Mini horse pulling???

I live in NH on the ME border, and had some people come to see a mare I had for sale. I talk long, deep,hard, and ask many questions of anybody when they come to see a horse of mine for sale. Something I learned is, there are "mini pulling contests" in Maine?? Just like the Percheron, Belgian pulling contests at the fairs around here??? These people like this stuff and said, "You wouldn't believe how much these minis can pull"! OMG!!! You've got to be kidding me! Is this for real???? Can you imagine your little mini being whipped to see how much weight and how far she can pull?? I would die first!! Is anybody aware of this going on????

yes I've heard of this, nor do I think its cruel. These minis tend to be bigger, more drafty or cobby in type,and not the type that is winning in the ring today, nor do they pull massive amoutns of weight like the drafts, nor are they whipped repetedly. Someone in fact someone once posted pix of a mini pull on here I enjoyed the pix. Dan.

Yes, I have heard of it, and though I am not interested, and my minis are not of the type that would do well at it...I don't think anything wrong with properly conducted pulling contests.

There are rules for pulling competitions, as there are for all others, and whipping, beating, prodding etc...are not allowed and are penalized quite heavily.

I was on a websitew once that had the results of a big pull down South somewheres...and the minis percentages were considerably higher than any of the others. From heavy draft horses, to heavy draft ponys...the minis out did them all percentage-wise.

I compete in harness with my minis at open shows, and have heard a few people say they think that driving them is cruel...so I guess it depends on your point of view.

Like they say..."Whatever floats yer boat".

Oh yes! We still attend the county fair every year and show our ponies. Our dear friend John has a Mini Draft team that pulls. I have some pictures of last years pull somewhere, I will look for them and post. They are 34- 32 in 4 horse team, what a look they are! They dig in and pull! His site is MattusMiniatures.com, take a look.

Ellen...I have tried that link in several different forms and spellings, but nothing relating to mini horses comes up...??

In my opinion, you're right not to sell your mare to a mini pull horse home. I went to a county fair last month and a team of minis was competeing against a team of mules and the weight got up to 1200lbs. The owner kept hollering at them (the minis) and slapping them with the reins until they both went down to their knees and got back up three times. The audience got real quiet but no one did anything about it. Most of the people around me were whispering about the creulty of the man. He did lose but only because they couldn't pull it. It broke my heart and I immediately left. I'm sorry I gave my money to enter to see such a thing. I hope I never witness it again.

Well Sue, I just tried John's link too. Then I called him. He quit paying for the site. LOL! Anyways, I will see if he will forward some pictures.

I do have to comment on the Whipping of minis, you can't use a whip at a mini pull. You can only use your voice. It is that way with every horse pull I have ever seen.

Also, I have been involved in the training of hitch and pull teams. Draft and mini. The whip is used as an aid, just as a leg in training a riding horse. I have never known a handler to whip them, maybe crack the whip as in using a crop, but not whip the horse. Then they end up nuts and won't work for you.

Oh and let me also say, this is done as entertainment in our area, not as a true competition in the pull. He gets them thru the first pull, the sled with no weight and says quit. It is all in how you look at . An empty sled weighs no more then a team wagon. And if 4-6 are pulling a wagon or empty sled what is the difference between that and a cart with a large adult.

John pulls the wagon with him and a 10 year old child. Sometimes his wife rides in the parades too.

Check out bealsbarnyard.com. This another friend who drives team. She doesn't pull, but has a draft team.

I agree with SueC. I don't do it, I have refined halter type horses, but it is fun if you do it right!

I don't know if it's still being done here, but there used to be an ALL BREED Horse Pull done here in Central Oregon and there was a team of minis who participated.

The method was done by percentage of the weight of each type of horse. Hope that makes sense.... For example, each type of horse averages a certain weight is not expected to be able to pull more than a specific percentage of their weight....

Interestingly, the minis WON for THREE YEARS IN A ROW!!!

Interestingly, last I heard the outfit stopped inviting the owner of the mini team to participate.

Anything can be done right, and wrong.

For those who are curious, type in "HORSE PULL MINI" into the YouTube.com search engine and you will see many videos of miniature horses (I think they are probably Shetland ponies, but still...) at pulling contests.

Andrea

luv2ridesaddleseat said:

I live in NH on the ME border, and had some people come to see a mare I had for sale. I talk long, deep,hard, and ask many questions of anybody when they come to see a horse of mine for sale. Something I learned is, there are "mini pulling contests" in Maine?? Just like the Percheron, Belgian pulling contests at the fairs around here??? These people like this stuff and said, "You wouldn't believe how much these minis can pull"! OMG!!! You've got to be kidding me! Is this for real???? Can you imagine your little mini being whipped to see how much weight and how far she can pull?? I would die first!! Is anybody aware of this going on????

Click to expand...

i live in Maine.... Never have I herd of this.. I have herd of mini pony pulling and the pony is 40" and doesnt pull to heavy of things

Funny thing I was thinking if they had them the other day. Question answered. They were used to pull carts in coal mines. So who knows how much they could pull. Not really my cup of tea, but whatever floats your boats.

Mini pulls are becoming very common here in Ohio. There aren't a lot of people who compete....but the ones that do have several teams & compete at a lot of county fairs. I've watched them at our county fair two years now & I'm just amazed at how much they can pull. Pound for pound, they ALWAYS have pulled more than the big draft breeds! These little "pulling" minis are built for it too. They don't use the refined show type minis. These minis are built like Mack trucks! LOL And...there are no whips or forcing the minis to pull! These little guys LIVE to pull. They WANT to pull...you can just see it! They will actually jump in the air & pull with all their heart with NO prodding. You can see they really enjoy it. At least all of the ones I've seen have been this way. Absolutely no abuse of the animals at all.

I took several photos....I'll see if I can find some & post on here.

Dona, We are in Ohio too. Maybe just an Ohio thing. But yes, no prodding of any sort, all voice. I am trying to scan pictures of the pulls this last year. Maybe I will be able to get them up.

I must say, I love your frames on your avatar!

Joyce, I wouldn't send my mini off to be a puller either