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Shellygirl

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Hello...I have never owned miniatures before but have an 8 acre farm and looking to add farm animals as members of our family. I have recently met a man in my area who has miniatures and is looking to downsize his farm. He has 3 minis for sale and I am very interested. They are all 3 male and have been pasture animals with no training. My intension with the minis is to give them a good home, take good care of them and train them to lead and just be good pets. In this scenario...any advice or information that can be given is truly appreciated. The main questions is...I know I want at least 2...for their happiness...but am worried about taking on 3 right away. I want to work with them...would I be biting off more than I could chew with 3?
 
Do you have any horse experience? How much previous experience with any size horse, could help determine if three would be too much of a bite all at once. Are they already gelded? Or are they all still intact stallions? How old are they? And, how much patience do you have? It could take some time to tame down 3 minimally handled little boys.
 
I have zero horse experience. I am unsure of their age...but none of them are geldings. I do have a lot of patience and have taken in rescue dogs for years. I currently have an English bulldog who is incontinent and has to be diapered and given more attention than a dog without that issue. I am a photographer and have a studio...but my schedule is flexible enough to sustain farm and animal care. I am not afraid to work hard and put in the hours required. I also have a very supportive family and my 14 year old son will share responsibility as well. Hes a good boy who loves all animals.
 
If you take these 3--you will want to get them gelded ASAP. It will make handling them and keeping them all that much easier. How old are they? If they have had no handling they will be easier than if they have had bad handling. I have gotten young stallions with no handling--weanling to 2 and 3 year old--and had them settle down and get friendly (even as stallions) very quickly and with very little trouble. One had to be gelded before he would settle down and really be trainable.

You will want good fences, and a corral where you can corner and catch these boys. If they are not friendly/easy to catch believe me, you do not want to try and catch them out in a pasture or even a decent sized corral--you want a place where you can corner them. If I get one that is hard to catch I run him I to my barn.and then catching is easy (make sure you don't get trampled if the horse tries to charge out past you!) I warn you, it can get frustrating even when you are well used to handling all sorts of horses--a difficult one (or 2 or 3) can be overwhelming for someone who has no horse experience--it is a very good way to put yourself off horses if any of them are especially difficult.

Do you have a knowledgeable horse person who can help you if you get stuck with some problem you cannot deal with on your own? A bit of advice can ne a tremendous help. Keep in mind sometimes a self proclaimed expert can be more harm than help--i have know some horse people lot give very bad advice to newbies, so that can go either way!
 
Thanks to both of you for some very good advice. It is a lot to think about for sure. We have a small barn that we can modified to work for them...but not a corral. That would have to be addressed. And I have a livestock veterinary friend who can offer advice if needed. He has a farm with horses, etc. Hmmmm...I will put more thought and prayer into it. Thanks again for your help!
 
In my experience the best advice i can give u is to take it slow. i would put one or two or all of them in your small barn and go in and out a lot, then start standing around when u feel they are getting used to u, take a stool or turn over a bucket and sit in there with them for a while see what happens, theyshould come up to youand sniff you, they may nibble i dont think it will take more than a few days until they they come up to u

in the meantime, go to the library and find a good book and learn as much as u can about horses in general, your son should also do this as soon as u r sure they are not mean.
 
If they are all stallions, I think you and they will be happier if they are gelded. I got a new horse recently that was still a stallion. He is very easy to handle and I debated about gelding. I decided to geld, as he has some conformation faults that should not be passed on, even accidentally. My closest neighbor is over 1/4 mile away and my stallion would call for and stare at those mares. Since gelding, he is much more content.

I find 3 horses hard. Two is good as they bond with each other. A third one seems to cause some discord. Two horses can be brushed, trained, vetted, and farriered. Three adds up the cost and the man power. I would start off with the two you like best and see how that works out. Try to pick the ones that seem the nicest. Nice horses need good homes as well as not-nice ones. Set yourself, and them, up to succeed by picking the nicest ones. Just my two cents from experience.

Sounds as though you and your son are going to have lots of fun! Keep us posted.
 
Welcome to the forum Shellygirl.

You have been given some great advice already. Personally " A stallion " would not be my first choice for a first time horse owner. Especially two that have limited handling.

Look for something that has been handled and has some training , it will make it a lot easier as you learn yourself. No offence to you with what I have written, Its just my honest opinion and I wish you all the best.

Keep us posted
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Welcome to the forum Shellygirl.

You have been given some great advice already. Personally " A stallion " would not be my first choice for a first time horse owner. Especially two that have limited handling.

Look for something that has been handled and has some training , it will make it a lot easier as you learn yourself. No offence to you with what I have written, Its just my honest opinion and I wish you all the best.

Keep us posted
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While I whole heartedly agree with Ryan, I also fell into the minimally handled equine with my first horse (a 3 year old half-Arab gelding); we learned through the school of hard knocks to start, but then I found a fabulous instructor/trainer that I took lessons from for a couple years (there were still a few hard knocks after the instructor, but not as many). As they say: Green + Green = black and blue. [Green + green, meaning green horse and green owner/rider. I learned it as rider, since I started with a saddle horse.] My equine experience prior to owning, was two weeks of horsemanship camp and everything I could get my hands on to read; so I kind of jumped in head first, thankfully I found that wonderful instructor (they are definitely not all created equally).Not trying to discourage you; I can't say don't, when that's what I did (except mine was already a gelding); just think you should be aware. Happy horse adventures.
 
All of you have given sound advice...thank you! My husband and I took a drive over to look at the ponies and well, that was a mistake! They are such beautiful boys...that I worry I will not take your sound advice and go ahead and get them! Luckily, we still have to modify our barn and make other preparations before homing any pony...so that will give me time to think on it more and hopefully make the best decision for us. Note to self...dont go meet the ponies...you will want ALL the ponies! Haha!
 
All of you have given sound advice...thank you! My husband and I took a drive over to look at the ponies and well, that was a mistake! They are such beautiful boys...that I worry I will not take your sound advice and go ahead and get them! Luckily, we still have to modify our barn and make other preparations before homing any pony...so that will give me time to think on it more and hopefully make the best decision for us. Note to self...dont go meet the ponies...you will want ALL the ponies! Haha!
Is there someone around that can mentor you? Check with the local feed store, check local vets, boarding facility, rescue, etc; they might have suggestions of someone that can mentor you and help you ease into horse ownership, should you decide to jump in.They don't call minis "potato chips" for no reason, you can't have just one.
 
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When I got my first horse (in the avatar) I only had one criteria--I wanted a bay. I didn't look right nor left and simply focused on the color. I had no clue about training or temperament, stallion or mare. Zip. When I went to look at the horses, there were two bays. They were brothers and pretty much alike--except one kept sticking his tongue out. That's the one I had to have. He has been with me for 16 years now and going on 21 years of age. He is NOT perfect, but we have something between us.

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There is a local vet that I am acquainted with and he is wonderful. He has a farm with horses and cattle...and Inknow he will give advice when needed. I also have a friend who lives and breaths horses and mules. She will give advice and mentoring if needed as well. I am located in North Alabama.
 
Perfect , we have all had that mentor in one way or another.

Now Im 39 this year and have been involved with horses for 31 years and I am still learning
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best of luck with everything and dont forget you can ask anything here you like , no question is silly and everyone will be more than happy to help you
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