paintponylvr
Well-Known Member
Minister Man - it sounds like you actually have a great foundation for handling your boy as well as a support system in place for on the spot questions in person and of course this forum as well. That's awesome.
AS to dealing with stallions that can be "inconvenient" - I, too, have had them in the past w/o problems. We've recently had some problems due to moving, getting a larger place and NOT getting our fences hot. That has been an issue for us that is getting addressed now. This is the first time we've had 2 Sr (used for breeding) and 1 JR (also used for breeding already) stallion on our property. Plus we have a colt that is still a stallion, who is scheduled to be gelded. It's the first time that we've actually had this many geldings, as well. And a suckling colt - but he is sold and will go to his new home when weaned. He will probably be gelded by his new owner next spring - when he is 10 months old. She does own 1 shetland mare and 2 horse mares - so he may become studdy before his appointment date arrives - we'll all see. They want to wait - feel that he won't be ready in September (he'll be 4 months old).
When I look back, we've always had "Junior" stallions - as I seem to always get colts in twos and we've usually waited until they were between 18 months and 2.5 yrs of age to have them gelded. Some would become study and all had to be separated from the mares around weaning time and before gelding. I usually didn't sell our babies until they were a year of age or older.
I've insisted that our stallions have manners. I utilize them due to their personalities (able to be handled by an amateur with non-horsey family members and children also involved), their bloodlines, their conformation and for who they were ("OOO LALA" - factor is what I call it) . Our first pony stallion was a riding pony for our oldest daughter, a lesson pony for kids at the barn we leased property from, a lesson pony for our other two daughters (but they didn't ride him regularly as our oldest originally did), my driving pony and last of all, a breeding stallion. We took him to school Show N' Tell's for all 3 of the girls (spanning 5 yrs) and as a lead line pony he went to Birthday parties, BarB-Ques, Office parties, Halloween Bash's and Church gatherings. He very much "worked for his living"... The resulting foals from 1996-2006 often kept our hobby mostly paid for with their sales. Our family worked the brood stock ponies (mares as well as the stallion), trained the ponies we bred (a few we sent out to pro trainers to take to higher levels of training/showing), showed many of them and then sold them to good homes. A few times we made mistakes when selling and I brought those ponies back home, often did more training and resold them. I also had a list, for a while, of folks that wanted AJ foals - so if one became available, I often matched a buyer up for that pony without bringing that pony back home myself!
I have pictures of all 3 of our daughters riding him at different times and a few of him being driven. He was a larger Shetland at 45.25" tall.
Our 2nd stallion was purchased to carry on our bloodlines and because I'd fallen for him when he was a youngster. When he became available as an older stallion at a price we could afford - we bought him. Other than our original stallion and his daughter, we'd sold the Shetlands as the girls' had graduated to large riding horses. After purchasing the 2nd stallion, I put together a group of Shetland mares that I wanted and then we continued with our program. He was never trained to ride as I didn't have any lesson children or kids around to train him with. He did do a lot of ground driving and I "logged" with him for 3 years (I'd think similar to what you described with full size horses except that we didn't work w/ the same size logs, I'm pretty sure). He also ground drove with one of our mares and with the gelded son of the pair. Once he understood he was working, he wasn't a problem to drive with either one, however I don't have any pics of him actually logging with either of them. I never got him hitched to a wagon or a cart.
Both of those stallions have since crossed the Rainbow Bridge. We owned AJ from the time he was 3 yrs old until he was 20 (17 years) and Iggy from 9 yrs to 16 yrs (7 yrs).
We now have our 3rd stallion (purchased in 2012 as a yearling by bloodlines, conformation and ... "that something" in pictures). He was our first stallion to be sent out to be fitted, trained and shown and he did awesome. Had our circumstances not changed, I'm sure he would have completed his HOF in halter and possibly in driving as well. WE have also retained the last purebred son of the first stallion that we felt lucky to be of stallion quality for us - that can be crossed back and forth on our current mares. Yet, we don't breed every mare every year.
We also have another stallion that I originally bred/raised/sold. He was supposed to have been castrated. I should have held out and had him castrated before he left our farm - we all would have been better for it. Instead, they didn't get him gelded and waited to call me until he'd become both a bucking bronco pony and a dangerous pony in the paddock - where he ran at large with other ponies and horses. They were all scared of him, yet when they caught him, they never separated him from their others (or maybe they had but he got out??). I brought him home and scheduled him to be castrated only to have him get out of a fence that has held full size mustangs with no issues (!!) and we couldn't get our hands back on him right away - he knew all the tricks to evade capture - even running right thru a couple of fences or right over the top of adults. It's taken a while for me to get him to where he is somewhat back to his nicer 2yr old self, but I can't wait until his next castration date of September, and I seriously hope that once the testosterone drops, he'll become his old sweet self. He should and then we will even more fully work on some issues he has. He's had some serious work since we caught him again, but it's not easy and you NEVER forget he's a stallion. You have to be vigilant all the time with him - more so than with others we've owned and I don't want the grand daughters around him at all... Honestly, I never thought of him as a stallion quality pony. He did run with some of our mares for a couple of months - yet most have come back into heat - which for a breeding stallion is also an issue. We shall see what happens... I DO like his first foal and if we do get some more that are like her, than this interlude (lots of Headaches) will have been worth it.
Our two current stallions - Wizard is 40" tall and Echo is 42" and not done growing yet. They will both be trained to drive. By the time our granddaughters become good enough at riding, they will probably have outgrown at least Wizard and maybe even Echo. Not sure yet. Also don't know that either will have the desire or the skill to ride a stallion as their mom did... And that's ok. The stallions are actually for my pleasure, not theirs, right now. If it becomes more than that at a later date, well that's all the more special.
