Taking on two ponies - haven't a clue!

[TwoPonyTony]

We went to see a house with quite a bit of land (for us) and the owners currently had horses in the paddocks. Amongst the horses were two small ponies that looked like unicorns without the horn. They were very friendly and came straight over to the kids. The owner then proceeded to tell me in front of said smitten children that I could have the two ponies with the house/land if I wanted them. Cue jumping up and down children. We have always had animals but never a horse. The owner said they keep the grass down. So tell me everything I don't know about keeping two small ponies. How much exactly is it going to cost me to keep these two little chaps as happy as possible? I do at least understand this means sorting them out every day. There currently is a Gardner/animal keeper? living in the annex but he's moving on. I would be up for finding another person willing to do the same work but need some sort of grasp on the whole thing myself first.

If I was buying a house with enough land for two ponies and I thought there was a chance I might want a pony one day, I'd want my own pony, not two ex driving ponies that probably haven't been ridden for years.

If you take these ponies on you will be stuck with them. Stables don't take ponies! They will take them and charge you 100 a week livery costs!

In the nicest possible way OP you sound really clueless about ponies please don't do this.

This is quite possibly the most bonkers thing I've heard in a long time! OP - It sounds like you are well meaning and very animal-friendly....but you clearly have no idea at all about caring for ponies or the land that they are on. You may well have had dogs and cats etc but having a horse or pony really is quite different and agreeing to take responsibility for them sounds like a a recipe for disaster. Please take off the rose tinted glasses. They are not unicorns. They are animals with quite complex (and sometime expensive) needs and at the moment you don't have the experience to be able to meet these needs. The current owners need to make arrangements for them.

I don't have rose tinted glasses. I know a horse of any kind is tons of work but exactly what that work entails I don't know. I haven't taken on anything. I came on here to ask what I didn't know. I'm also trying to sort out what on earth to do if they are left. I'll have to have a word with the solicitor.

I won't repeat what others have said as clearly you are trying to do the right thing by these ponies. Not impressed by the owner trying to make this your responsibility .

I think if the owner does leave them there they would effectively be abandoned animals, the below link is good but effectively they would be your problem to sort out, you could try and reclaim costs from the old owner but possibly a lot of time and effort to do so...

www.bhs.org.uk/advice-and-information/the-law/abandonment-and-fly-grazing

In terms of how much time it would take to look after them, probably at least 20-30 mins a day in summer (quick catch and check over daily, top up water and weed and poo pick the field), more in winter (all above plus change rugs if they wear them, give hay, break ice on water). As others have said you will need to either pay someone or allocate more time for field maintenance, harrowing, dividing up the field, fence and hedge maintenance etc).

Another good link to give you some idea of costs:

file:///C:/Users/ellyd/Downloads/The%20Cost%20of%20Keeping%20a%20Horse%20or%20Pony.pdf

A final thing to think about is that horses are herd animals and shouldn't be kept alone, so you would need to think about what happens if/when one of them dies - the other will need a companion so you would have to think about getting another (thus ending up in an endless cycle of ponies!), finding him/her another home (not easy for en elderly pony!) or PTS...

Sorry bad link:

www.bhs.org.uk/~/media/bhs/files/pdf-documents/the-cost-of-keeping-a-horse-or-pony.ashx

Don’t do it. Honestly.

Its not really the work load that is the biggest hurdle to new horse ownership if the person is willing, it is the lack of horse knowledge.

Speaking to your solicitor to make it clear the ponies have to be removed is very wise

Do not do this.
The current owners have seen you coming from a mile of.
There are good reasons why they are so keen to dump these ponies on you.
You are buying the house and land not animals.
While they can be very rewarding horses are very time consuming, a huge tie and can be very expensive to care for, particularly if things go wrong.
Your dc will get bored very quickly.

If this happened to me and i was left with them, the first thing i would do is book a farrier and a vet to come out and look at them check their feet, blood test and listen to their lungs and heart. If you tell both you don't know what you are dealing with they should be very helpful and let you know if there are any obvious foot or health problems. If they don't wear shoes a farrier trim for 2 ponies will cost around 80. Vet and bloods around 150.

You will need to check them twice a day every day. I still feel traumatised when i remember the big snow last year, dh and the dds were away, i had a temp of 103 and had to carry buckets of watm water to the horses twice a day as the pipes and trough were frozen.

