PONY Magazine – May 2015

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May 2015 £3.49 Issue 799

How to get a free pony!

HOW TO GET

A FREE PONY P

onies cost. A lot. Honest. And if they don’t, there’s a reason for it.

Cheap ponies aren’t broken in, or there’s something wrong and the owner wants to get rid of them, or they bolt, bite, kick, have been spoilt, cost in vets bills, etc. A good, safe, pony should cost a lot – but there are ways around this. And here they are!

Can you really ge a pony for free? t Yes! Well, free and free-ish...

Share one

S

haring will not only halve your costs, but there is no initial outlay for purchase. Look out for suitable ponies in your area, ask at livery yards and riding schools, and your local Pony Club. Scour the tack shops and local papers. Putting the word around can help – your friends tell their friends, and so on...

Fors

l No initial outlay ny l Time spent caring for the po is halved

Againsts

nt l You’ll need to get an agreeme sts drawn up to protect your intere sharer l You could fall-out with your the l You could lose your share of pony at any time

Blue and Millie-Lee

Pony

top tip If you share a pony, make sure you and the pony are compatible – and you get on with your sharer!

Millie-Lee with share pony Blue

“This is Blue! He’s a 14hh pony I share and have done for over a year.

I’ve grown up around horses but couldn’t afford one and one day found him on Preloved for free. I’ve taught him a few tricks like to kiss and follow. I love him loads. I would definitely recommend getting a share if you can’t afford it, or don’t have enough time for your own!”

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Loan one

D

oes anyone have a pony which they have outgrown, but don’t want to sell? They may be happy to loan him to you. Good ponies go from loan-home to loan-home, and there are often waiting lists for top ponies! Again, there is not initial outlay, but you will need to pay for costs involved in your loan pony’s care.

Pony

Fors

l No initial outlay l The pony is exclusively yours

top tip

Againsts

l You’ll need to get an agreement drawn up to protect your interests l Your pony could be taken back at any time

When loaning a pony, make sure everyone knows what is expected and who is responsible for what.

Sparkles has found a new loan home

Elizabeth Teddy and loan pony, Teddy – I’m the one in pink.

Mum and daughter loans!

“This is my We got The other pony is my mum’s loan, Hokee. with s work who lady a gh our loan ponies throu that’s and pony ky chee very a is y Tedd my mum.

I tried but why I love him so much. We mainly hack thing iest funn the was it jumping Teddy recently and him love I er! jump show a not ever – he is definitely so so much.”

Sparkles and Rebecca

“This is my 13hh loan pony Sparkles. When the riding school I went to closed down, I was offered Sparkles! She has helped me so much in the last few months and we are now jumping up to 90cm! We do dressage, show jumping, showing and hunting. Sparkles is very sweet and loving.”

Casper and Charlotte Genuine horse Casper

“Casper is my loan horse. We met while I was visiting a friend’s horse and it all started there! At first he was spooky on hacks as he had not been ridden regularly enough. Now he happily leads hacks! We love to jump and I’m lucky to loan such a genuine horse.”

Molly and Mickey share everything!

Molly and Mickey

“This is me and my loan pony Mickey. I went on a pony day and rode Mickey for the first time and fell in love with him. From then on, I told everybody I was going to have him one day, and now I have! He’s helped me so much with my riding and he has the best character any pony can have. Mickey is the best pony in the world and I love him so much!”

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Top tra masterclas iner John Smart gives us jumping stras on how to tell if your a p ight, and wh at to do if heony is isn’t!

S m p a m r u t!

J Part 4

Straight down the line

Strider has a tendency to jump to the right over fences. Even if he goes into a fence on a straight line, his front feet naturally carry him over, so he lands to the right after a fence.

Not jumping in a straight line is a common jumping problem, and can mean that ponies land from fences in a way that takes them off their line away to the next fence. It can also make being accurate around a course very difficult .

Strider is keen to canter!

Meet John Smart John Smart is a British Eventing accredited trainer who has been both a prize winner at Badminton Horse Trials and an international show jumper.

Meet Millie and Strider Millie has owned Strider, a 10-yearold, 14.2hh New Forest X Welsh, for two years. They belong to the Bisley and Sandown Chase Pony Club, and compete at BE100 eventing, with hopes to move to Novice level in the near future.

The grid shows how straight Strider jumps

Tackling transitions

Millie finds trot-to-canter transitio ns difficult as Strider automatically goes from walk straight to canter each time she asks for an upward transition. John gets them to first practise their transitions by using a pole on the ground and a small fence. The idea is to trot over the pole and jump the fence from trot, then canter on after the fence. At first Strider can tered to the pole without Millie asking him, but after a few attempts, they got the hang of the exercise!

Straighten up!

