How to find a suitable pony?

[FiveHoursSleep]

My friend is looking to buy a pony for her two daughters aged 10 and 12. They have DIY livery sorted but can't find anything suitable. They live in Middlesex and are willing to travel for a couple of hours to look at something. The last one they fell in love with was in Cambridge but he came up lame in his vet check.
Can anyone tell me where they found the pony they bought for their children?
In case anyone knows of anything, she's looking for a 14.2 or 14.3 pony between 7 and 13 yrs old - suitable first pony - good to catch, shoe etc - snaffle mouthed and will jump - pref not grey.

Word of mouth is usually the most reliable way and families often have ponies lined up for their children as other families outgrown them.

Other ideas are to find something through their instructor (always wise to take the instructor with them on viewings) or via the Pony Club so that the pony's character is well known amongst other PC families.

Is there a particular reason they want something so big and have such a low age group? 14.2hh is quite tall for kids and many natives will also be chuncky which will make them more of a challenge for slight children. 13 is very young for a pony, most will work well into their 20s and some into their 30s (depending on the level of work).

Sorry I totally assumed that they are checking the usual places, e.g. Horsequest, Horsemart and Horse and Hound, but if they are not they should be (however they should always view with an instructor).

They may also want to try puting a wanted ad in the above.

What sort of local free-ads papers do you have? Round here everyone seems to advertise anything horse-related in the Friday-ad.

Also, try local feed merchants/saddlers etc, they usually have notice boards to advertise ponies for sale and a wanted ad would be seen by all the right people.

Sorry for separate posts but I'm doing dinner! Just remembered friend got a lovely loan pony from Pre-loved website.

Ours have all come from preloved or the Pony Club website.I think you might be struggling to find a first pony at that height,they tend to be under 13hh.There are exceptions though.

Good luck to your friend though-we found our 1st pony after looking for 2 months,the latest one took 10 months to find!

We buy and sell ours on Horsequest - certainly worth looking at and remember that the asking price is usually not what people actually accept - they will nearly always take an offer at the moment.

I agree with BooBoo that they seem to be looking for quite big ponies for children. That is a connemara type size and I wouldn't put a 10yo on one - although I accept it may suit the 12yo.

i don't have an issue with the size - our DP is 14.2 and my DD2 has ridden her since she was 10.

I do think they are limiting the search with an age limit of 13 though. DP is 18 and still has plenty of fire in her belly.

I bought an unsuitable one instead. Otherwise sometimes have on loan/part loan more suitable ones via word of mouth.

Obviously scour notice boards in tack shops, equine/farm vet and maybe put a wanted ad up too?

I found DD's pony on Pre-loved. I also looked in local feed merchants, saddlers etc, H&H, HorseQuest, etc, etc.

I would say that the size may be an issue, but it would depend how competant the girls are. I also agree that first riddens are usually in the 12-13hh range. You may be better looking for a slightly smaller native.

The 12 year old is 5 ft 3, hence the need for a big pony.
They have each had a smaller loan pny each for the last year, so have some experience.
They want a younger one because of potential health issues with an older one.

My (just) 13 year old has been on a 14.2 for a year now because she's 5ft 5. However, in my experience, good 14.2s are a bit like gold-dust! We bought a nice natured but green one from a very reputable dealer. My geography's a bit vague, but would Stratford on Avon be too far? If not I'll pm you the details of where we got ours (another person on our yard bought from them as well and are really pleased with the horse)

I think S-O-A would be okay. send me the details and I'll send it on to friends.
Thank you:)

PM not working. The dealer was Featherbed stables, if you google them you'll get their website (too untechno to link)

I've got a friend who is selling something ThT might fit you bill in North Essex. Would you like her details?

50 shades yes please :)