[jaykay]

I need some advice - preferably not of the 'forget it' variety.

I would like a pony. A black Dales gelding.


I am 48 and I don't ride well, but would go back to having lessons. So I would need to buy 'not a baby'. And I would have a lot to learn about keeping a pony, though I am good with animals of all sorts generally. I have 10 acres of wet, rough grazing and out buildings that I can make him a home in.

I don't have the time or money for two, but obviously ponies are herd animals. Does he need another pony for company or would goats do?

What else do I need to know (succinctly, i know I have years of catching up to do!)

[MelRice]

Idealy he would need another horse...another owner/rider might do you good too...try asking the person you plan to get lessons from if she/he knows anyone that would fit

Last year my horse shared his field and big stable with a friend and I had a companion to ride out with and generaly do horsy things. She worked away during the week and gave me a bit of money for caring for her horse. We both did them at the W/E. She has a new job in the other side of the country and has taken her horse with her. I was very worried about mine being alone again. (We do have two horses just nextdoor though)  ...we had arranged for me to longterm loan an old pony but it all fell through at the last moment.

Scooby moaned (as he did when the other horse went out riding alone) in the morning then was fine...savouring ALL the grass in the field just for him. The only time he has been upset is when the two horses nextdoor were away for a week (He liked to have me out in the garden when he was in his field!)

When my horse used to live in a large comunal field he was normally by himself and not with a particular friend, so perhaps its just him.

I hope this story gives you food for thought...although it does not answer your question directly. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

[lachlanandmarcus]

The other option is to go to world horse welfare and take one of their wee rescue ponies on loan as a companion. Loan fee is normally only £50. It means if circumstances change eg something happens to your horse, you're not back to square one with a lonely pony, WHW will take it back and rehome it again.

[Roxy]

Firstly - good choice wanting a Dales!!

10 acres is a lot of land - far too much for one pony.  I would suggest another pony if possible  even if its just a companion, like a Shetland.

My Dales are kept almost as they would be in the wild.  They live as natural life as I can give them.  They are a hardy breed, and mine live on a hillside, 1,000ft above sea level.  They have seen some of the worst snow, and -18 degrees temperatures.  They grow thick coats, and so long as they have plenty of hay, they are fine.  Most Dales live out all year.

They do not need lots of horse mix etc. unless they are in really hard work.  They are good doers, and can put on weight easily, so there is a risk of laminitis unless their grass intake is limited, so you would have to think about fencing unless you have smaller paddocks.

If your fields are very wet, you will have to watch for problems with the ponys hooves, such as thrush, especially if there is lots of mud.  Mud also takes away their lovely feathers if you are not careful.

Dales are very intelligent, and also very strong!!  They may only be ponies, but are good weight carriers, and can turn their hoof to a variety of things.  You are certainly not too old to take up riding - I know quite a few older ladies who ride Dales, and I would certainly not put you off having one. I have never regretted my decision and I have 10 ponies, including 5 Dales.



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[SallyintNorth]

I kept my young Fell filly on her own for the best part of a year.  I was told she would bond more with me if she didn't have another pony for company and I do think there is some truth in this.  However, with a bit more experience I now think the most important thing for bonding is to spend one-on-one time with them.  They don't have to be alone the rest of the time to bond with you.

It killed me the whole time I had Floss on her own that she clearly would have liked company and couldn't always be with me.  Eventually I bought a Fell gelding, both as a more experienced pony to help me learn about keeping and riding a Fell pony on our moorland and as company for Floss, and have kept them together or in sight of each other most of the time since.  They don't always get on, and Davy bullies Floss and pinches her food, but they both prefer to be with another pony than not.  (The exception being when stabled - Floss much prefers her own bedroom.)

You do get a bit of silliness when you take one away for training, riding, whatever, but it's easily enough overcome with training and practice.  (They get used to it, and that the other will return.)

Floss has never wanted to be friends with anything except me and other ponies.  She doesn't like sheep, dogs, pigs, cats, chickens, ducks...  

Davy is happy to be friendly with anyone and anything, but then he's nothing like as upset if he is kept on his own as Floss is.  And I did have a loan Dales pony for a while before getting my own, and she was perfectly happy to be an only pony.  

So I would say, it will depend on the pony.  Some will be okay without another pony for company, some may enjoy the company of a goat and others may actively dislike the goat.  My advice would be, get the boy you want and see how it goes.  If he needs another equine, you can put out feelers for roomies such as suggested by MelRice, or companions on loan - lots of people have older ponies they want to continue to be responsible for but would like to be in the day-to-day care of someone else, and to be with another pony that that person doesn't have.  

