I did something stupid - again

[Weighaton]

A bit long but here goes - we have a welsh gelding that is now 18 years old. We have had him since he was 7 and although our children have ridden him around the farm he has mainly been used for our party business. He stands around, looks pretty, walks in a circle lead by two of my daughters on Saturdays and then the rest of the time is out on 15 acres with our miniature animals just being a horse.

So I decide that he is getting older and maybe a full retirement life would be good for him. I start to look for a replacement that is not going to bankrupt us. We need a beautiful quiet pony but not a show jumping packer. We are in the south and I find a pony in New England. She is gorgeous, we do a PPE, we ship her down here. She has been here six months and she is nothing like she was presented. Hence, the stupidity. I bought her without seeing her in person. She is sound. She is beautiful. She gets along with our other horses and animals. She is not a pony party pony. She hates our trailer (our pony self loads), she hates baths, she loses it if you touch her feet, she is very looky and skittish. She is not friendly and loving at all.

Having said all of that she is not right for us but she may be right for someone else. Should we try and move her onto someone else?

[Willesdon]

18 isn’t old for a Welsh pony in such light work. They can happily last into their 30s, particularly if they enjoy being fussed over. Sell your new pony and stick with your old friend.

[Mosey_2003]

Why would you keep her if she’s unsuitable for what you need? Selling a pony isn’t a crime.

[cayuse]

If your Welsh pony is sound, I’d keep working him and sell the new pony. He’s still at a very useful age. My Welsh pony is 28 and if he didn’t unfortunately have a complicated lameness issue, he’d still be very useful even at his age.

This is my guy last month, still raring to go.

[luvmyhackney]

My 22 year old pony is still in work. I’d break out the older pony for parties and sell your new one.

[Weighaton]

Where would be a good place to resell her/market her?

[OzarksRider]

There’s nothing wrong with selling the new pony to someone else. However, to me she sounds like a pony that just needs some work to help her be less anxious. Several years ago I adopted a horse to be a companion for my riding horse. He was hard to load, hated baths, threatened to kick the farrier, and could be just generally ornery. Now he self loads onto the trailer, loves baths, stands politely for the farrier, comes when I call him, and is sociable with everyone. It just took patience, persistence, consistency, and time, but to me it was worth it. I think it might help if you consider that, rather than giving you a hard time, the new pony is having a hard time, and look for a trainer who can help you work through these problems. Or, if you do decide to sell her I hope you’ll disclose the issues to the buyer and look for someone who can address the problems.

[NaturallyHappy]

@OzarksRider

I think it might help if you consider that, rather than giving you a hard time, the new pony is having a hard time

^^^^This is so wise.

[Marla_000]

Sounds like the pony hasn’t had much regular handling.
Maybe someone patient could
Spend consistent time working
On her trust issues and some basic training.
Welsh are usually very smart and easy to train (again, with patience).
I love the breed. She just needs more time and training.

[Impractical_Horsewoman]

How big is the new pony? If she’s a large or a medium who takes up a lot of leg, she might be a great mount for a small adult.

She will be more marketable if you can get through the trailering issue, unless it’s just your particular type of trailer she hates. As long as she’s not a total nutcase (she doesn’t sound like it), a competent adult can probably deal with the skittishness with her hooves, and a pony that isn’t a “party pony” doesn’t have to love baths, merely tolerate them enough.

A small, slightly built pony under 12.2, however, who isn’t terribly cuddly and skittish, will be more difficult to sell IMHO.

[Weighaton]

She is 12.2 and chunky. Takes up a lot of leg. We saw video of a 5’8” slim rider on her and they did not look awful. She is a gorgeous pony.

I appreciate all of the replies. I think I will work through the trailering issue which is that she hates trailering facing forward in a small two horse. In an open stock she jumps right in. In the small two horse she jumps in and then panics. It is small be comparison but completely big enough for her.

It is unfortunate because this would be a slow laid back life for her but I just don’t think this is her thing

[Weighaton]

[OzarksRider]

@NaturallyHappy

@OzarksRider

I think it might help if you consider that, rather than giving you a hard time, the new pony is having a hard time

^^^^This is so wise.

Yes, it is wise and I wish I could take credit for the insight but I can’t. I’ve heard it from a couple of different people, most recently something Ryan Rose said in one of his videos. This perspective has helped me resolve problems with my own horses.

[downen]

I just thought I’d share my experience with our Welsh in case it helps.

Flame was very well-bred and trained, but way too spicy to be a pony hunter and he kept getting rehomed until he ended up with us as a freebie. He was super skitterish, couldn’t catch him, hot to handle, double-barreled the vet the first time we had him out, etc. etc.

My daughter was only three when we got him so I was in no hurry, and just took my time earning his trust. No direct eye contact, quite, smooth movement around him, etc. He warmed up to me pretty quickly but still had a problem with men. Once I armed them with treats he came around with them, too. I’m pretty petite so I rode him myself until my daugher was ready, and then they become inseparable, and he won many, many ribbons in open shows with her. He was always pretty spicy but he would do ANYTHING for my daugher (and me) and he had perfect manners until the end.

So if you want to try to salvage your purchase, maybe your pony can come around, too. Welsh ponies are smart and not pushovers, but if you earn their trust, they are amazing little critters.

Best of luck to you!

[colorfan]

The caveat is the pony may not work out of some of her issues.
Speaking from experience, feeling raw at the moment about my situation, I have worked several horses through issues and they have become wonderful solid citizens. However, sometimes, they improve but never become ‘non-looky’, ‘self loaders’, predictable in a good way.
If there are some factors that suggest this pony may fit with some improvement then time with a trainer would be good. See how much change in 30 days.
Before anyone jumps on me and says that’s not enough time, it is to see how much and how long the changes will take. If, after 30 days the pony has made significant change keep going. (this is my personal experience); otherwise rehoming with full disclosure is likely the best route. Not everyone wants to spend a great deal of time in retraining on a ‘hope she becomes what we want’.
Again, speaking from experience, after 3 years of trying with my beautiful mare I am facing the fact that she will never be what I hoped for. (my heart is aching right now).

[OzarksRider]

Yes, each horse is an individual, and sometimes they just can’t be what we want. Sometimes it’s just not a good fit, and the best thing for both horse and human is to find the horse a better place. I do think, though, that too often a problem horse is passed from one owner to another with little effort to see the situation from the horse’s perspective. And the end result of that can be an unhappy life for the horse and ultimately a bad ending.

[Mosey_2003]

@OzarksRider

Yes, it is wise and I wish I could take credit for the insight but I can’t. I’ve heard it from a couple of different people, most recently something Ryan Rose said in one of his videos. This perspective has helped me resolve problems with my own horses.

I’ve seen it mentioned a lot in reference to babies and children and it’s a real lightbulb phrase, for sure.