New to horses

[jiterbug]

I am thinking about buying my kids a miniature horse. My son will be 7 years old weighing 45 pounds and my daughter will be 8 years old weighing 50 pounds. I had a shetland pony when I was 5 but I didn't have to worry about the specifics. Here is a list of questions I have and I would appreciate any feed back I can get.

1. What's the difference in a miniature pony, miniature horse, and a mini? Are they the same?

2. I've seen horses that are as small as a dog, what are they called? I don't want one the kids can't ride.

3. Will my children be able to ride any kind of miniature? Will they outgrow it too soon?

4. What is a driving horse?

5. Would it be better to get a younger one or an older one?

6. We have 4 acres, it's all hilly, some of it is very steep and most of it is wooded. Is this suitable? The neighbors miniature horse is on the same terrain and he seems to be doing fine, but I'm not sure this is okay.

7. I have 3 baby goats, will this be a problem?

8. Is it true that some have long hair and some has short hair? If so, what is each called? I don't really want to have to use clippers to much.

9. Do transporters usually charge by the mile or how is the price determined? I will probably have to have one shipped pretty far. Like 200 miles.

10. Since my property is so hilly, where do I put the poop from in the stall? Can the stall floor be dirt?

Thanks for any answers!

 

[Riverdance]

A Miniature horse is just that, a Miniature horse. It is not a small pony. Sometimes for short we call them Mini's. There are two registrations for Mini's The AMHA and the AMHR The AMHA will not allow a Mini taller than 34" at the last mane hair. AMHR has two sizes, the A and The B sizes. The A size is the same as AMHA no taller than 34". but their B's are 34" to 38".

If you are looking for something your kids can ride, I would go with a tall B.

A driving horse is one that is trained to pull a cart with one or two adults in the cart.

If you are new to horses, and since it is for the kids, I would get an older one 10 years or more. They are usually more laid back by that age and many can go till well into their 20's. Something that may have already been ridden and trained to pull a cart.

As long as you have areas for the horse to graze, or be sure to feed it enough hay, grain and water, then that should be fine. The only thing you want to make sure of is that you do not fence in any trees that are posionus to horses. Those with acorns or pine cones are some. Black Walnuts are bad too. It would also be better for your horse that it have a companion. These are herding animals and are not happy alone.

They should get along fine with the goats as long as the goats do not have horns.

Mini's have short coats in the summer and long coats in the winter, depending on where you live will depend on how long their hair gets. In the spring they shed out the long coat.

Dirt is fine on a stall floor, but if they are going to be in a barn at night, I would put wood shavings down for bedding. If it is just a run in shelter, then dirt is just fine. You can always find a flat spot to put the poops and then either have it hauled away each year or give it away to people who have gardens or spread it in your own garden.

Take your time looking for just the right Mini and make sure it is very friendly and easy to work with for you and your kids before you buy. It would be best if you could go out to the farm and see and handle the propective horse.

Good Luck!!

 

[CrescentMinis]

Hi and welcome. You won't believe how much valuable information you will soak up reading posts on here!

Good questions...I am no expert but here are some opinions

1. all the same...under 14 hands is officially a "pony" but we call our mini breed "miniature horses"

2. that would be a mini horse, could be a dwarf if unusually small

3. I wouldn't use a mini for riding; better off going with a larger pony so the kids don't outgrow it so quickly

4. "driving horse" is one trained to pull a cart

5. I'd look for an older trained horse, hopefully calmer with kids

6. Should be just fine

7. Goats might need to be kept separately

8. The coat changes seasonally...long winter coat sheds out naturally in the warmer season

9. unsure about transport costs

10. stall floor dirt is OK; rubber mats on top will make things easier. Manure management at my place consists of a pile at the back of the property, carted away in the spring for gardening compost.

I'm sure others will have more input.

Good luck!

Riverdance posted more detail, excellent...I had a phone call and came back to finish this and she's covered it really well!

 

[mininik]

"A Miniature horse is just that, a Miniature horse. It is not a small pony. Sometimes for short we call them Mini's."

There have been some good answers so far, but I'm going to get a bit more technical here because I think it's important. All ponies are horses, but not all horses are ponies. Anything under 14.2HH is a pony, including Miniature Horses. Miniature Horses are nothing more than a height breed and many are double registered as Shetland Ponies, which is a pony breed based on bloodlines.

