# Those of you with miniatures..



## Miniaturebrats (May 10, 2004)

Obviously i don't mean ride the miniatures (well you could..i guess...)

But those of you who have miniatures, do you have other horses you ride? Or do you not ride?

I've got my two little boys and i've also got 13hh cob who is my riding plod! And also a 12.2 yearling who i brought as a riding prospect (obviously when he is older) but i don't ride everyday. Currently i ride once a week and my pony is turning into a lune, in fact possibly going to get him a sharer to a)be better on him to get out of the field more and b) financial help!

I'm not a big time riding in fact, i'm quite a nervous rider (this coming from someone who's just brought yearling to break in a few years..) but i'm not a nervous rider, which never makes sense to other people!






What bout others who have the little ones...


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## Lewella (May 10, 2004)

I have Shetlands and yes, I do have one riding horse though she's getting up there in age and I don't ride anywhere near as much as I used to.


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## kaykay (May 10, 2004)

we have a modern shetland that my son rides named patches. Last year was horrible but this year they are both doing much better!!! I am considering buy myself a riding horse as i cant stand it when hes riding her. I grew up trail riding and I really miss it


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## KrazyHorses (May 11, 2004)

I have a Tennessee Walking Horse mare that I ride. Wish I had more time to ride, but also have a back injury from December that is still healing. When I do ride her I keep her at a walk to save my back. (broken L4 vertebrae healing)

I have a pony 11.2hh Appaloosa.

(I let a little girl come ride her. She got away from the girl's mother who let go of the leadline. I went across the pasture to get her and decided to get on and ride her back. Bad idea. She spooked and reared under a tree. I had to bale off backward to avoid the pony coming over on top of me. I landed on a tree root and broke my back)

And, I have a new mini colt. Cute as can be. Will mature "B" size.

My Webpage


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## Lewella (May 11, 2004)

Hi KrazyHorses - do you have a compression fracture? I was thrown as a teen and have a permenant 20% compression of my T-12 and the T-10 - L-2 graphed together. It took a couple of years before I could comfortably ride again and even now I need a horse with a really smooth gait or else it jars my back.

Lewella


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## Bluerocket (May 12, 2004)

I don't ride anymore. Used to.. just gave away my holsteiner gelding (gave my half to his co-owner) as I don't expect our new place to be suitable for a full size horse. He was to come to me at "retirement".. and I was hoping to drive him..

Used to do low level Combined Training, Dressage and hunter/jumper. Also did pole bending and barrel racing as a teenager. Trail riding is my favorite.. next to driving.

Can't beat the minis for driving however..

JJay


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## KrazyHorses (May 12, 2004)

Hi Lewella,

Yes, it was a compression fracture (L4) (12/23/03).

I rode my Tennessee Walker yesterday and it has been a while since I have been on her. She started off OK, but then went into a little bucking act. I don't know what that was all about since she's never done that before. I think they call it "cold backed" bucking? Anyway, I thought I was just going to walk her around the pasture a little not go to a rodeo. My back didn't like that very much but I stuck it out because I know she needs saddle time.

When she's ridden regularly, yes, she has a nice comfortable gait that is not hard on my back at all. I even rode her the week after I broke my back (waiting for x-ray results & didn't know it was broke). I had to use a small table to stand on to mount, but she has such a smooth walk it was not painful to sit in the saddle.


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## runamuk (May 13, 2004)

Well we have a bunch of riding horse at the farm however I do not ride anymore except very occasionally......same reason....I had the L4 disc removed in feb of 2003 it had burst and wrapped around my spinal cord....I also know that L5 is about 30-50% compressed and one othe is also compressed been like that since I was 16 it is a genetic thing)...however since my surgery I feel so great that I really have to watch it so I don't overdo it



I really need to get back on a regular program of PT...but hmmm there is just never any time...I think I will sign up for the summer water aerobics class just to try and keep in shape a little


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## KrazyHorses (May 13, 2004)

Runamuk,

were yours all disc problems?

I am afraid to find out if I damaged any of mine.

They only told me that I broke the bone (vertebrae - L4).

Disc trouble is probably just a short trip down the road for me. . .


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## runamuk (May 13, 2004)

Yes mine is all due to degenerative disc disease first diagnosed at age 16



then many years of riding, training,etc...(getting myself whooped on by big horsies) ...one of the discs finally went ...not sure how long it had been blown we knew it was "bulging and a slight tear" 2 years before the surgery mostly because I had shooting pains down my leg etc...really long story really long



when the doctors here discovered it had blown I had no feeling in my foot, could not stand upright, had almost NO digital pulse and it took 2 months after that to get me in for surgery



it has been amazing to actually NOT have back pain I had lived with it almost daily for years (like from 22 to age 34) eeks just gave away how old I really am



I am lucky I am not paralyzed I was the talk of the surgical unit they still cannot believe I walked in to that surgery when the surgeon got in there he had to actually go find pieces of the disc that had wrapped around my spinal cord.

