This is a large? Given that it’s a lease-to-buy you could also get a pony jock to do a 3’0 class/division at an unrated show to test the scope without breaking the green. Even if it’s a medium you can find some 2’6 class set on the numbers to test it over. Do this during the lease before you buy. Or if you/the seller don’t care, use a pony jock to do it in the division and break its green.
1 Like
Your trainer should be your guide. And as this is a lease you are not obligated to buy. Your trainer should be able to answer all of these questions. Hopefully your trainer has other successful teams and you can trust him or her. Especially as this is a lease.
2 Likes
Our trainer focuses mainly on teaching little kids to ride then on to schooling shows, maybe some bigger shows but definitely not rated, so I’m at a loss there…We’ll switch barns eventually but want to make sure I’m not buying the right pony…My daughter is 8 and has done some bigger shows this summer (short stirrup 2’3 classes) one with this pony, and did well…Perhaps I’m jumping the gun to think she could grow into this large pony and someday do rated with him???
Just make sure that the pony has a permanent USEF height card; if it’s under a certain age, the card will be only good for a limited time. As a large, without the permanent card, there is always the chance it will grow and become over height.
At least that’s how I understand things. The experts here will be able to tell you the age for the permanent card.
Yes he’s a large…He’s jumped 2’9, nothing over yet…We had one of the older girls at the barn ride him in a 2’6 class and she did good.
If your kid is 8 and doing short stirrup and your barn really only does unrated shows… I’m sort of at a loss as to why you need this pony to be a division pony?! You need it to be an appropriate mount for your kid and it doesn’t sound like she’s anywhere near ready to do the division. Sometimes you get a pony that can go from cross rails to pony finals, sometimes not. Buy the pony you need now. If your kid outgrows it talent/size wise you cross that bridge later. Not to mention there’s a big price difference between one both forgiving enough to tote beginners AND fancy enough to do the division and a pony that does just one of those jobs. You can’t expect every mount to do every job. It’s common to change mounts as your talent and ambition (and height) change. At 8 and doing short stirrup, there’s a WAYS to go before pony finals.
3 Likes
I would not buy a large pony for an eight year old. I did that for my nine year old and she missed out on properly doing the pony divisions. I would lease a small and then a medium. I know parents think they are “saving” money by buying a pony that, in theory, could take their child from Short Stirrup to the division but the odds of that happening with a large pony are very slim. It can happen with a small or a medium. A pony with the step and scope needed for the large ponies rarely “dumbs down” for the little kids.
1 Like
I think Limerick and Vxf111 are giving you good advice. Lease the pony that works for your kid now.
1 Like
Thanks again to everyone!! So much to learn and understand!! So pretty much what we have now is a large, fancy, expensive pony that’s probably too advanced for my 8 year old doing mostly local shows and I probably should’ve looked for a med…Finding a knowleglable trainer is going to be a must I 100% relied on our current one without knowing all this first. We were trying to find a pony for exactly what VXf111 said, cross rails on up and hoping to get lucky with a large, but this pony has such a large jump it’s hard for my daughter to sit it right now,
Thank you for this!! Totally makes sense now
I see both children and adults trading up to horses that are too much for them, too big, too hot, gaits too large and hard to ride, too spooky, etc. Buy (or lease) the horse you (or the child) can ride right now. If you end up with a horse you think you will “grow into,” chances are you will be overwhelmed, frightened, or discouraged, ride less and less, and never in fact get anywhere with the horse.
Beware the advice given online, OP! No doubt that the people commenting have your best interest in mind, but no one’s seen the pony and NO ONE HERE can tell you if the pony is too large/too advanced/not fancy enough.
My 9 year old daughter has a saintly small and a fancy medium aaaaannnddd my former 1.40m horse (15.3h). Wanna know who she’s spent the last 4 show seasons competing? My big horse. The horse is not “too big” (though she looked like a tiny peanut her first couple of years), nor “too advanced,” and turned out to be the absolute perfect horse to pack her little butt around. Your pony may be the same.
Please trust your trainer. Or, if you don’t trust your trainer (or have a reason not to), go find another. Or post pictures and videos if you want opinions here. Your daughter having problems sitting a jump could be problematic and indicative that it’s the wrong pony, or it could be the process that many many kids and adults go through adjusting to a new horse.
This pony MAY BE the perfect pony. Or he may not be. But none of us here can say that based on the information given.
