withdrawls

[Sabrina]

has anyone else who went strictly to minies and gotten out of the biggies had a hard time after a while - missing the riding aspect of it. i sold my last big about 3months ago, ( figured it was best for her because i am preggers and wouldn't be able to work her like she needed.) now i have two mini mares and my little mini stud, love them and are anxious to see them in show condition for next year, but came along an ad for a large riding pony and started having withdrawls, any stories about personally going through this would be great thank you

 

[Minimor]

We have downsized to Minis only--well, there's one Morgan left here, but she isn't sound & couldn't be ridden now anyway--we sold our saddles to buy our Mini carts, harness & such--there was a time not so long ago when I thought I would NEVER sell those saddles, but then one day I came across a picture of a Smart Cart. I took one look at that and said that for one of those carts I would sell my western saddle!! And that's what I did--we sold both of our western saddles & now have 2 Smart Carts...my good dressage saddle bought a couple of harnesses and another Mini....

I have to say that I do not miss riding at all. Oh, there are times when I think back about how much fun it was riding, different memories of riding dressage or some great trail rides--but I don't actually miss it. I love driving too. even when we had only Morgans, if I were riding I'd think I enjoyed riding the most, but then next day I'd be driving and think no, driving is actually the most fun! Now I've settled on driving & have no real urge to ride again...so I'm not much help when it comes to suggesting way to deal with your riding withdrawal!! My only suggestion would be to get a cart & harness & get one of your horses driving, and see if that can fill the void for you.

 

[Sabrina]

thank you for your reply, i had a mini gelding that did driving and it was fun, but we sold him becuase he acted very studdish and was getting aggressive with our mares, maybe i will have to look into another cart, what is a smart cart, never heard that before??

 

[Minimor]

This is the Smart Cart: http://www.pacificcarriage.com/smart_cart/smart_cart.html

I have to try & get longer shafts for ours so we can use them on our Shetlands too.

One thing about driving the Minis, you and your small child can both enjoy the horse if you've got a cart & harness & a horse that drives. When I was a little kid we had a small pony & my mom would take me in the cart & go driving. I learned to drive when I was very small!

 

[Bonny]

I have small horses , last summer sold my Paint mare. I miss riding the bigs, thankfully I have a friends who still have biggies and I am able to ride occasionally. Not the same as being able to saddle up and go when you choose, but wonderful none the less.

 

[JWC sr.]

Coming from the cutting world, where adrenaline is a common drug, I had a hard time getting into the mini's with Cindy for a while.

Then I went to a friends house/arena, got on a cutter, got dumped about 8 minutes into the runs and remembered why I quit in the first place. It hurts too much now days when I hit the ground. Getting older may have some perks, but it has a lot of negatives also. The picture of this fat old man sitting on the ground, kicking dirt and spitting/sputtering dirt balls was not a pleasant sight to me, but it sure made the spectators day. LOL

So to answer your question I will satisfy myself with the horse fix these little guys can give me and keep my butt firmly planted on the ground or in a cart seat.

 

[Sabrina]

thank you everyone for your replies, i have a very old cart that i will try and refurb , i love my little ones they have made horses accessible while i have been preggers( my hubby grounded me literally with our first and i didn't know anything about minis or that they even existed they sure would have been conforting then.) thank you all

 

[ErikaS.]

I sold my TB and grade pony around the time I became pregnant and my teenage step-daughter lost interest in horses.(My husband let me get a mini shortly after because I just couldn't live without a horse.) I had been riding other folks' horses since I was 13 and finally got my own "biggie" at 25- a big deal. I trail rode western and showed hunter/jumper. Now, I am in my thirties (don't tell anyone) with a toddler and I have this bloodclotting problem that makes getting even a little hurt dangerous; I couldn't handle the big guys right now. Despite that, gosh, I miss riding! I'd jump at the chance to sit astride a 16 hand steed even for a few minutes! I just don't have that kind of opportunity at the moment.

I love my mini geldings. And they are wonderful around my son. I'd like to get into showing and driving someday- open shows, for fun. I still look on Craigslist for minis, donks, and cheap,old riding horses...just window shopping. Yes, I have withdrawals.

 

[Sabrina]

thank you ErikaS. it is nice to know i am not the only one that goes through the riding withdrawls