The next pony was a surprise birthday present two years ago, a 17 yr old Welsh mare medium pony, Sera (Seraphim). Sera was super for my daughter at walk-trot, but pulls a lot of mischief & naughtiness at canter to the point that my daughter is now quite defensive and ready for crow-hops & bucks (regularly). Sera is now 19 and is quite arthritic which is for sure contributing to the misbehavior. So, she's semi-retired and my daughter will still ride her and love her, but Sera just doesn't have enough left in her to be a good match for my daughter as her riding progresses.
So, we've been on the hunt for a longgggg time, and last night we found him ... meet Sawyer!
- 2017Jul08 Sawyer_salespic6.jpg (56.9 KiB) Viewed 17514 times
He's a 14.1h registered QH gelding, 7 yrs old, zero mischief, takes care of his riders, can take a joke, easy-peasy in all respects. He's bigger than my daughter is used to and a much bigger stride, but to my surprise and her coach's surprise, she had a ton of fun on him and kept wanting to canter (normally she's quite anxious to canter). He goes a bit more up-headed than some of the other ponies we tried, but will frame up with a knowledgeable rider ... and that is a good thing for my daughter because her Welsh would always drop her head/neck before mischief so my daughter then gets very nervous about that (that will go away quickly on a dependable mount). And, my daughter's equitation on Sawyer was wonderful with her self-correcting when she realized she was perching forward or hands getting defensive.
And, I love this pony, too! He's big & stout enough that I can easily school him to keep him going well.
Here are a couple more pictures ...
- 2017Jul08 Sawyer_salespic3.jpg (44.93 KiB) Viewed 17514 times
- 2017Jul08 Sawyer_salespic4.jpg (78.87 KiB) Viewed 17514 times
Hopefully, if time allows, we pick him up this evening!!
Sorry that the Welsh experience did not go so well. I still love the color of her new horse. Hope she has a much better experience this time around. I have to say as much as I love welsh the mustang I picked up and have been training has been a hoot and very good for those who have ridden him. I had a chance to pick up two welsh for free but their circumstances (the usual that get offered to me) just didn't fit the bill. I wanted safe, steady and perfectly happy to plod along the trail. Even though he was a stallion that had been 'injun broke' you could tell he had that steady eddie, conserve energy, survival instinct. This guy has suited the request I had in spades. I've always said Welsh aren't for everyone 
