We breed and have shown both minis, shetlands, and the cross of both.....We live in Oregon.
How tall is he? Have you done the "touch test" for his weight condition? Is he getting any exercise?
He is about 34-35" tall. I have done it, I can feel bones but can not see them. I was unsure what type of weight you want in a shetland/mini like him and have tried to keep him from getting too heavy because I know it is bad for them. He gets turned out, and he runs around etc. It has been very muddy and yucky out lately, so he has been in a stall more (12x12) but never for longer then 12 hours at a time. I was thinking maybe I should start doing more exercising with him, but knew lunging at his age isn't good on little joints.. So I need some advice as far as that goes. I could totally take him for walks that are fast enough he has to trot to keep up if that would be good for him.
I would feed him on his own at night, away from the other horse as soon as you can.... Amount of feed is tricky, especially since he's
still young and growing. If you can figure out 2% of his weight in hay and grain per meal, start from there and adjust. Keep doing a touch test
every week.
Okay, I will. And my mare should be moving to the barn for the summer here sometime this month so after that I can keep track better.
When walking him, take a crop with you. Lead off his shoulder....If he gets ahead, tap his chest with the crop. If he falls behind, step back & tap his butt.
The crop can also be used between you by just pushing it against him if he crowds you. Use one word commands and stick to them....
such as WALK, TROT, STAND, and finally SET (for when you are teaching him how to stand with all four feet squared.) It takes lots of
repetition and patience. We practice show arena work only about 10 minutes at a time and always end it with a positive, even if it's
just a little positive. (When we work on "setting", we practice keeping the horse in place and encourage him/her to extend their neck/face
toward our hand which is just out of reach....without creeping forward. This is the hardest part of our training.)
We don't work on "show arena" training for very long because their attention span isn't much more than a human 2 year old's and to push it,
makes them sour to it.
That's about it without knowing more of you, your horse, and your situation.
If there is other info I could give you, that would help please don't hesitate to ask. And thank you so much for the advice.