resenting demon pony

[lubblyjubblies]

Demon pony - Cant walk, only march. Cant trot, does odd pre canter type motion. If allowed to go forward roll eyes madly and throws head about if asked to calm it a bit. Now initially thought it would be a great idea to use this brave bomb proof maniac to teach my girls to ride. 2 years later we still battle on and on the way home both girls dare ride off the lead rein now. This past week however I have been borrowing a friends 20 yr old much bigger pony. OMG...what a dream. Girls battling over who gets to ride him. They are both so confident on him. They trot on ahead, turn him around and come back.
In a real quandry now. Dream pony is an ideal first pony. Demon pony is definately a second or third pony but at 12'1 size is an issue.
DD's are now 7 and 5. Should I look towards getting a calmer pony like dream pony or stick with fun feisty pony. Complicated by the fact demon pony is the pony I wanted as a young 'un.
Balls....wish I'd never tried dream pony now.

[Fluffyone]

Wrong pony. Step away from the demon pony, there will be plenty more when your girls are ready for the next step up. Has he been checked physically do you know?

[MitchyInge]

Is fun feisty pony a youngster?

[MitchyInge]

Would it be crazy to have both?

[lubblyjubblies]

demon pony is a perfectly sound and healthy 9 year old...just very spirited. We've had him 2 years and he is a fantastic lead rein pony, but then a big leap to off lead rein. He even stood stock still when I accidently dropped DS in his back pack carrier under his belly. I adore him, he has sooo much character. We can have both actually. . dream pony is long since outgrown but is too precious for his owners to relinquish, but they love the fact he is getting out and about again. . Just concerned about the polar opposite riding techniques needed to master both ponies, and their effects on young riders.
I am trying to convince myself DD's will adore feisty pony in years to come. He is a definate pony club speed demon and as I have 2 skinny minny DD's I hope he wont be outgrown.
However ..it was jolly nice going on a hack and still being able to feel my arms on out return to the yard!!

[Saggyoldclothcatpuss]

Is it a welsh a? It sounds just like our mare! She is very much lead rein/second pony. In one respect, learning to manage the naughty pony will teach your kids many valuable lessons. As long as it doesn't scare them. It's nice to ride a sensible pony, but once you have learned the skills to manage a monster, they will be able to ride anything. This is however only really true if your kids are fairly brave. My own DD has confidence issues and loses the plot on anything bolshy, and is much happier on a schoolmaster. Have They had lessons on naughty pony? It could well be that the way they are riding is influencing it's behaviour. Our pony does exactly what you tell it to do, and if you ask wrong, you don't get the response you are looking for.

[allgonebellyup]

i had a demon pony. Sought advice on here- was told to get rid.
Best thing i ever did, sending her back.

[Callisto]

Can you break demon pony to drive? Would demon pony go better in a different bit/martingale/noseband? Is it teeth/back problems causing the head shaking or is it personality? IMO demon small ponies are a liability as most people won't want them as a lead rein/1st pony and they are too small to be a 2nd pony.

However, I wouldn't worry about different riding techniques. I ride different horses every day and I think it makes me a better rider.

[seeker]

If it's taken two years for your girls to dare ride demon pony off the lead rein, then I really think he's not suitable - at this age it can only take one big scare to put them off for ages. He doesn't sound fun and fiesty, to be honest,he sounds scary and potentially dangerous.

Can you ride him? If you put in some serious schooling over the summer do you think you could improve things? While your dds ride dream pony?