AS to dealing with stallions that can be "inconvenient" - I, too, have had them in the past w/o problems. We've recently had some problems due to moving, getting a larger place and NOT getting our fences hot. That has been an issue for us that is getting addressed now. This is the first time we've had 2 Sr (used for breeding) and 1 JR (also used for breeding already) stallion on our property. Plus we have a colt that is still a stallion, who is scheduled to be gelded. It's the first time that we've actually had this many geldings, as well. And a suckling colt - but he is sold and will go to his new home when weaned. He will probably be gelded by his new owner next spring - when he is 10 months old. She does own 1 shetland mare and 2 horse mares - so he may become studdy before his appointment date arrives - we'll all see. They want to wait - feel that he won't be ready in September (he'll be 4 months old).
When I look back, we've always had "Junior" stallions - as I seem to always get colts in twos and we've usually waited until they were between 18 months and 2.5 yrs of age to have them gelded. Some would become study and all had to be separated from the mares around weaning time and before gelding. I usually didn't sell our babies until they were a year of age or older.
I've insisted that our stallions have manners. I utilize them due to their personalities (able to be handled by an amateur with non-horsey family members and children also involved), their bloodlines, their conformation and for who they were ("OOO LALA" - factor is what I call it) . Our first pony stallion was a riding pony for our oldest daughter, a lesson pony for kids at the barn we leased property from, a lesson pony for our other two daughters (but they didn't ride him regularly as our oldest originally did), my driving pony and last of all, a breeding stallion. We took him to school Show N' Tell's for all 3 of the girls (spanning 5 yrs) and as a lead line pony he went to Birthday parties, BarB-Ques, Office parties, Halloween Bash's and Church gatherings. He very much "worked for his living"... The resulting foals from 1996-2006 often kept our hobby mostly paid for with their sales. Our family worked the brood stock ponies (mares as well as the stallion), trained the ponies we bred (a few we sent out to pro trainers to take to higher levels of training/showing), showed many of them and then sold them to good homes. A few times we made mistakes when selling and I brought those ponies back home, often did more training and resold them. I also had a list, for a while, of folks that wanted AJ foals - so if one became available, I often matched a buyer up for that pony without bringing that pony back home myself!
I have pictures of all 3 of our daughters riding him at different times and a few of him being driven. He was a larger Shetland at 45.25" tall.
Our 2nd stallion was purchased to carry on our bloodlines and because I'd fallen for him when he was a youngster. When he became available as an older stallion at a price we could afford - we bought him. Other than our original stallion and his daughter, we'd sold the Shetlands as the girls' had graduated to large riding horses. After purchasing the 2nd stallion, I put together a group of Shetland mares that I wanted and then we continued with our program. He was never trained to ride as I didn't have any lesson children or kids around to train him with. He did do a lot of ground driving and I "logged" with him for 3 years (I'd think similar to what you described with full size horses except that we didn't work w/ the same size logs, I'm pretty sure). He also ground drove with one of our mares and with the gelded son of the pair. Once he understood he was working, he wasn't a problem to drive with either one, however I don't have any pics of him actually logging with either of them. I never got him hitched to a wagon or a cart.
Both of those stallions have since crossed the Rainbow Bridge. We owned AJ from the time he was 3 yrs old until he was 20 (17 years) and Iggy from 9 yrs to 16 yrs (7 yrs).
We now have our 3rd stallion (purchased in 2012 as a yearling by bloodlines, conformation and ... "that something" in pictures). He was our first stallion to be sent out to be fitted, trained and shown and he did awesome. Had our circumstances not changed, I'm sure he would have completed his HOF in halter and possibly in driving as well. WE have also retained the last purebred son of the first stallion that we felt lucky to be of stallion quality for us - that can be crossed back and forth on our current mares. Yet, we don't breed every mare every year.
We also have another stallion that I originally bred/raised/sold. He was supposed to have been castrated. I should have held out and had him castrated before he left our farm - we all would have been better for it. Instead, they didn't get him gelded and waited to call me until he'd become both a bucking bronco pony and a dangerous pony in the paddock - where he ran at large with other ponies and horses. They were all scared of him, yet when they caught him, they never separated him from their others (or maybe they had but he got out??). I brought him home and scheduled him to be castrated only to have him get out of a fence that has held full size mustangs with no issues (!!) and we couldn't get our hands back on him right away - he knew all the tricks to evade capture - even running right thru a couple of fences or right over the top of adults. It's taken a while for me to get him to where he is somewhat back to his nicer 2yr old self, but I can't wait until his next castration date of September, and I seriously hope that once the testosterone drops, he'll become his old sweet self. He should and then we will even more fully work on some issues he has. He's had some serious work since we caught him again, but it's not easy and you NEVER forget he's a stallion. You have to be vigilant all the time with him - more so than with others we've owned and I don't want the grand daughters around him at all... Honestly, I never thought of him as a stallion quality pony. He did run with some of our mares for a couple of months - yet most have come back into heat - which for a breeding stallion is also an issue. We shall see what happens... I DO like his first foal and if we do get some more that are like her, than this interlude (lots of Headaches) will have been worth it.
Our two current stallions - Wizard is 40" tall and Echo is 42" and not done growing yet. They will both be trained to drive. By the time our granddaughters become good enough at riding, they will probably have outgrown at least Wizard and maybe even Echo. Not sure yet. Also don't know that either will have the desire or the skill to ride a stallion as their mom did... And that's ok. The stallions are actually for my pleasure, not theirs, right now. If it becomes more than that at a later date, well that's all the more special.
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