There’s an adorable 3.5 year old quarter pony up the road that I’m crazy about. She really would make an outstanding children’s hunter pony. Currently, she sticks at 14.1 on the dot. Should I be afraid that she won’t measure once she’s full grown? I was under the impression that quarter horses were fairly full grown (at least height wise) around 4 years old.
What does she string to? how tall are the parents? My area is pretty hot market for 15h QH
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Yeah, breed/parentage matters. My “pony” was really full grown by 3, but he was from Welsh stock. My Quarab wasn’t. He wound up 14.3. But hey, why not have a slightly larger pony?
Oh man that’s close, if you can find out anything about the parents that would help. I have a hony that was clearly going to go over by the time he was 3.5, measuring 14.2/14.2 and he is now 15.2. He is welsh/tb though, his damn being the tb who is known for 50/50 throwing honies instead of ponies (super fancy ones though so they keep trying).
USEF regulations regarding pony height, I would guess. Large ponies cannot exceed 14.2.
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Because in the hunter world a slightly larger pony is not a pony but a very small horse. Which makes the value plummet.
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Exactly. If the pony won’t measure 14.2 or under, and winds up 14.3, it’s darn near worthless in the hunter world.
There are many ways to get a pony to measured up to an " lower than he really is. So a 14’3" Hony can be turned into a pony.
Listen to you, corrupting the youngsters Lord_Helpus 
I’m sure there are, but I don’t know those tricks except taking the shoes off!
To get the best measure, you want the pony to be quiet and comfortable with the measuring stick. Practice a lot and allow time for him to settle into the show atmosphere before getting measured. You also want to make sure he is ok with trotting on hard ground when newly barefoot. Most stewards are patient and willing to work to get a good measure.
Even 14.2 and a smidge will be a pony dq. That’s a tough one, most QHs are usually pretty done height-wise by 3.5 but… It’s a risk.
