to get a pony?

[3kidslou]

Hi, i new here but would appreciate your honest advice, my dd whos 5 has recently started lessons and ive been looking into getting her a pony, i have started riding again after 10 yrs and would enjoy this myself!!. I was looking to loan when i came across a 16yr old welsh sec a pony thats sounds brilliant on horse mart and its only 400, ive added up costs of livery and insurance, i just cant help thinking this is cheap, is the age of the pony the reason its cheap and does that sound about right? and is it bad to buy a 16yr old , thankyou lou x

[BlondeBatgirl]

Nothing wrong with a older pony, especially for a novice child. The price of horses are lower at the moment as people dont want them over the winter, the cost of hay/bedding is high.
I would say go and look at it, but take someone experienced with you. They may be able to spot something that you might miss!

I would make sure though, before you commit to anything, that your dd is going to stick at it! I cant tell you the amount of people I know who have rushed into buying their dc a pony, only for the dc to decide months or a year down the line that thier not interested anymore. The pony has to be sold yet again!

Dont get a pony for you, pretending its for your dd.( I also know people who have done this!)

Have you thought about maybe part loaning. I know theres loads of people who would love the help financally, and with looking after their pony in the winter, and then maybe think about it again in 6months time if dd is still interested.

[frenchfancy]

We have just got our first pony for my DD.

The advice I was give by our instructor was to wait until DD was old enough to be able to manage the pony mostly by herself. He put this at a minumum of aged 10. This is what we have done, she has stuck with it, getting better and better, meaning that she can now genuinely enjoy her new pony.

We weren't in a position to buy 5 years ago, but I am really glad we waited until she was 10.

[Haggyoldclothbatspus]

£400 is not cheap really, you cant give horses away at the moment. 16 is not a bad age either. Id call it the prime of their lives! Been there, done it, got the t shirt, but not to old to have a bit of oompf in it!

[Pixel]

Agree with that. Our first pony was 16 when we got him, we had him for 19 years!

[Booboostoo]

16 is young for a pony, but sorry I have to disagree on the price. A safe children's pony is always worth its weight in gold, in any economic climate because it's the kind of pony everyone wants. I would suggest you buy through word of mouth from another family you know and trust, but to be honest I think you are better off waiting a few years. Your dd is too young to look after the pony, may get bored with riding, and would probably get a lot more out of it when she is a bit older.

Why not get something for yourself though once you've gotten back into the swing of things (spring is always a much better time to get a new horse)?

[Callisto]

I would steer clear. £400 for a bomb proof pony just doesn't make sense to me, though the age wouldn't bother me at all. I only paid £170 for DD's pony, but I went in with my eyes open, with a plan to see how he was and use him as a driving pony if he was no good for DD. I got lucky because he is amazing. I will stress though, that I knew what I was looking for, was in no hurry, buying him was more of a rescue (if he had been well looked after where he was I wouldn't have bought him) and I had a really knowlegeable friend to give me a second opinion.

If you are determined to get a pony for your DD then look on the pony club pages. But, you need to honestly assess your own experience and capabilities because you will be the one making sure that your DD is safe with a pony.

[Haggyoldclothbatspus]

Erm, I've just been given a 20 year old bomb proof pony FOR
FREE! Yes they are worth their weight in gold, but owners don't always realise that! HIS owner saw him as aged, too big, needs feeding up and too much extra work! Check the £400 pony out. I have a field full of lovely bomb proof first ponies, the most expensive one was £500. The other three were £150, free, and free! that's 5 lovely safe ponies for £650!
Cheap isn't necessarily rubbish!

[Mirage]

Can you link to the advert? Someone on here may spot something in the wording of the advert that tells you something that they aren't saying outright IYKWIM?

I don't think 6 is too young,but I made mine have years of lessons before buying.We are looking for another pony now,and have seen a lot of 'selling because child lost interest after 6 months' ponies. Just bear in mind that it will be you doing everything and it is very time consuming-even trying to squeeze a ride in after school before it gets dark is a battle.I can't count up the time off work I've lost this year for collecting/returning ponies,farriers,vets,ect.

I prefer older ponies,dpony is 21 and we are returning a trial pony today,who is 16.He,despite his mature age,bucked dd1 off,threw dd2 and nearly bronced a teenager off,yet he was calmness itself when we tried him,and we tried him for over 3 hours on seperate occasions.

Good luck,whatever you decide.

[Pixel]

Always worth a look I'd say, you might get a bargain as long as you are careful. I once paid £150 for a saddle and got the pony thrown in free!

[3kidslou]

www.horsemart.co.uk/lead_rein_first_ridden_horse_16_yrs_1_mth_11_2_hh_chestnut_cheshire/advert/196984

Hi thanks for allyour messages, im not really sure whether to leave it till the spring but pls have alook and tell me what u think. I asked if she would consider loaning with view to buy but she said she had had a bad experience with loaning so its not an option, thankyou x

[Mirage]

I can't see anything that jumps out at me,but I'd be asking if she'd ever had laminitis and checking her hooves for ridges,it is very common in little ponies.
It might be worth asking how she is off the lead rein.A lot of l/r ponies can be very naughty off,and if this is the case,you may have to replace her as soon as your dd progresses,which could be sooner than you think.

How long as she been up for sale? If you take the plunge,please make sure you get her on trial first.We've had 2 lead rein/first riddens on tria lin the past few months that dumped their jockey in a spectacular manner,not exactly what you want in a childs first pony.Sadly people will say anything to get a sale and the nicest pony may react badly to new surroundings/owners.

Best of luck.

[Haggyoldclothbatspus]

Yes, you need to look for lr/first ridden. Our welsh is lr/second pony. Really not suitable for a novice. Hoof ridges aren't all really bad, you want to look for ones that don't go parallel around the hoof. They should be all round, fairly horizontal. Any that are warped mean likely laminitis or other foot problems.
If you can manage the immediate winter care, now is a great time to buy, given the current financial climate, there will be many many horses and ponies going cheap this winter. there is a funny thread here in the tack room somewhere about sellers terms, it's tongue in cheek but there are some grains of truth in it, worth a look.

[Booboostoo]

Advert looks good. Pony is ridden and handled by a child which is great. As above you should ask about off-lead rein suitability, that might be why they are selling her.

Also, difficult to tell from photos but the coat looks thick and curly in what appears to be the summer so I would wonder about Cushings. Whatever you do you should get the pony 5 stage vetted by an equine specialist vet. The purchase price may be reasonable, but vet fees cost exactly the same for a cheap pony as they do for an expensive one.

[Pixel]

I noticed the coat but I don't think it's a recent photo, looks more like a pony coming out of winter rather than going into it to me. On one of the pics you can see where the rug has rubbed the chest.

[Haggyoldclothbatspus]

Doesnt look like a cushings coat to me. Its just hairy! The ad says that the pony lives in or out, the picture is of a fairly exposed looking paddock. Id say that it has lived out all winter and has a good coat. If it hasnt been in and rugged, it could still be hairy well into late spring early summer. We often have to hand pluck our little guys ready for Tendring Hundred show, which is in june!