Now my trainer wants me to break Lakota and my friend to break another shetty called Duchess!! She is going to use both of them for little kids and therapy lessons!
Hey BobwhiteQuailLover, we have a shetland named Spirit. He belongs to my girls, 6 and 11. He is 14 yrs old, we got him at around 8 yrs old. The first few years we had him he was a real stinker. I could not catch him, had to sent my DH to get him ever time we needed him. Also he had to be tied or removed from the pasture everytime I fed the QHs or he would take their feed.He also was really only used for lead line because a child could not really get him to listen. Then my youngest got big enough to ride him(she was newborn when we got him) and she has turned him into a bombproof well mannered pony.
Something about these little guys and kids, they just go together. Love watching these girls and this mighty little guy!
Check out this little tack store we have here in N.C. www.partyponiesdiscounttack.com They have the cutest little bare-back pads. Found it searching for Christmas ideas.
There was a Shetland we used to take out with us when we went trail riding. The kids would ride him, but man that horse was a pill. Definitely not a kids horse in any way and I'm surprised none of those kids were ever seriously injured. He took off with one of them dragging in a stirrup once and that was the final straw for the owner. When he wanted to sell him, I was the lucky one who got to ride him around for the people wanting to buy him! My dad and I boarded our horse at the owner's barn for awhile and I was the only one small enough and not afraid of the little bugger (Although he still gave me the evil eye plenty!)
The ones you are training look very nice. I would love to get a mini or shetland and train it!