Such a thing as too much choice?

[shoniedaspony]

i am torn between two options at the moment. Based on the info i give you, and the pics, which would you choose?
(this is just to hear opinions, not to make my choice for me!)

option 1!
11.2 welsh A gelding, very honest and trustworthy, no fear, great fun, good to hack in company/roads, fun to school, improving all the time, fast but safe, rides and drives. best personality and manners

[shoniedaspony]

option 2
16.2 ID x tb mare, moody, not much fear but likes to test you if she is given the chance, fun when behaving, good to school, good to hack in company, great on roads but can nap if you want to go one way and she wants to go home! can be fast, generally controllable but has little regard for safety (even her own) when wanting to gallop, strangely i do trust her, not malicious at all, reasonable manners for people, not a horse horse though!!


both can and will buck but i havent fallen off yet
could do small jumps on both although anything over 2ft6 and (2) plays up big time, good thing i dont really love jumping! Have lots of history with (2), good and bad, and she's improved my riding no end and will continue to do so! relatively new to riding (1).

what do you think?

[Hesseybabe]

ok, i personally think it sounds like u have learnt all you can learn on the pony. As long as u can control horse 2 and feel safe I would go with her.
Just one comment, the noseband on horse 2, flash nosebands should have the cavesson part fitted no more than one finger below projecting cheek bone. If its too low and too tight it can break the horses nose or prevent it from breathing.

[Drummers mum]

It depends what you want from your riding!

Personally I love ponies and nothing would posess me to have a horse! There is always plenty to learn and a horse isn't going to mean you learn more! You have to look at what you want to do though, you are never going to win Badmington on an 11.2!!

[shoniedaspony]

i suppose the fact i put it in the "adults who ride ponies" section kinda shows my opinion is biased.

Its difficult as i have really no ambition to reach any particular place with my riding except to keep learning and to have fun.

If i am going for experiences, i have been offered the chance to do things on both
(1) Driving trials, in hand M&M, gymkhanas, sponsored rides etc.
(2) Clear round, working hunter/riding club horse, sponsored rides

oh why is life so difficult!

I can see what you mean hesseybabe, but there is also a limit to what i can teach horse (2) because she is 13 and a lot of her worst habits that sometimes take the fun out of riding are not going to change dramatically.

[shoniedaspony]

hesseybabe- are you saying you think the noseband is ftted too low? have been trying to find something to tell me exactly where the projecting cheek bone is, could you describe it for me?

the bridle wasnt fitted by me, but i will look at it next time im up and riding (havent ridden in 3 weeks due to lameness)
thanks

[Hesseybabe]

Yes, basically it is too low. If u look at the side of your horses face there to a bone that sticks out and runs down the side of their face, it runs along the top of their cheeky below their eye. The noseband needs to be almost touching the point of this bone.

Also you can retrain a 13yr old no problem. I love ponies and would much prefer a pony myself, but if i could learn more from a horse then i would ride the horse.

[notpoodle]

oooh its *the* pony :D from what you said i'd say go with the pony!!! he sounds lovely!

and who wants to ride a 16.2hh bucker? :D

julia
x

[Tootsie4U]

Another rule of thumb about the nose band - it shouldnt be lying over the nasal cavitites! (as this one is in the photo). It restricts breathing.

[Chromelotus]

Is that you on the pony? If so, you look perfect on him, he looks forward going and fun. From the descriptions I would say go for the Welshie everytime. However, I am bias as I am a Welsh a. owner myself! Personal preferences aside I would still go for the Welsh, I don't like the sound of a nappy 16.2hh mare at all. I know what you mean about trusting her though, sometimes we do feel comfortable with a naughty horse if we know it through and through and know what to expect from it. The thing is, if she is capable of bad behaviour she may do something particularly bad one day which ends up with her losing your trust (and denting your confidence too!) From reading what you want to do with your equine you seem like a prime pony owner candidate to me, I also suspect this is where your heart may be! :)

Let us know what you decide but the Welshie has got my vote! :D

[LinzCos]

How can you decide between two great but very different animals?!!

I say keep it simple - have both!

I have a 11.3 Welshie and a 16.2 TB. The little one is just 4 and unfortunately I am too big for him but he does also have a 13.1 sec C friend who I love to ride. My horse is 20 years old this year and I hope that we can still learn something together. He is fast and exciting - an ex-racer who has never lost the urge to gallop. My medium size Welshie is a youngster who is still learning and growing - a different challenge and great fun. The little pony is giving my kids the time of their lives and being brought on by a lightweight friend.

They are all lovely and I would hate to have to choose between them. Sorry, I can't be much help in your decision but it is great to have the choice of two lovely horses.

[shoniedaspony]

thanks VERY much, will adjust noseband tomorrow. (thats if the woman i share with will let me!)
With regard to retraining a 13 yr old, im sure it is possible, but dont think i have the skills! in fact i know i don't....unfortunately.

Thankfully she is back in work from today and so in a month or so we should be back to normal enough for me to get an accurate perception.

I am rapidly becoming a pony person it has to be said, and i am going to jump him on friday :D which should be cause for much hilarity and laughing.

Major decision i need to make is what i want my riding to be about. If im riding purely for fun then i know where my vote is going! Otherwise im not too sure.

@chromelotus and notpoodle the pony is such great fun, i seem to be blinkered when considering things about the mare, i have had quite a few falls from her, combinations of bucking and bolting, but we seem to have got past all that...i owe her a lot with regards to riding and a view on horse ownership, but she owes me a fair few tears!

