Shetlands - Wally????

[COLOUREDCOBS]

I seem to have accquired a little colt who would appear to be shetland or may be smaller. He was rescued from a council estate where he was tied to fence and had kids climbing all over him and torturing him bless him. he seems unaffected and i would age him about 3 yrs.

He is currently in the back garden with one of our cobs and is no bother and very friendly.

But what can i do with him i dont know if he is big enough to ride but he seems to have a lot of unspent energy. can i lunge him?

i would like him to have a job/purpose but an clueless as to what shetlands are capable of. someone suggested breaking him to drive next year, but he seems so small!!! would he be strong enough? also what does he need to eat. i am presuming no hard feed as he has quite a round tummy - he has been wormed - so just a small amount of haylage?

will his hooves need trimming still or being a hardy breed will they just file naturally? will he need rugging in winter?

he will be getting gelded soon, although he is not coltish at all

also, will he stay in our electric fences he is in garden at moment which is walled

pic of him to give you an idea of size.

[COLOUREDCOBS]

the cob is 14 - 14.1hh to give you an idea

[Stassy]

Shetlands require the same amount of care as bigger horses. His hooves will need trimming, teeth rasping etc has he been wormed, it could be the cause of his round belly?

Shetlands are extremely hardy and shouldn't need to be rugged (unless being clipped) but watch the amount of grass he is on. Where they come from is nothing like the lush fields we contain our horses in. How big is your garden?

They are fun, cheeky and stubborn little things and can do all of the jobs their bigger cousins can and they can be lunged, ridden, driven, long reined, I've even seen them out on the hunting field and jumping at local shows (some of them think they are better than horses only marred by their little legs).

[ginny!]

I can't help you with driving/riding but like Stassy said they do need the same amount of care. As long as he has decent shelter he shouldn't need any rugs, and haylage might have too much in it. Could you just feed him hay??
If he has enough grass and enough hay I don't see why he would need any food during the winter, but obviously if he starts loosing any just feed him food low in sugar.
Shetlands naturally have rather round bellies, IMO he looks fine in those pictures, his belly does not look too big and he doesn't look fat at all. Though it can be hard to tell with Shetlands.
As long as its turned on, you have made sure its taught and made it low enough he should be fine will electric fencing.

Maybe you could take him out for in-hand walks?? Mine love them

carthorse - to me he looks about 3. He has the same 'look' about him as Del did when we bought her at 3.

Good luck !!

ETA: haha, no, I take that back. Del was 2 when I got her. He looks younger than 3 !!

[carthorse]

I'm not a Shetland expert so I can't answer all your questions, but I'll have a go at some. He's so cute!

His feet will need trimming, they won't self-trim without a lot of work on hard rough ground & even then they wouldn't stay in balance. Break it to your farrier gentky, I know a lot of them dislike doing Shetlands because they have to bend down so far!

I would guess hay would be better for him than haylage as it tends to be lower calorie & higher fibre.

I'd ask the vet to confirm his age when he comes to geld him, he does have a very young look about him to me.

Good luck with him, he really does look sweet

[Stassy]

Originally Posted by carthorse

I'd ask the vet to confirm his age when he comes to geld him, he does have a very young look about him to me.

Yes I forgot to say that he doesn't seem 3 to me

[peerielee]

Vets dont often geld Shetlands till there 2 as their bits are apparently very small. bless he looks lovely. He should be able to winter out without a rug on. I wouldn't feed haylage due to the high protien content - they are verygood at putting on weight in the blink of an eye. Hay should be fine and if there is extra feed required something with a low sugar count would be advisable, ie, speedybeet, unmollassed chaff etc. You could break him to drive or back him to be a ridden pony. Shetlands often do well on hay and grass in the winter extra feed may not be needed

[COLOUREDCOBS]

he is 2 according to the dentist