I have been a really bad girl lately by not keeping up with my exercises and my back has been aching so I have to get back into the routine ...with summer coming I figure water aerobics at the pool would be a good choice





sorry for the rambling


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## Little Munchkin (May 13, 2004)

Yikes, those compression fractures really hurt! I got mine eight years ago thanks to one of those nutty appaloosas.



Still in a lot of pain pretty often. I've had several riding horses since then, and have even trained a two year old. But all it takes is a little spook, and I'm out of commission for days, sometimes weeks! And I've had some really good luck with my minis in driving classes, so I don't ride anymore. I really missed it at first, but now I have no desire to ride again!

I guess I should probably get back to the doctor to see if more could be done for me, but I've heard some people say they were worse after having surgery, so I've been a little chicken to do anything.



Have any of you had bad luck with surgery?


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## Lewella (May 17, 2004)

I think in my case having the bones grafted together really made a huge difference. I'm betting if I would not have had that done I would probably have some disk issues in that region.

Isn't it amazing when horse people start talking how many have actually had compression fractures of some degree? Mine was on the really bad end of the spectrum and I imagine if I would not have had surgery I would be practically crippled by now.


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## Black Magic (May 17, 2004)

Haven't ridden in awhile. Yes, had problems with the back too... L4... who could of guessed? Mine's from a car accident though. When I do ride, I better have a good prescription available for pain later that evening.

However, my kids ride our mini. He has a hunt saddle and the kids just love riding him, although we keep it very limited. Now that summer's here and schools out next week, I'm sure that we'll be doing more trail stuff in the wooded area behind where we live with out big guy. I hike and one of the kids rides . He's gotten so used to our area, nothing spookes him anymore at all. Plus he's child scream proof... so I think I'm making progress.. Lol..


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## Magic (May 20, 2004)

I ride-- but not very often! I have two grade Paint/Arab/QH's, one has TB in him too.



Half brothers. I love to go trail riding-- we go into the mountains and work up to six-hour rides, easily-- but my main trail riding buddy is pregnant and won't be riding this year, so I'm thinking of sending my riding geldings up to my brother-in-law's place in Wyoming and let them wander and graze at will on his 100 acres or so for the summer. They would be happy and I would be happy that they are happy, and could devote all of my time for the moment on the minis. Ok like I don't pretty much already, but I wouldn't have to feel guilty about it, lol!



I'll never sell my boys even when I stop riding though, the oldest has been with me since before he was conceived, and he is now 16.


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## Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis (May 21, 2004)

both me and my 18 yr old T/B are retired... i used to ride dressage and hunter jumpers for years and he was a A circuit Eq horse.. he has bowed tendons and is lame half the time lives on bute



me i have a disc issue in my neck and no insurence so one fall could be the end of me.... so we both sit around and eat and think about the good ol days


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## MyLilShowGirl (May 25, 2004)

I used to ride alot, But miniatures are my favourite breed and I dont ride no more.

-Kris


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## tracyCCF (May 25, 2004)

I ride performance (padded) walking horses , and have several trail horses at home. We have 4 padded horses at the trainers, so each and every weekend, have to travel somewhere for a show. I never ride at home, I always plan to, have them shoed every 8 weeks, then never ever ride the ones at home. They live the life of leisure.

I got into minis several years ago, to take a break from the big horses, now I have gotten back into the big horses, so I have taken a break from showing the minis. I would love to have several out with a trainer, but with 4 big horses out( my pocketbook will only allow 1 mini).


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## ponygirltx (May 25, 2004)

I have three horses. Two APHA mares and 1 grade gelding. The gelding belongs to my 11 yr old who has been running barrels and all the speed events since she was in kindergarden. Hard to find those special kid horses! I ride on a regular basis, working with the 4-H kids, going on trail rides and at the areana. Been toying with the idea of running barrels again, but then again don't like being the center of attention, lol!!! I have raised one of my Paint mares from a yearling and is now a 4 year old and doing great, she is my dream horse. Now I want to teach my Shetland to drive, so new adventure, lol!!!!

