shetland harness for light-duty driving

[HungarianHippo]

I have a 10.2h shetland and will be start him in harness this winter. He’s an aged pony and I’m pretty sure he’s driven before, based on the ground driving we’ve done. I have the cart and am in the market for a harness for occasional, recreational drives around my farm. Looks are unimportant, only concerned with Safety and comfort.

As I’m new to driving, can you tell me if there are any serious concerns with this one? My suspicion is raised due to the low price (but I’m not seeing any huge red flags). OK, fire away:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Cute-Black-White-Trm-Mini-shetland-Pony-Driving-Harness_W0QQitemZ350283345754QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item518e83af5a

[Drive_NJ]

OK - we all go freak out and say “Beware the $100 ebay harness”

But in actuality, depending on the conditions of use, they may not all be awful

I dont know a lot about sizing of things on PONY harness
(we currently have 2 draftX - so sizing is BIG on them)

But things I see are that the breeching is rather narrow (part that goes around his butt and will actually stop the carriage) THis will make it a bit more uncomfortable for the pony

You cannot see the padding of the saddle in any pix. You want to make sure that you cannot feel the terret bolt thru the padding - If you can feel it - so will the pony

It looks like it may not have a saddle tree. This is not totally a bad thing
AS LONG AS there is good padding and there still is some kind of gullet for the horses back

It looks like there may be a few miscellany straps around the bridle. Definitely has some kind of check strap. These are not generally used in CARRIAGE driving anymore, but I understand that many mini show require them and many mini and pony drivers just for fun DO use the check to prevent strong pony necks from allowing snacking while driving

If you are not buying this for SHOW purposes, especially not for Combined Driving (which can place a lot of stress on the harness), then this is probably not a bad deal

Make sure what the return policy is, incase you get it and do not like the quality of the leather or the fit

Do take the time to measure your pony as they direct and compare to their sizing

Best of Luck

[HungarianHippo]

Thanks much for the reply and avoiding the ebay hysterics-- I knew full well when posting this that I risked sounding like someone asking if they can pull a 3-horse trailer with their jeep cherokee) LOL
I have steered clear of the crap on ebay, but this one just looked to be a bit better. I’ve measured carefully and the dims cited on the item would fit my pony. I wouldn’t use an overcheck. It would see very light use over essentially flat pastures, pulling an easy entry 2wheeler. BUT, we do have some inclines so your point about the breeching is well taken.

I will probably pass on it, but this is helpful for my education. There’s an amish town to the south of us with several harness makers, so I might hit the auction to see what they’ve got. My more knowledgeable friend also recommended Ron’s harness up in canada.

[Fancy_That]

We have a 10.1+ hand Shetland and just went through this

Okay - DO NOT BUY THE CHEAP HARNESS!!!

We recently got a 10.1+ hand Shetland Pony too. We got the cart and were looking for harnesses.

I bought a cheap one on eBay and returned it the moment we got it.

Then I got another cheap one from the lady we bought the pony cart from. It was brand new and TOTAL CRAP! (ADDED: The second one we got looks EXACTLY like your eBay link…but it had more padding on the saddle. Still no tree though. You’re pony will be miserable in it)

I FINALLY BIT THE BULLET and got the Zilco Shetland Harness. It was the one I always wanted but didn’t want to spend $400!!!

Boy am I glad we got it. The quality and ergonomics/comfort are incomparable. You want a good saddle, breastcollar, breeching and everything adjustable and fitting the right way.

You want pony to be COMFORTABLE. These crappy, cheaply made, thin, narrow things that are closer to $100 are terrible.

Again - I have a pony the same size as yours. I went through 2 crappy cheap harnesses to try to save money. I highly suggest you get the Zilco or Tedex by Zilco “SL” That’s specifically made for Shetlands and THEY FIT PERFECTLY!!!

Our pony is so comfortable in it. And I have so much more peace-of-mind knowing that it’s made to help her pull the cart as effeciently and comfortably as possible.

You wouldn’t believe how ridiculously tiny the cheap harness “saddles” are!?? And the non existant width or padding on important areas (breast, breeching, etc)

Search “Zilco SL” and you’ll find it. Good luck!

[HungarianHippo]

ok, I’m convinced. I pretty much knew the answer before posting. Thanks for sharing your experience.

[pricestory]

I bought a 10.1h shetland for me for Christmas and bought him a harness from Driving Tidbits. $345 and is very nicely constructed. Can’t wait to get him home from the trainers.