book's full of him".

Ex team-chaser, hacked 35miles+ from the field. Bucked, reared, piaffed, pirhouetted. Flying changes for fun - and without any technical input from me, both the most talented, and the naughtiest pony I've ever met. The only pony I've ever seen 'take off' with someone in walk!

I broke him to drive aged 13 and in harness he never put a foot wrong. When I couldn't take the danger (ridden) any more I sold him to the RDA as a driving pony. He's pushing 30 now and I believe he's still doing a wonderful job for them.
 

Serianas

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Mine still brings tears to my eyes 15 years after he left me. He wasnt mine but a pony that I loaned from the riding school, called Pepper. He was a rescue, as a foal they had to dig him out of the stable he was in, he was that mired in his own filth. A complete heinz 57, with a head way too big for his body, he was unable to jump because of his past traumas and what they had done to his fragile little legs. The YO bought him for a paulty £50, and sold him on for £1500. A dressage dive to his very soul, we managed to beat even the affiliated at the time. Yes we would get into arguments, yes he would buck, but he looked after me so completely, and after the person who raised me died, he was my confidant, my world.

He was sold when I went on a school trip, and I found out when I got back. He was truly my 'one that got away'.
 

misskk88

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My old loan horse. A grumpy old warmblood but an absolute diamond. He was a very talented and successful ex show jumper and had a top career before landing at the yard. He just had this way of adapting to every single rider he had and would give anything a go for anyone, as long as you didn't pick on him or try to force it. He was a bouncy and powerful horse and at 13 I was tall so just about fitted his 16.2 frame. I don't know why, but I distinctly remember a teeny kid who was no older than 9 taking him for a canter and jump and he kept so steady for her. Cue my turn to ride and I remember falling out the side door when he decided to explode with excitement after a fence. He was well known for his mini broncs and enjoyment of jumping and as I got more balanced I learnt to ride through them! I do remember being told many times to 'sit up, sit up, sit upppp!' and to 'look at the sky!'. I also remember our first time out jumping. I was so petrified, but all I had to do was steer and point and we sailed round.

He ended up teaching many people to ride, including me. I had him through my teens and was devastated when he had to be PTS. I still get teary thinking about him now, even though he left us 10 years ago.
 
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Clare85

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Mine is Oliver, a beautiful bay who I started riding when I was 11. He belonged to my friend and I was technically his sharer, but no one else ever rode him so he felt like mine. He was a character - leader of my friend's little herd of 6, very proud, quite aloof and with a few issues, he was not cuddley or affectionate, but we just clicked. He was a nightmare in the stable, a bit of a danger to be shod (sedation required), a pain in the bum to catch and always, always wanted to be in charge. But he was wonderful to me, in every way.

My friend bought him from an RS that was closing. He was used as an escort horse as he was deemed too highly strung for clients to ride. He was also kept in 24/7 because he would field jump and escape all the time. He was aggressive in the stable and was kept tethered to an iron ball by a chain so he couldn't lunge at people over his door. He was going to be put down as they didn't think they would be able to sell him. My friend saw something in him and insisted on taking him home.

She put him out in the field straight away and left him to adjust for a while. He field jumped initially and she had to go and retrieve him from various places. However, once he realised he wasn't going to be brought into a stable anymore he stayed in his field. She used him for SJ but he was only happy jumping up to 2ft 9in so she got sharers for him whilst she found something that was happy jumping a bit bigger.

Oli was 18 by the time I came along and I still remember so clearly the first time I sat on him. I looked like a pea on a drum and was nearly bounced right out of the saddle in canter. My friend watched through her fingers expecting me to be terrified, but I had a huge smile on my face, I loved him from the moment I saw him and that was that.

I've never felt safer on any horse, he was a total gent to ride and taught me so much. We went to PC rallies, camp, shows, hunter trials, mock hunts. He gave me my first experience of pretty much everything and I have so many happy memories thanks to him. I think my favourite memory has to be one summer afternoon, I was at the yard by myself and Mum couldn't pick me up for a few hours. I went for a ride and then decided to clean out the trough in the field. It was a big trough so I popped the hose in to refill it and leant against it to do a bit of sunbathing whilst it filled up. Oliver wandered over and stood there with me, head down, snoozing. It was so lovely and probably as far as he would've gone towards showing affection. I will never forget that afternoon.

Unfortunately he started to become resistant to the sedation required to shoe him and became unpredictable. Understandably the farrier couldn't risk shoeing him any longer. We tried him barefoot but he was absolutely miserable. We had an extremely wet winter that year and we couldn't bring him in to the stable to give him a break from the mud as he hated it so much. We couldn't take his shoes off gradually or prepare him for barefoot over time, as we had no one who would shoe him.

So we had to say goodbye almost 15 years ago. I miss him every day. I've never met another horse like him and I don't think there is another out there who will ever be as special as him. But I have fantastic memories from our 4 wonderful years together. I am forever grateful to yim fir teaching me so much and to my lovely friend for letting me ride and care for him.
 

Nessa4

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When I took up riding again after a longish break I went to a local stables that still did unaccompanied hacks and was itroduced to a 15hh fleabitten grey called PoloThe owners advice was "You'll know if she likes you - when she drops you if she likes you she'll choose somewhere soft and will wait for you!" She wasn't joking! Although she was as good as gold for the first few hacks, as we got to know each other she got cheekier and used to have a really dirty stop that was impossible to sit to, no matter how prepared you were - then she would stand there practically laughing. She would also hve little rodeos (preferably at a crossroads so that she'd hold up four lines of traffic, then when you clouted her she would immediatly go into what we called her 'Put-upon Donkey look' and walk with drooping head as though butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. She was a complete B***H - but I loved her to bits!
 

Ladyinred

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I have a mare now who I love every hair of, but there were two special ones in the past. I didn't own either of them; there was Light Oaks an OTTB who was my soul mate, she was utter perfection for me although no one else really liked to ride her. And then there was Stan a black OTTB, pure evil in horse shape. He was about as vicious as it was possible to be but something clicked between us and he never hurt me once. I adored him and we would go for long in hand walks round the village.. his reputation went before him and mothers would push their children into doorways and hide when they saw 'that' horse. He died of a heart attack with his head on my knee and I think I cried for the best part of a month. 40 years later I sometimes still wake up crying for him.
 

Moggy in Manolos

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I have been very lucky and had some wonderful horses, most were many years ago, but Seren was my most memorable, she was utterly amazing and my horse of a lifetime, I loved everything about her, she was an easy and forgiving mare and I loved her to bits and still miss her terribly, its been 3 years now since i lost her very suddenly :( She was beautiful inside and out and I will never be so blessed as I was with her. Nell is a cracker of course, but Seren was irreplaceable, I always knew she was 'the one' when she was alive, I did have 20 wonderful years with her and I was so so lucky to have owned her,just wish she was living out her well earned retirement with me now
 
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