I am excited for you - I embarked on the same adventure 4 years ago and, although I make lots of mistakes and don't do nearly enough with them (mostly time but also lack of knowledge and confidence), I absolutely love having them and couldn't imagine going back to not having my own ponies now.  And yes, wish I'd done it years ago.

One thing I would also advise - many Dales will be fine unshod, and they make a lot less mess of your ground if they don't wear shoes.  (And if the ground is very wet, shoes can get pulled off in the mud, too.)  So I'd make sure you choose one with good hard feet that won't need shoeing.

Happy hunting!  

[SallyintNorth]

I second a lot of what Roxy has put but will just add a bit from my experience on 'our' sort of ground.

10 acres is a lot of land - far too much for one pony.  I would suggest another pony if possible  even if its just a companion, like a Shetland.

...there is a risk of laminitis unless their grass intake is limited, so you would have to think about fencing unless you have smaller paddocks.

If your fields are very wet, you will have to watch for problems with the ponys hooves, such as thrush, especially if there is lots of mud.  Mud also takes away their lovely feathers if you are not careful.

I wouldn't have a Shetland - friends who have Shetlands as companions for Fells and Dales ponies seem to spend all their time managing their Shetland's weight problem and have less time available for their Fell or Dales..!  Fells and Dales are both good doers, a Dales will need more input than a Fell, but a Shetland needs very very little and can't seem to learn how to stop when it's had enough.  People seem to end up having to fence off small enclosures to manage the Shetland's input - and then none of the ponies have much space for running about in.

Here we keep 2 Fells and 2 Dales on the same type of ground you will be talking about, jaykay.  For the most part they're in a 10-acre field, of which way more than half is reshy wetness.  There's a 7-acre field next door, a bit less wet and a bit more thistley, that they get put in from time to time.  I was worried about laminitis at first, but so long as we keep the grazing very tight (by using sheep to mow if needed during the late spring and summer - when the grass is growing and very nutritious) they seem to do fine.  They put on weight over the summer and lose it over the winter, which is the natural cycle for a native.

For me, I prefer to see them with a large area of very poor grazing, so they get plenty of exercise and not too much input, rather than in teeny tiny enclosures which restrict the grass okay but also restrict the exercise.  And if you are doing some riding and not putting much in the way of hard feed into him, and can put your sheep in to help eat the grass at times, he and a pal should do fine in the 10 acres.  If it's not already divided, I wouldn't cut it up into more than 2 fields until you see how it goes.

Most of my friends with Dales and Fells (not all, but I think I'll be right in saying all of the ones that don't have a problem with laminitis...) do not feed hay unless there is snow on the ground and the ponies can't get at the grass.  (Or of course in the stable if they have come in on a particularly bad night.)  One feeds straw not hay, which I think I am going to try this year with my Fells, or at least hay sometimes and straw other times.

The mud will scorch the feathers, yes.  I am told pig oil will protect them - I am going to try that this year.  It's only a problem if you want to show them, really.

BH has had Dales here for about 8 years and has never had a problem with thrush, thankfully.  Oh, except when an owner was keeping a Fell cross pony largely stabled to limit grass because he had a tendency to laminitis - and they didn't keep the bedding clean and dry.  The pony got thrush.  And laminitis.  The vet said he needed more exercise.

[jaykay]

This is all really helpful, thank you  
He is a little way off yet, I have to save up for him! Just wondered if it were possible.

My sheep are going to have to go, Hubby is not going to be helping with them and i can't manage them on my own. Hence me thinking about my longed-for dream pony, which I might now actually be able to have.

Our land is divided into three fields but all interconnecting so could be in two pieces if that works better.

What sort of age would you advise buying - clearly he is going to need to know what he's doing, since one of us better  

[ellied]

I would always suggest a pony is not kept alone unless it has already proved it is content alone, particularly for a first time owner you do not want the pony to have additional stress trying to acclimatise and goats may or may not be acceptable to the individual pony so don't bank on that.  If there are other ponies over a fence that may be sufficient, but if there are ponies 2 fields away (or none) I wouldn't be surprised to find a lone pony trying to jump/barge/race the fenceline and colic itself if unused to the separation..

As for age, buy older and wiser, as you say one of you needs to know what you're doing!  But take very experienced help to ensure you aren't buying problems created by previous homes.  Dales are superb animals, but very bright and they pick up habits (good or bad) over time and can be quite thrawn which to me is part of their charm but can be intimidating for a novice   I'd be looking for a teenage pony around 12-15 for you, but even up to 20 they can still be fit, healthy and potentially ideal for you.  Just watch for history of laminitis, onset of arthritic change etc.

