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Post by kate1984 on Sept 18, 2014 9:53:33 GMT
I've had my pony 3 years now and kept him on livery for that time. He's moved from a yard of 40 to a yard of 10 horses.i now have the opportunity of moving him to where I live as it has 9 acres.
The only problem I have is there is one Shetland there,that's it-oh and cows every now and again.he is quite a needy pony n doesn't like to be on his own.hes fine going out competing on his own,hacking,travelling etc but I moved him home for 2 weeks last year whilst I was away n he got very attached to the Shetland.neighing all the time,running around field if Shetland came in first etc... I don't want him to get too attached to this one Shetland,he could just settle down but take a while.... Has anyone had any experiences with moving horses home to live with just a another or on own etc... Any got any sensible options-I would like another so there's 3 but I'm not sure I can afford to keep 2-insurance,vets bills etc.shetland is owned by OH family.
Has anyone any advice/recommendations??
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Post by gillwales on Sept 18, 2014 10:22:17 GMT
try keeping him in by himself to start with, I think this is going to be a suck it and see situation , I tried to avoid letting mine get too close to any of the others as it is a real pain. the only other thing you could do is find him a different sort of companion, maybe a sheep or a goat or even a donkey... llama....one of the cows .... see Im getting carried away with myself . A bit of tough love , gritting your teeth and shutting your eyes is likely to be the order of the day, horses are by nature herd creatures however many do live by themselves and are happy to do so. Good luck x
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Post by chloesmum on Sept 18, 2014 10:24:26 GMT
Hi Kate know how you feel!! We have had a Dartmoor at home on his own who was fine - then we had a B with him and they were great pals but when we sold the B the Dartie did go walk about a few times!! But then settled. Then we had a C with him and he got very attached to the Dartie. Just like yours fine when out competing but when the Dartie went out he was very vocal! We now have our C Stallion at home alone - he did have a friend for a while but he got a bit silly (to be fair it was a mare!) I feel sorry for him at times but he is quite independent and chooses his friends carefully and has happily settled back to home alone! - we may try a gelding later on and see if he accepts him. To be honest 2 is a nightmare - depends on the pony but we have found they do get attachment issues but like you we cannot manage 3 (just too much work for Chloe) - we have found that not turning them out together helps, maybe splitting the field so they are next to each other but not in together. Also going out for hacks regularly on own helps so don't allow the bad habits to start. I used to always bring the C gelding in first as the Dartie couldn't care less! As I said they can get vocal but have always found they settle after a while. Chloe used to always feed the C when she took the Dartie out in the morning for a hack to pre-occupy him at the parting stage. Good Luck - I guess like humans they are all different some very sociable and needy and some independent!
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Post by thelwell on Sept 18, 2014 10:27:17 GMT
I have always found that the ones that are very clingy and need their friends turn out to be the best living on their own. In the past we have had three who would just about trash the lorry if you took their friend away first. When that friend has been sold and they have had no one to scream to they have been the perfect pony. Each time I was like you worrying that they would go balastic and they have just settled down very quickly. The worst is taking their friend away from them and not taking your pony away from the others. So I always made sure that the clingy pony was out on a hack when their best friend was being moved to a new home. Seemed to work every time. If you can put your pony alongside the Shetland in a separate field that would be a better option. If that is not an option maybe a small electric fenced paddock then they can see each other but not get too friendly. Good luck
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Post by robrocks on Sept 18, 2014 15:38:09 GMT
I am not comfortable with a herd animal being on its own no matter how settled they seem. I also don't like them too long in a pair incase they get clingy and you get the adverse behaviour the other posters have mentioned. Could you not have another shetland and vary turnout with each other?
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Post by kate1984 on Sept 19, 2014 7:43:57 GMT
Thanks guys for the advice! Basically,the Shetland is staying as it's the families,the plan was to put them in there own fields anyway as on livery he's on individual turnout. I think it will be a suck it n see,he's so good to handle right now my biggest worry is if he gets a bit obsessed with the shettie as think he will at first.when I loaded him last time he stayed at home he was very vocal n kicked about in the lorry which is totally unlike him:( I just don't want him to change n start being silly! I've been offered my sisters connie as she's just had a serious accident which means she can never ride again(fell off as pony tripped so they both went down)it's a 5yr old mare.that would mean there's 3 but again it's the cost.i do feel the more ponies around the better so he doesn't just get attached to the one. It's so annoying as it's been my dream to have ponies at home but it's making me worry now as he's such a needy chap!! Do I try with just the Shetland first then if have problems look to the other options??xx
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Post by gillwales on Sept 19, 2014 16:58:25 GMT
I would avoid taking on more costs, it can be ok to start with but can easily get out of control
It will depend on the shetland and how he will be with your boy, only you can gauge this.
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