Toys

[Helicopter]

A post on another topic mentioned having so many toys in the stall it was difficult to find the pony.

Made me wonder what sort of toys do you have in your stalls or paddocks for the kids to 'play with'.

 

[Riverrose28]

My colts love those stall balls, but the fillies not so much, I've used clean plastic bottles, hung dog toys from the rafters, you name it. I would like to get one or two of those hanging apples that you put treats in, but havn't done it yet.

 

[mad for mini's]

Jolly Balls and Jolly Apples !

They are the best, all my horses love them

Especially my gelding, he shakes, tosses and carries them around. I'd stick with the smaller sized balls though, the regular horse sized ones get squished around here, the horses love stepping them in.

 

[topnotchminis]

Ours love jolly balls, the refillable apples, and clean plastic jugs. They love to throw them around.

 

[Helicopter]

I had a jolly ball. Two of the donkeys would carry it around together...both holding the handle...so cute. .

Then they ate a hole in it.

 

[Ann knight]

Our guys love the equi-spirit large balls ( 42 in size) . It is hillarious

to watch them play and roll them all around the field . They also like the jolly balls but the toys they seem to find facinating are the tree branches I put in yesterday ......the bark is pretty well stripped( better than eating the barn ) and they pick them up and the shovel and rake . They like to pick them up and drop them , much like the branches . It doesn't take much to amuse them .......Ann

 

[Maple Hollow Farm]

Mine also love the jolly balls, I have the regular horse sized ones and they play with them constantly. I never know where I will find them, they throw them out of the stalls and pastures and my gelding when he was in a stall as a stallion actually would throw the ball at me LOL, I would throw the ball back into his stall and he would toss it back out for me to throw back!

 

[O So]

O So has several toys.

Here he is playing with one of his pumpkins. I put treats and hay in them from time to time and hide them around the yards.



He also has the apple/jolly ball combo! That and a regular hanging apple with no ball. Him and my collie like those a lot. LOL



Then we have the good old jolly balls. I have them in 3 different sizes. Horse size, dog size (medium) and small dog size (small).

Thats all for now, till I find something new and exciting for him. LOL

 

[Matt73]

I don't have any for my girls (I just have two girls now, Lex and Willow). I had a couple of Jolly Balls but the only one that actually played with them was my stallion, Teddy. The girls could care less about them. There is an old ball in the paddock, but I've never seen them even look at it

 

[Reble]

I don't have any for my girls (I just have two girls now, Lex and Willow). I had a couple of Jolly Balls but the only one that actually played with them was my stallion, Teddy. The girls could care less about them. There is an old ball in the paddock, but I've never seen them even look at it

Maybe try a little honey or molasses on it,

and see what they might do?

 

[normajeanbaker]

Cones! My Mini's love their cones. They occupy themselves for hours in the pasture with cones. They each have a small cone in their stalls as well. I've seen them play with them in their stalls, but they really love the standard size cones in the pasture. They also love balls to play with. They roll and chase them all over the place. I have found they really like anything they can pick up and knock over(cones) and anything they can roll and chase(balls). In their stalls, they also really like Likits. I usually try and save those for days they are stuck in because of the weather. Those keep them busy for the day when they are stuck inside. The cones and balls have prevented them from getting more bored then they already are because I can't work them right now.

~Jen~

 

[Matt73]

Maybe try a little honey or molasses on it,

and see what they might do?

Hmmm....

 

[wildoak]

I've had jolly balls around forever and most of them just collect dust. Plastic milk bottles generated a little more interest for awhile, esp with a few oats in them.

The big Equi-Spirit ball has been the best, but only with some horses...mostly the colts. I've had a few that would jump on it, kick and squeal and carry on for 30 minutes at a time. The last jolly ball I got was one with a rope through it....my Pyrenees absolutely love it lol.

Jan

 

[targetsmom]

Hula hoops!! They pick them up and carry them around, play tug of war and manage to get them around their necks and bellies without missing a beat. Max likes to flip it over his head and then step through it (or vice versa). Princess likes to canter around with one wrapped around her belly.

