??? About Purchase, Care and Tack for Miniature Horses

[Gale Hawkins]

After years of being around other people's horses the wife asked if we could get a couple mini horses. Being ignorant on miniature horses I used Google and YouTube to get an old man up to speed on the subject. I visited a horse owner who also keeps two mini horses as pets in her backyard about mini horses and came away impressed. Today we looked at the first one that was for sale. The wife and 15 year old daughter wanted to buy it on the spot.

Nearing retirement age with real physical limitations managing and riding full size horses is not in the cards so for pets only we are excited. So is the daughter. They were out with a light after we got home scoping out a spot we can quickly fence .

What we would like find someone with a couple for sale with carts/wagons and other tack if possible. In the west end of KY I don't see so many for sale. We actually live between Paris TN and Mayfield KY just inside of KY. We live close enough to church that we could walk them down for special events since we don't have a horse/cattle trailer.

At 62 and raised on a farm I know the down side to owning live stock but from the excited eyes I saw this evening we will soon have some sub 3 foot horses.

Thank you all for your input before we leap.

 

[Wagtail]

G'day Mate. Although I don't have experience with miniature horses, I do with 'big ones'. There should be some sort of Kentucky Miniature Horse Association that can properly advise you on all of your concerns... especially on the conformation of what's out there. After all, they want to promote positive ownership of the minis & bad news/experiences travels fast.

They'll also be able to point you towards tack & vehicles (that's what they call the various carts they can pull). More importantly, they'll be able to put you in touch with a Driving Instructor who can teach you how to do practically everything. Other than that, word of mouth amongst your 'horsey' neighbours will put you onto a good farrier, vet, equine dentist, etc...

It's very good that you're going to get two of them. Horses being herd animals, they need a companion for their own mental wellbeing AND so that they can sleep... One of them is always 'alert' whilst the other naps. This is because they are also 'prey' animals and in their mind, any unusual noise could be something out to eat them.

I'll close off now before I start rambling... As the bumper sticker says, "Ask me about my horse... Have you got all day?"

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Thanks Wagtail. I noticed some ads with two for sale note they will not separate.
What about the best sex combination? I know the wife would like to raise one from birth but I am a bit concerned about having a stallion. There will be full size horses in sight of our minis.

 

[deerefan]

Thanks Wagtail. I noticed some ads with two for sale note they will not separate.
What about the best sex combination? I know the wife would like to raise one from birth but I am a bit concerned about having a stallion. There will be full size horses in sight of our minis.

We had a mini stallion. He was rather aggressive. We had him gelded. He follows us around like a pup. Fun little fellow, good personality. Great for teaching young kids how to groom and care for horses.

 

[Stimw]

A friend up the road has a stable. She has helped boarders purchase horses that fit there needs.
The first thing you need is a GOOD Vet to examine any possible new "Children".
There are a lot of problems that you might get stuck with without a good check over.

 

[phiferpharm]

I have two mini's - "Sweet Peach" and "Trouble", both of whom live up to their names. Peach is 28" tall and about as relaxed as can be. Trouble is 31" tall and a typical little boy, but will probably be a little more mellow after is "behavioral modification Surgery" next week.

We have a Nissan Cargo Van and they ride around in there if we need to move them. We took Peach to the riding camp my Grand Daughter is attending for the summer.They campers had a great time with her teaching her to "Jump" plastic Flower hedges, braiding her main, and just giving her lots of loving. We also boarded our full size quarter Horse Rony over at the camp for her to use. It was Rony and Peach's first chance to meet each other and worked out fine.

I am 64 and the wife is 66. So far, the care and upkeep for the horses is pretty minimal and they are a lot of fun. I was unsure of getting them, but am glad I did.

 

[Wagtail]

Stallions (if you're adamant on having 1) take extra care. Geldings & mares are fine together. The general rule is that a stallion needs his own paddock because he is a "MALE" and wants to dominate... He'll round up his 'herd', and 2 horses constitute a herd. On top of that, mares are "trollops" when it comes to ANY stallion so if your neighbour has mares they will present themselves to your stallion when they're in season, regardless of the fact that he would'nt be able to 'reach them'.

This is just the tip of the iceburg regarding Stallions, but saying that, they just require extra effort that someone who isn't familiar with horses should 'ease into' sometime in the future.

Everthing "Stimw" says is true... Please don't get starstruck by the extreme cuteness of the minis. Go slow and have your property set up to care for them before they arrive. Horses drink a lot of water. Horses constantly feed/grase. Horses make up to 14 droppings a day. EACH. And on a small paddock these droppings need to be collected regularly or it will begin to foul their grasing.

On the other hand, I love having my horses. Heck, I'd say that the reason that I bought my property (years ago) & recently retired here to this wee paradise of mine is all because of horses.

It's a lifestyle.

 

[grsthegreat]

one thing about minis...they overeat and have problems if your not Vigilant. It takes quite an effort not to overfeed them. We have several people driving mini's in our driving club. I have Norwegian fjords myself....a draft pony as it were.

Im amazed how much a mini can pull with a cart.....

Getting a team with cart and harness will set you back considerable $$$$

My team of fjords is worth in the neighborhood of 12-15,000 without the cart.

Tack ran about $1,500 each plus $5,000 for one carriage.

Ive seen a trained team of minis in the $10,000 range a few months back.no tack or carriage included.



Now untrained ones are alot more reasonable, if theres a trainer locally you can use to get them up to speed.

 

[whistlepig]

We have never owned minis but have many years of horse experience. A couple of things about stallions. We have seen a stallion try to mount a mare in heat while a little girl was riding the mare. It was a close call for the little girl on the mare before we got to the stallion. If you try to get between a stallion and a mare that is in heat you may be putting yourself in harms way. I would imagine minis would have the same problems as full sized horses about colic. Horses can colic easily and it's something to read up. And you if you have anything that is sharp on your fence or around your barn sticking out a horse will always find a way to cut themselves on it. To the point that they need stitches from an expensive vet.

 

[mudcat47537]

My dad has raised minis for years, myself I didn't get it but he loves them. He sells them and it is funny hearing him tell what buyers come to pick them up in. Everything from hauling them in the back seat of a small car to a huge horse trailer with living quarters.
He lives in southern IL, I can hook you up with his phone # if you like, just send me a message. He is well within driving distance from your location.