John then set up an exercise which enabled him to see how straight Millie and Strider jumped the fences. The exercise involved placing angled poles on the ground after a small, straight bar fence, leaving a small gap between the ends of the poles. Strider should canter through the gap if he lands straight.

John explains, “The exercise won’t help keep the pony straight, but will show how straight he is.”

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Millie tries to correct Strider, but she’s too late – he’s already way off centre!

Attempt 1 Millie and Strider turn into the fence slightly wonky and it results in Strider jumping to the right, which is very noticable when he’s jumping the grid.

Attempt 2 Much better! Strider heads straight through the middle of the first element

The pair get a better approach and Millie is able to keep Strider straighter as he jumps through. However, he still jumps the second part of the grid to the right. John explains, “You should come out on the same line as you went in.”

Millie and Strider repeat the exercise twice more and get straighter each time John sets up a grid which ends with a fence that has poles raised up on the rail, angled in such a way that they encourage Strider to jump the centre of the fence.

They act as guide poles. Millie tries this grid a few times and Strider pops through perfectly!

They then move on and jump some fences without the grid, and Strider’s jump is much more central. Success!

Guide poles help Strider jump the centre of the fence

to Log on to ponymag.com lie Mil of s check out more pic an s plu , ion act in r and Stride awesome video!

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1.

Test you

How many hooves does a pony have on the ground at all times during walk? a. Two

2.

b. Three c. He changes legs at the same time so it’s hard to

tell

What is the difference between free walk on a long rein and walking on a loose rein?

a. Free walking on a long rein allows the horse to take the reins through the fingers allowing him to relax and lengthen his stride, while maintaining a light contact. A loose rein is where the rider allows the reins to slide through their fingers until there is no contact

How well do you know the ins and outs of paces? Find out here with our technical and testing quiz!

Have a stretch!

b. A long rein is where the rider maintains contact and so rides with their hands further back. A loose rein is where contact is dropped and the pony is encouraged to stretch c. Riding on a long rein is where there is no contact between pony and rider. Riding on a loose rein means the rider does not have full contact

3.

How many variations of the trot pace are there and what are they called? a. Three – collected trot, schooling trot and fast trot

4.

b. Four – collected trot, working trot, medium trot and extended trot

c. The right diagonal (sitting in the saddle when the pony’s right forefoot and left hindfoot touch the ground)

5.

“I think my rider needs an eye test – look at the state of my bandages!”

How many beats are there in a stride of canter?

a. Two

b. Three c. Four

Count those canter beats!

a. The left diagonal (sitting in the saddle when the pony’s left forefoot and right hind foot touch the ground) b. Either is fine as long as the pon y is bending correctly around the leg

c. Four – steady trot, working trot, dressage trot, elevated trot

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When riding on the left rein, which diagona l should you be riding on?

ur paces!

7.

8.

6.

What is the meaning of counter-canter? a. When a pony canters with an outside bend b. When a pony strikes off in canter when he isn’t asked to c. When a pony canters to the left with the right fore leading, and vice versa

What should happen to a pony’s outline at gallop? a. It shortens b. It lenghtens

a. The pony should first be bala nced in trot. The rider opens their inside hand slig htly, sits for a few strides with their inside leg on the girth and the outside leg just behind the girth , giving a nudge on the pony’s side with the inside leg

b. The pony should first be in a forward trot. The rider pushes their hands forward and nudges with both legs on at the girth c. The pony should first be in a very bouncy trot so it is easy for him to strike off into canter. The rider should push their inside leg behind he girth and keep the outside leg at the girth, nudging with both legs

9.

What phrase refers to when a pony is halted and standing with his fore feet and hind feet in line with each other? a. Standing straight

c. It stays the same

10.

Which of the following are the correct aids for canter?

b. Box halt C. Standing square

What is a half-halt? a. Half-halt is the name given to the way in which a rider tells their horse to be prepared, as they are about to ask him something. b. A half-halt is given when a rider wants the pony to slow the speed of the pace but not change to a slower pace or halt completely. c. A half-halt refers to when a pony is halted but is no longer on the bit.

How did you do ?

........ / 10 0-3 correct

A perfect halt, but what’s it called?

Uh-oh, you could do with brushing up on your knowledge of paces! Look at the paces poster in March PONY Mag and past issues of PONY to help you understand paces and the aids for changing pace better. You’ll soon be a pro!

4-7 correct Not bad, you have some basic knowledge of paces. You could improve your knowledge by taking extra notice of the paces of the pony you ride. Take note of the beats in each pace and how he strikes off in a transition.

8 or more correct You’ve got great knowledge of paces, well done! Keep up the good work by testing yourself – why not try out some more advanced lateral movements and experiment with extended and collected paces?

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1=A 2=A 3=B 4=C 5=B 6=A 7=C 8=B 9=C 10 = A