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Mini Horses

I am considering getting a pair of mini horses as companions for my two full-size horses.

I don’t really know much about minis other than they get fat super easy (and have all of the attendant risks associated with that) and that some, but not all, people think that they can’t be turned out with full-size horses.

My goal is just to make it possible to take one horse off-property and not have the other horse be left behind by herself.

What are the key things that I should know about minis? Or I’d be happy to have you point me to a good resource for this kind of info. Just looking to be better informed as I consider this.

TIA!

Minis are a PITA. You have to rethink your fencing as many are escape artist, plus unless you dry lot your big horses they wouldn’t be companionship for your horses, at least in the same field. Many can not be on grass. Then most are poorly trained and just used to being manhandled. Plus you don’t save much if any on farrier, vet cost are dependent as some of the tinier ones do have costly health issues.

My preference is 12-14 hand ponies for companions, most are cute easy keepers and big enough to not get seriously injured if a horse decides to be a bit rough and are easier to keep contained in standard horse fencing.

With that being said, mini’s are super cute little monsters and if you get a couple, please post lots of pics.

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we have three miniatures that were our sons… ours at least are not good companion animals for full sized horses. They were scaled down in size but their brain believes they are fifteen or sixteen hand. As noted fencing has to be down to their size (the only thing worse is add goats, which the grand kids have done…(those thing are like trying to hold water in a cup made of screen)

So, when daughter bought a Morgan weanling we “saved” an order Morgan mare who was being held by a safety net program to be his companion. She kind of liked the weanling but really not. So wife with the assistance of both daughters rescued another Morgan, a ten year old buckskin who the old mare believes is her long lost never had baby…they are inseparable.

So baby horse is a loner as the little ones are tiny and the two real horses are glued together and those goats we have to re-fence the paddocks to keep them away from the horses as the goats were eating all the hay and stealing the over 40 year old pony’s feed. (old pony does not like any of the small, or large horses…and is scared of the goats)

Maybe a mirror would be a better companion

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I had a 41 inch pony once. I didn’t have problems with turning her out with the big horses, but I had to reinforce my fences like crazy and she still got out.

This. They’re the worst. They bust fences, and they basically need to live on a dry lot 24/7. Some farriers hate them because of the uncomfortable position they have to work in. My horse finds them too small to be trustworthy and runs from them.

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I have a mini that I took from a neglectful home about 20 years ago. I love her and have had so much fun with her over the years. I used to take her jogging and hiking, let her run loose beside us on trail rides. But they are very hard to keep fenced in and they founder if you look at them funny. In the grand scheme of things, they are not much less expensive than a larger horse. It’s true that it can be hard to find a farrier that will work with them. My gelding also did not consider her to be adequate company even when they were turned out together. If it’s an option, I think you’re better off to put your other horse in a stall when you go out to ride.

What everybody else said. Everything is dramatic with a mini. I have two minis, I love them dearly but as mentioned above they are a PITA. They cannot be turned out with larger horses, one will attack anything that is turned out with him and the other is the exact opposite and can’t take care of himself. Feeding is an issue, fencing is an issue, trailering is an issue as they squeeze under and through everything. I could go on and on. But they are endearing in their own way and I’ve adjusted to their demands :slightly_smiling_face:.

ours the three basically equal one horse in cost to maintain, which seems correct as the three combined poop as much as one horse

But you can put them to work…one of our miniatures has a part time job of playing the Birthday Party Unicorn, gig pays pretty well at around $500 per appearance. Then one is a photo model, he donates his service for photography classes that are required to do an animal.

But overall Goats are worse than Miniature Horses

While I agree minis cost the same as full-sized horses for vet & farrier, feed costs are less.

My mini goes out with my horse & 13h pony - all 3 turned out 24/7 with free access to stalls.
The Gang of 3:

I got him as a 2yo, he turns 7 in May.
Horse is 18, pony just turned 21.
Mini regularly shares a stall with the horse (who is Boss of the 3).
He has his own stall & puts himself there (as do the others) for grain, finishes his, then shares hay with the horse.
Lately I’ve had to lock mini in his own stall until horse finishes his grain, but hay is still For Two.