Jamie


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## tshack (May 27, 2004)

I ride all the time. My husband and I have three Qh Geldings, plus two head of ranch horses and a colt that he is starting for a guy in town. I usally help Cody around here horse back moving cattle and stuff since he would have to do it himself if I didn't help. I used to run barrels and poles quite a bit but my barrel horse that I absolutley loved was sold when I had to leave him at my brothers for a month when we were moving. (long story). Armstrong, one of the horses we have now would make a great barrel horse if I could ever find a place around here that was flat and didn't have any holes or rocks. He has had a little bit of training on them though, just needs a LOT of finishing. I grew up riding horses before I could even walk, I guess it is no wonder I married a cowboy, huh?.



I still have my old kid horse, who is dog gentle but he has been in semi retirement until we have kids or wheneve I feel like clowning around and trying my english saddle out. None of the others are gentle enough to let me put it on them.


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## Margo_C-T (May 28, 2004)

Well, I have been riding since I was 2,so, nearly 61 years later--I still ride, just not as much as I once did! Strictly trail riding nowadays--been there, done that in nearly every(Western)way there is, did a bit of English, but it wasn't my "cup of tea".

I hope to train my APHA mare to drive; she is a bodacious trail horse(just wish she were smaller; she's 15 hh., I would love it if she were 13.2-14 hh! I NEVER liked "big" horses, and these days, getting on is a problem, what with arthritis and the aches and pains of aging!) I will hang onto a riding horse until I am absolutely certain that I won't ride anymore.


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## ponygirltx (May 29, 2004)

Know what you mean about those tall horses Margo. I raised a quarter horse from a weanling and he was in really poor shape when we got him. Thought for sure he was going to stunned. Well to make a long story short, at the age of 4 he was 15.3 hds, ugh, so much for my stunned colt, lol.




Rode him for a year but darn I'm short, he was tall, so Amigo went to the Border Patrol Horse Patrol and is a full fledge agent now for the Government.



Thank goodness my two paint mares have matured out at 14.3 and 15 hds.

Jamie


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## Boss Mare (May 29, 2004)

I'm late on answering to this post, but before Miniature Horses I was actively involved with riding.

I started riding when I was four/almost five years old. Neither of my parents are "horsey", but I had a desire to be around horses ever since I figured out what they were. Finally when we moved to a more rural area I begged for riding lessons and a horse of my own. I began riding and quickly began showing in lead-line, equitation, walk, walk/trot, walk/trot/canter -- the simple English pleasure rail type classes. When I was older and got some more experienced I moved up to hunter and jumper.

The judges loved me and I was always in ribbons. I have very few ribbons that are not a champ., reserve, 1st or 2nd. I even had other trainers and riding instructors ask to sponsor me or ask me to transfer over to their team.

FINALLY, My parents felt at age 12 I was ready to have a horse of my very own. I had dreams of a tall, young, hot headed Thoroughbred, Warmblood or something else along those lines. To make a long story short I ended up with a 40+ year old, mixed breed, 13.2hh. pony that we ended up rescuing from slaughter. Samson definitely wasn't what I had dreamed of or expected as a first horse, but if you ask me I wouldn't have traded him for the highest value show horse out there. That little horse taught me so much more than I could have ever hoped for. Not only did I learn a lot about horse care, but he taught me a lot about myself as well. Sadly, he is no longer with us but his memories will be cherished forever.

When I got Samson I quit showing completely. I also stopped taking riding lessons and I wasn't on a horse for several months until I bought my Thoroughbred gelding, but I still never showed. I also bought a Paint filly as a weanling and started her under saddle myself.

Unfortunately, I don't own any large horses now. I do hope to in the near future. I would love to get back into showing (Miniature and/or big horses), but I'm still trying to justify if it's worth it.


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## rabbitsfizz (May 31, 2004)

I don't ride anymore, I've had M.E for 17yrs and slowly lost the ability to grip. After my Arab mare turned herself inside out to walk me home ( couldn't get off, couldn't walk, couldn't grip, kept slipping!!) I decided it wasn't fair on her and stopped. She was such a 100% genuine animal, but walking was not in her natural vocabulary!! I bought a Sec B Welsh foal, thinking I might manage her, but the Arab raised her and, altho' I did get her saddle trained, she was too much for me too. Do not wish to offend anyone but most of the riding horse I see I would not put my leg over !! Once you've ridden an Arab you don't go back. The mare was put down a few years back and the Welsh mare's gone to Pony Club, where she is doing all the mad things she loves with kids who are fearless. Mind you, I keep looking at my 38" mare and thinking, 'she should be saddle and harness trained, she's wasted as a broodmare' Maybe, maybe!!!


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