[shoniedaspony]

very unfortunately in the world of a student with a part time job (omg i can say that now! how exciting) there is a limit to how much money and also time i have to devote to more than one horse! especially since either option would be a share anyway! at the moment i am juggling th two helped by the fact the mare has been out of work and i have had extra time due to study leave etc (who says its for studying!)

[Chromelotus]

Equines are expensive fullstop but, as a whole, ponies are so much easier and cheapier to board, house, feed, maintain, kit out etc. Welshies have lovely little hard feet, just get them routinely trimmed and don't worry about shoes. They are hardy and live longer, large horses tend to be more delicate and prone to problems. Ponies are happy on a smaller area of grazing, you can school them on a ten pence piece as they are so agile, they are easy to jump on and of off whilst out on a hack. They are just the opitome of fun!! :D

From what I read I suspect we are very much alike, you don't have any plans to go big time or ride to a seriously competitive level but you are slightly concerned that going for a small pony may close certain doors and hold you back from areas in which you may want to compete in in the future. In all honesty, unless you really do think that one day you may wish to ride at a highly competitive level, then there is nothing that you can't do on a pony! You can compete, hunt and go on endurance rides on a pony and have *ALOT* of fun. Have you heard of the Pony Riders Association for adults who ride ponies? They hold shows, events and meets and have a wonderful points scheme which you can follow (for everything from cross country to dressage to inhand etc.)

Anyway, once again putting my prejudices aside, I still don't like the sound of the mare AT all :( If you were to give me a choice between a hard working, well mannered, fun 16+ hand mare and a naughty, nappy pony prone to bucking and bolting I'd go for the mare!

Just wondering, where are these animals for sale from? Is it a riding school or a friend etc?

[shoniedaspony]

neither are for sale.

one i share at the moment and have been for the past 9 months.

the other is a new friends pony who wants him excercised as much as possible, but i feel bad just riding him, i would rather put all my energies into 1.

i have to admit that neither is perfect but thats not what im after.
Whatever my moody monster mare does on the bad days, is just about outweighed by the good days..i think! the one thing she has taught me is to sit bucks..the other is to never give in to a nappy horse!

Thats just about right, i have really no competitive aspirations as such, the odd bit of local showing would do me just fine. Obviously my riding could still improve massively without me reaching a competitive level, but i could do that on either...i think...

and welshies are so cute! :p

[Chromelotus]

Ahh, well that is slightly different I think. If you were looking to buy then you'd want to put all your energy into one horse but in this situation I think you should enjoy both the horses and ride which ever one your mood dictated on the day :) Don't feel bad about riding them both, if they are both share horses then you won't be neglecting one or the other, they'll each have two mum's to love and ride them! :) If I did not own a pony and had several to ride I would take advantage of that fact and swap and change a bit. For example, if you were going to a gymkhana then the pony would be your ideal choice for the day!

I think the fact that you are not looking to buy will make your decision far easier and 'safer.' if you are intent on putting all your energies into one of the animals then it won't be such a problem if you change your mind and decide to find something different to ride in the further on down the line.

[shoniedaspony]

the problem is that i only have a limited amount of time, and cant actually share both (eg contribution to costs and doing stable duties as both are DIY), rather than what i am doing at the moment, sharing one and just excercising the other, and finishing him off when she is at work in the evenings.
I think im going to continue this for a while, until my mare is back in work, i will probably be riding both, but more of a problem comes when i have exams etc.

I think ive made my mare sound worse than she is :( she can be a monster sometimes but is generally good, unless you want to do something she doesnt! She has only bolted once or twice, for understandable reasons, a natural fear reaction, and can buck when excited/to get out of work.
I can manage her, i realistically couldnt properly when i started sharing her (the benefits of hindsight), but the major challenge is coping with her moods and im just not sure im enjoying riding so much any more.

I know with sharing, especially because my riding has improved so much over the past year, if things went completely wrong with either then it would bemeasier to move on and find something else, there are more options available to me.

Keep worrying il regret any decision i make though! Bug me at the end of feb about a decision! :p

[shoniedaspony]

well so much for not making a decision now!

having ridden my mare today for a bit then the little-un later, i realise that there is a spark missing with my mare, i just had a flash of light in my mind and realised that all i want to do is have fun, maybe a bit of driving as well as riding.
So in goes my notice for my mare...thankfully both at the same yard so i will still see her! scary decision and wont be confirmed till tomorrow when i see the other sharer....
:(

[Chromelotus]

Yay!! Good for you! I really do think you have made the right decision! Please do post many pics of your little one! :D

[shoniedaspony]

now i just have to tell the owner :( hmm thatl be tommorrow me thinks...do you think a months notice is reasonable? cos that will give time to get her back to reasonable fitness and time to find another sharer?
ohh and im jumping little'un tomorrow! fun

[Chromelotus]

Unless you have some sort of written contract stating otherwise then I think a month is more than enough :)

[NoviceNic]

Yes yes yes. Go with the pony. Much more fun and essier to keep. Can I class my 14 2hh as a pony. He really is as good as a pony. Tried the 15 3 hh thing. Didn't like it one bit. Too high.:eek:

[shoniedaspony]

well thats a weight off my mind!

told the other sharer id decided to stop sharing the mare and go for the little pony instead, and she said she understood and thouhg tid made the right choice for me, and now i think she is going to full loan the mare (with me bringing her in 2 nights a week which i am happy to do, means i dont lose her completely) which is great for her! now to speak to the owner and let her know and see how much notice she wants...

HAPPY!!!!:D :p :D :p