Also, there is also no need to use an apostrophe before the s in Minis (plural), unless you're talking about something a Mini possesses.

I hate to sound like the Forum Punctuation Police, and I know my postings are nowhere near correct, but that one irks me just as much as confirmation/conformation and "ALOT."

 

[jiterbug]

So what is the height difference in a shetland pony and a miniature horse (B)?

"A Miniature horse is just that, a Miniature horse. It is not a small pony. Sometimes for short we call them Mini's."

There have been some good answers so far, but I'm going to get a bit more technical here because I think it's important. All ponies are horses, but not all horses are ponies. Anything under 14.2HH is a pony, including Miniature Horses. Miniature Horses are nothing more than a height breed and many are double registered as Shetland Ponies, which is a pony breed based on bloodlines.

Also, there is also no need to use an apostrophe before the s in Minis (plural), unless you're talking about something a Mini possesses.

I hate to sound like the Forum Punctuation Police, and I know my postings are nowhere near correct, but that one irks me just as much as confirmation/conformation and "ALOT."

 

[Leeana]

A miniature horse is under 38'' (amha cuts off at 34'', but for the sake of my agurment were going off 38'').

A shetland pony can be any height under 46''. Shetland ponies are a bloodline breed (i cant think of any other way to state that), while minis are strictly height horses and a breed based off height. Shetland ponies that stay under 38'' can be hardshipped or considering a mini. Shetlands are measured at the withers (like a horse), minis are measured at the last hairs of the mane.

Example:

My foundation shetland gelding is 39.5'' as a shetland, he is 37'' as a mini. Two different measurements.

Shetlands are tall, leggy and extremely refined ..prob not the fat short pony you picure lol. Infact, some of the shetlands do stay below 34' and are considered a miniature A division horse.

Here are a few examples of my shetlands (i know you didnt ask about shetlands, but note the different look) ..these are both Classics (over division classic shetlands, meaning 42in+)

Alpha Farms Magical Melody ASPC

*

Alpha Farms Magical Debut ASPC

4x Congress Champion, Reserve Grand Champion Gelding Over, HOF, All Star (all thanks to From The Heart Farm

)

A miniature horse is a pony. Like Nicole said, a pony is a horse ..but not all horses are ponies. You can call my mini's ponies or miniature horses ..i dont get affended at either

. However, my shetlands are ponies ...not miniatures (but one does make mini height technically).

 

[Jill]

Hi, and welcome here from Virginia

You're getting some good answers here!

One thing that jumped out at me was about shipping. I have had minis shipped here from 1200 or so miles away. For a distance of 200, the seller may be willing to help deliver your new horse to you for gas money

I know that I would do so as a seller for that small of a distance.

Minis in the winter have long coats. They do shed out in the summer, but start to fuzz up around August. In my avatar, most of my short coated minis were body clipped.

We also have goats. Our goats did chew on our horses' manes and tails through the fence. Some goats will do this, others apparently never do. When it comes to feed time, minis and goats usually shouldn't be on the same grain (the horse feed isn't good for goats, and some goat feeds have additives that are toxic to horses).

I know you are in for so much fun getting into minis. So far, I've never met anyone who did get into minis and later regretted it!

Jill

 

[Indian*R*A*I*N*Dance]

3. Will my children be able to ride any kind of miniature? Will they outgrow it too soon?

It depends how large the mini is. I would say the weight they are now is about as far as i wuold go to putting something on its back. they can't hold that much but they can pull alot.

4. What is a driving horse?

A driving horse is a horse that knows how to pull a cart

5. Would it be better to get a younger one or an older one?

My 1st mini was 4 months old when we got him, they you can teach im right from the beginning. I would say if you are new to horses don't get a baby, get and older mini but if you know how to train and are willing to spend alot of time then get a baby but do lots of research!

6. We have 4 acres, it's all hilly, some of it is very steep and most of it is wooded. Is this suitable? The neighbors miniature horse is on the same terrain and he seems to be doing fine, but I'm not sure this is okay. that is alot of land!1 we only have less than an acre and we have 2 minis. (they get about 1/3 of out land

7. I have 3 baby goats, will this be a problem?

the goats ende up eating the trails of the minis, if you don't care about the apperence of your horses then no, its not a problem. We were going to buy a kid and my mini together but the goat we wanted was too small.