I had a close call with founder last Spring after a late frost & will be watching pastures closely & probably muzzling mini.
Until then, mini ate the same whole oats as the others. He is now on TC Sr & a thyroid med. Both cheap options.

Also agree minis do not consider themselves less than horses.
Nobody has told my guy 35" is not the same as 18h :roll_eyes:
Horse has never done more than flatten ears at mini.
Pony will chase him halfheartedly, then 2 min later they’re grazing side by side.

And yes, if you do get a mini or 2, pics are mandatory :wink:

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Adorable snip on the horse! And the mini is cute too of course :wink:

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Thanks @Clover5
A friend said horse looks like he got into a tub of vanilla ice cream :grin:

You can’t tell from the pic, but mini’s ears are lined in white - hence his showname: Wascally Wabbit, barn name Bugs :wink:

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They’re tiny evil geniuses. They can also be wonderfully sweet too. IME a lot of the issue is that people don’t give them the same respect as they do a big horse and they also don’t require the same ground manners from them that they would from a big horse.

Mine are tiny & crazy but I wouldn’t trade their little psycho adorable asses for anything. :smiling_face_with_three_hearts: Just extremely concentrated horse.

Scale of equine evil :grin:
Horse < pony < mini

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:rofl:
Truer words never spoken!

I may have to get your Scale of Evil engraved on a sign for my barn :+1:

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Okay, I have to say you guys have scared me away from minis!

I may still consider a mini donkey, however. :slight_smile:

IMG_0256 IMG_0364 IMG_0404

given they are often a pain they do or can be useful to introduce young kids to horses

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I got a mini for the same reason - to keep my retired mare company when we took the other two off the property. She is not a terror at all; I got her when she was about 20 and she’s turning 30 this year, so maybe that’s the difference. She was part of a breeding herd dispersal, so I don’t think she was handled much. Once you catch her, she is just the sweetest thing (as long as you don’t give her a vaccine or a bath)…she’s sort of like a Gremlin that way.

My horses were totally fine with her, as if they had all lived with a mini before (and maybe they had). I kept them separated at first while we gauged their reaction, but it was clear they were not afraid of her (or vice versa) and they instantly just added her to the herd.

The bigger issue is that she can’t be turned out on pasture, at all. So in the summer when they went out for night turnout on the pasture, she couldn’t go and she was alone. I ultimately got another small “can’t have grass” metabolic pony to be her companion…and not surprisingly, they don’t like each other. LOL. He wants to be with the big ladies, and she thinks he’s annoying. But they get along well enough.

The turnout issue is big concern. Minis typically can’t have grass (or much of it) so if you have pasture it will be a challenge. Mine have a sacrifice lot they can be in but even that grows too much grass in the summer so they need further accommodation.

So I’d be cautious in considering one, but the evil one in my herd is that damn pony (far right of photo). He is the fence breaker. But I think all small, hairy equines are tough on electric fences - they can slip between/below them and their coats are so thick they don’t even get shocked. And between that and the fact that they can’t tolerate much grass - it can be a difficult problem.

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Yes, the limited grazing combined with Houdini abilities with fencing is a huge problem. My mini spends most of her time in an electric netting yard, wishing she were with the other horses. I let her out with the others for a few hours per day with a grazing muzzle, but then she end up in the yard, on the road, etc. I love my mini and I wish her a long, happy life but I would advise against getting one because they are not an easy solution. What you save in feed on a mini you will at least make up in fencing, muzzles, founder vet bills, etc. My friend has a couple mini donkeys and says they are the same.

There is someone locally who modified a mini-van to carry her mini around. The carriage goes on the roof, and the mini in the mid-section. It’s a hoot!

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I think I’ve seen this rig! You and I are sort of local to each other :slightly_smiling_face:

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This is a poor quality photo. But this lil guy is too cute not to share.

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