 

[Annabellarose]

I don't have any for my girls (I just have two girls now, Lex and Willow). I had a couple of Jolly Balls but the only one that actually played with them was my stallion, Teddy. The girls could care less about them. There is an old ball in the paddock, but I've never seen them even look at it.

Here, the boys are the only ones that will play with toys. However, none of my horses, big or Miniature, have ever cared to play with the Jolly Ball brand balls though. ...and dang, those things are $20+ a piece! They've had the most fun with human exercise balls. I bought a couple on clearance at Wal-Mart for $5.00 a couple of years ago. They roll them around with their chest, they try to lay on them (then they fall to the ground on their side with a thud), they bite them (they'll start to get a bit flat and they bite them and carry them and throw them), they mount them! My 2008 colt (now a gelding) lost his virginity to his! No joke!

 

[Sandee]

Mine have windchimes hung far enough above that they can't pull them down then I attach a soda bottle to the chimes about head level so they can make noise if they want. My mare is the only one I've seen actually "play" with this.

They also have a couple of sizes of jolly balls. I got the smaller ones when my mare was young and she managed to put her foot thru the little opening. I have one ball that's horse size and my new Shetland has been seen grabbing it and throwing it around.

I also have hung the "apple" with various flavor centers in the stall for my mare (she really hates being confined). She doesn't like to lick it. If she can get it against any wall, she'll eat the whole thing in one night. I did put a few treats in a large clean peanutbutter (plastic) jar with a few holes drilled in the lid. She chased that around the stall for 2 or 3 days before she figured out stomping it would make the lid come off and she could get the treats. She is entertaining as well as a hand full.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

My big horses would never play with their toys and Kody ignored the ones I used to give him until I spent a couple of days clicker training him to push the ball. Once he figured out that he could make it move it became fascinating all on its own and off he went! He used to play with that for hours. I gave Turbo the same lesson shortly after getting him home and he thought that Equi-Spirit ball was his best friend!

Kody never did like the Jolly Ball but Turbo grabbed that one on his own and LOVES to run around with the full-sized version dangling from his mouth.

He doesn't like the smaller mini-sized one though, strangely enough.

Kody is content with his Equi-Spirit ball, downed pine branches, the occasional Likit and Turbo to play with but Turbo has the ball, the Jolly ball, a fabric-covered Kong dog toy with streamers he can twirl, a couple of collapsible cones, and a file box he claimed as his own and loves to carry around over his head.

He will also knock over every single barrel in the arena and roll them until they get stuck against the fence.

Silly minis!

Leia

 

[Helicopter]

The donkeys like to carry things. They can do interesting things with hoses carting them this way and that. End up all tangled and kinky which then keeps me occupied untangling etc. So a good toy for me too.

They also like to carry branches. They take them quite a distance. With donkeys it's usually a cooperative effort.

My ponies only seem to play with each other. Might give them a hoop and an exercise ball and see what happens.Must have the video camera handy.

 

[Helicopter]

Hey Leia, that Turbo sounds like a barrel of fun. Go Turbo.

:SoCool

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Hey Leia, that Turbo sounds like a barrel of fun. Go Turbo.

:SoCool

To be fair to Kody, he never got those sorts of toys because when he was young I still had the full-sized horses and the electric fence had to be on all the time to keep them separate. I didn't want his ball rolling downhill into an electric fence so he didn't get toys then!

Now he's older and injured but will still make a play toy out of just about anything I bring him. His favorites are bags of stall pellets or shavings (he loves to stand on them, paw a hole in the bag then spread the contents everywhere) and horse show ribbons. I have so many pictures of him snatching ribbons out of my hand and twirling them by the streamers!

Turbo gets more toys because we have solid fencing these days instead of the electric but Kody's every bit as much fun.

He's one you can't leave tied for five minutes because when you come back he'll be standing exactly where you left him, only everything within reach is on the floor, pawed, chewed and shaken open.

He looks SOOOO innocent!

Leia