Personally I don't think shetlands are ideal company either - but again if you go for a companion pony check it will be ok being left while you ride or you'll be buying/loaning another problem, not to mention the laminitis and other risks already mentioned.  Or take two companions from a shelter so they are at least company for each other while you ride and can be returned if you don't get on with them or decide your dream of a pony isn't for you in reality and you would rather go back to sheep or rent the grazing out.

If you find someone else with a pony that you'd enjoy spending time with, offering grazing and hacking with that person could be ideal for you both and save you the hassles of lone ponydom, companions etc.  But watch you don't end up doing their work for them in winter, find someone who can get to you and help you learn..

Good luck

[Buffy the eggs layer]

Hi,

  dont worry that its going to take a little time to save up as you can use this valuable time for reasearch. As a novice you really would benefit from some private lessons to get you sorted. If you spend a bit of time on a local riding school and ride different horses you will learn an enourmous amount which will really help you when managing a horse on your own. You will also start to get a feel for what you want from your mount. There is so much to learn in the begining and the support of others is invaluable. So the more you can learn before you buy the better. You could also ask the person who gives you lessons to go and ride any ponys that you are thinking of buying and advise on their suitability.

 I would always recomend a well trained ( school master ) in double figures for a novice keeping them at home. That way he knows more than you do and a knowledgeable, calm, good natured horse or pony will help you gain confidence and experience safely. You may find after your lessons that you have a passion for dressage or equitation, side saddle, cross country, show jumping, driving, hunting or just a quiet, steady potter down the road when the mood takes you. Discovering this will help you decide if you want one that has experience in one of these areas as well as choosing one that is happy with the amount and type of work that you intend to do with it.

I think an other rider as mentioned above would be the best way forward for all the reasons identified but failing that an equine rescue companion is good for the horse. If you opt for two geldings then you dont have the issue of hormones to deal with and may find seperating them less of an issue. Having somewhere to school your horse at home is really helpful particularly for a beginer until you feel that you have control of your horse. It would also allow you to have some lessons at home when you first get him.

If you cant do this then you could arrange to keep him on the riding school for the first 3 weeks and have lessons there. Then you can findout all about each other safely and with support.

Buffy

[Roxy]

I have kept a Shettie and a Dartmoor for years running with my Dales - but our grazing is rough hill land, so as soon as any grass comes through it is gone - especially with having so many.  I suggested a small pony, such as a Shetland because they do not need as much hay etc as a larger pony, thus saving on feeding costs,.

My herd are fed a fibre based diet, good quality chaff (really expensive, but worth it I feel) and soaked unmolassed sugar beet in the worst of the snow.  And of course hay.  I do feel hay is important in winter, as there is no feeding in the grass, and hopefully it will keep them warm eating the hay on the cold nights.  They will eat good quality straw too, which helps supplement the hay supply.  Have been trying to get hold of some big bales of pea straw, but we are not best placed in this part of the country, as they could have this too.

As to age, I agree you need to be looking for an older, been there, done that, pony.  I have pones in their mid teens who are still active, and will be rideable well into their twenties all being well.


I have sent you a message

[jaykay]

Now I am completely smitten 

Went to meet Sally and her BH's Dales and Fell ponies. Oh they are gorgeous! So beautiful and friendly and such handsome animals.

So having decided maybe I couldn't have a pony, now I definitely will be planning to have two 
Might not happen for a while - but I think it has to happen 

[Roxy]

Dales particularly, especially rideable ones are  quite expensive - often in the region of £3,000. But there again, considering the time and feeding etc. the owner puts into their pony, thats the price its worth to them.

Have you considered  an unregistered or one x with something?  Quite often you see them advertised on feed store notice boards, and they are a lot more reasonably priced. I bought youngsters, which are cheaper, and then broke them in myself .....otherwise I could not have afforded one of the ridden ones.

I had a lovely mare on loan for 3 years - she was a Dales x with a heavy cob, and I loved her!!  Thats another option - loaning.  Quite a lot of people looking for nice loan homes for their ponies.

[SallyintNorth]

Went to meet Sally and her BH's Dales and Fell ponies. Oh they are gorgeous! So beautiful and friendly and such handsome animals.

She liked the ponies too 

[Roxy]

It must be nice for you and your BH to be thought of as "beautiful and handsome" .....hmm.....could be referring to your ponies instead I 

[SallyintNorth]

It must be nice for you and your BH to be thought of as "beautiful and handsome" .....hmm.....could be referring to your ponies instead I 

Nooooo!   You don't think so?