8. Is it true that some have long hair and some has short hair? If so, what is each called? I don't really want to have to use clippers to much. Horses usually end up with the same amount of hair. In the winter its thick and in the spring/summer they will shed out.

10. Since my property is so hilly, where do I put the poop from in the stall? Can the stall floor be dirt?

You can make a manure pile somewhere on your property or what we do it throw it in the trash b/c we arn't allowed to have a manure pile (houses too close together) but you probally have to get permission o do that, im not sure. The stall floor can be dirt but you have too keep it really dry. We have mats. they didn'y cost alot at all and we got them custom fitted for our barn.

 

[Riverdance]

Also, there is also no need to use an apostrophe before the s in Minis (plural), unless you're talking about something a Mini possesses.

I hate to sound like the Forum Punctuation Police, and I know my postings are nowhere near correct, but that one irks me just as much as confirmation/conformation and "ALOT."

FYI, when you use spell check or Words on the computer, it never let you spell Minis without the apostrophe. The same for Morgan or any other horse name I have tried using.

So, I gave up and use the apostrophes.

 

[mininik]

I am sorry this is so off topic, but you can "Add" words to most spell check programs so they are accepted. We use Microsoft Word 2000 and I must have done this to ours and forgotten about it, because it spells Minis without the appostrophe and spelling correction. Just a thought!

 

[Alex]

hehe, can I be the official grammatical police officer?

And Welcom! I have a horse named Jitterbug!

 

[mininik]

hehe, can I be the official grammatical police officer?

And Welcom! I have a horse named Jitterbug!

Sure, if you capitalize at the beginning of your sentences, avoid sentence fragments, and spell Welcome with an e. LOL JK

I love the Edit button!

 

[kingminihorses]

Hi! I just wanted to say welcome to the forum! It looks like you have gotten some in-depth answers to your questions so I have nothing to add.

Good luck on your mini search and do post pics when you get him/her!

Lindsey

 

[Alex]

hehe, can I be the official grammatical police officer?

And Welcom! I have a horse named Jitterbug!

Sure, if you capitalize at the beginning of your sentences, avoid sentence fragments, and spell Welcome with an e. LOL JK

I love the Edit button!

Oh you crack me up!

My duties will always be fulfilled! I know thats spelled wrong dang!

 

[jiterbug]

Uhhh, what is a wither, and where is the last hair on the mane? at the top or bottom of the mane? I feel so stupid!

terri

 

[mininik]

Not knowing something shouldn't make you feel stupid.

Above is a diagram that labels some basic conformation points of a horse. As indicated, the withers are the top of the shoulder bones. Miniature Horses are the only breed to measure at the last hairs of the mane, which may stop growing before, on or below the withers depending upon the horse. Other horses and ponies are measured at the withers, which is much more accurate. Manes can be manipulated, and tend to grow past the withers where a shorter measurment can be had, so this helps the breed measure even smaller (unless someone slips up with the clippers). That explains why as Leeana pointed out earlier, Shetland Ponies registered as Miniature Horses measure taller as Shetlands (at the wither) than they do as Miniatures (at the last hairs of the mane).

 

[jiterbug]

hey, thanks for the explanation. that was a great help!

terri

 

[wildoak]

Mininik, you must be a teacher LOL.

Jiterbug, you came to the right place to ask questions! You mentioned your neighbor has a mini, if they are knowledgeable they might also be a good resource for you in finding a good vet, farrier, feed stores, where to buy hay, etc.

Your children are probably approaching the upper limit weightwise that a smaller mini can safely carry. If you go to a B size or a Shetland, they will have more time before it is outgrown.

You didn't say where you are located, but there are mini clubs in most parts of the country. You can go to either of the registry's websites (www.amha.org or www.shetlandminiature.com ) for a complete list along with contact information for breeders, trainers and maybe club officers.

Good luck,

Jan

 

[mininik]

Close! Thanks.

I'm working on becomming a dog behaviorist and trainer, and am not forgetting to learn about how to teach the humans how to teach their dogs. Learning theories and psychology are fascinating stuff.

 

[Katiean]

I wanted to add that I have a dwarf goat with my minis and she has horns. She is fine with my horses even with the baby last year.