Don't do it op. I have had a horse (before I had my baby) as a sharer. I use to feed, muck out daily do basic care and have ridden for years. However, I would never have my own horse. I wouldn't feel like I've got enough knowledge (with illnesses etc) and certainly don't have enough money. I love animals and would be a sucker for my kids pleading for pets but would always draw the line at a horse/pony.

Oh and every horse owner I have known would never ever give their animals away. I think there must be a reason why they're wanting to give them away.

Well, they mat have lost their grazing so i can understand wanting to pass them on.

I'm an ex bhs instructor and owned horses for donkeys years. Please dont be taken in to have these ponies. If they were useful with no issues they would have been sold. If they have medical problems then vets bills can soon run in to thousands. Added to that they may well be unrideable, the chances are that they have issues or are too eldely to sell, and rather than do the responsible thing and euthanise if they are no longer able to look after them they are palming them off. It would be you who would have to deal with shooting and disposal. It might sound dramatic, but Ive seen it happen too many times.
If you want a pony then get lessons and stable management lessons at a reputable riding school. When the kids have stuck at that for a few years and your knowledge is reasonable then get a good experienced horse person to help choose the right pony.

@bodgeitandscarper What do you mean shooting! Surely if they need to euthanise a horse it's put down with an injection. Please tell me they don't shoot them!

Of course they shoot them.

They can be put down by injection but shooting is a very viable option too.

Standing holding your horse as it goes down is horrific, no matter which way it goes.

Shooting can often be a better option for ponies that may dislike injections or have medical reasons where a bullet is kinder. As an owner this would be something you'd have to be prepared to face with elderly ponies or those with medical issues.

There really is much more to owning than most non horsey folk realise, it takes a toll financially, emotionally, time wise and physically. Of course there are upsides, but it is proper horsey nuts who live eat and breathe horses that dont mind the downsides so much. Ignorance can cause a great deal of suffering, for the ponies and owners.

Yep, sorry OP, shooting is a standard, even recommended method to euthanise horses - the RSPCA, royal vet college, British Horse Society etc say either is acceptable. Both are pretty much instantaneous and pain free for the animal - it's just a matter of circumstances and preference as to whhc you use. I have a slight preference for the gun for my own horses and it's hard to guesstimate the weight of a horse (and you can't usually weight a sick one!) so the vet doesn't always know exactly how much dose to give, sometimes meaning the process can take longer which is grim all round. The gun is more reliable IMO. Plus if you are very rural and there's been an accident needing immediate PTS for the animal's welfare, sometimes the vet can take a while to arrive whereas the local hunt can often be there very quickly (and will deal with the body afterwards too which is very helpful).

Sorry to be brutal but this is the kind of thing you have to be aware of when entering into horse ownership!

Apart from all the (very valid) reasons above, all horses and ponies must have passports so you could end up looking after, and falling in love with, animals that can be sold at any time.

do not take them

Don’t do it, if you’re needing to ask basic questions then you shouldn’t have them

Groom here. many many years caring for top level horses. Don't do it! there is a huge amount you need to know before you can consider owning a horse.

Oh and shooting is a very viable option to have a horse put down and my preferred method. I've seen horses fighting the injection and it isn't pleasant. I'd rather know they were dead before they hit the ground personally.

It’s normal to euthanise large animals by shooting them. It’s still instant, at least for horses. If you do take them on, this is what will happen when it’s time for them to go.

You mentioned that the owner “said it in front of the smitten children”. Surely this a great opportunity to teach your children that you don’t on an animal unless you have the requisite knowledge to look after it? It sounds like you might be prepared to pay someone else to look after them, but that also isn’t an example I’d want to be setting - that it’s ok for other people to dump a problem on you because you’ll just buy your way out of it.

I know everyone else has already banged on about knowledge but is is important in a way that might not be obvious. With a cat or dog, they are around you all the time, so it’s easy to spot when their behaviour isn’t normal. With a horse that you pop out to for a few minutes twice a day, the chances are you wouldn’t even notice the symptoms of many common ailments, some of them extremely serious, until the horse was in a lot of pain and quite possibly beyond saving.

Apart from all the (very valid) reasons above, all horses and ponies must have passports so you could end up looking after, and falling in love with, animals that can be sold at any time.

Can you explain what you mean by this?

If you don't have your name on a valid passport which every horse should have, then you are not the legal owner.

I was rather referring to the bit about them being sold? Sorry perhaps that's what the poster meant, if they are not the owner.

The person who has the passports with their name in it can legally sell the horses.