The following instance of animal intelligence is sent to us by Dr. John Rae, F.R.S., who states that the Mr. William Sinclair mentioned is respectable and trustworthy. The anecdote is taken from the ‘Orkney Herald’ of May 11:—”A well-authenticated and extraordinary case of the sagacity of the Shetland pony has just come under our notice. …
Category Archives: Shetland Pony
No Plans for the Weekend? Why Not Pop Over to Chantilly?
The Prince of Condé, Louis Henri (also a Duc de Bourbon) was prime minister of France for Louis XI from 1723 to 1726. He was also, according to an old tale I really hope is true, sure he would be reincarnated as a horse. He built the stables by which all other stables are judged …
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It’s Friday And You Need This
Thank you to Horse Rider’s Journal.
Whole Heap of Little Horse Links
The US Equestrian Federation has finally – yes, FINALLY – banned the chains, weighted shoes, pads, collars and rollers used to produce the monstruous “big lick gait. Good news for the beleagered Tennessee Walking Horse. (The Horse) This week was, mercifully, a week in which images of Shetland ponies wearing woolly jumpers flooded the internet. …
Whole Heap of Little Horse Links
Questions are raised over the treatment of horses on film and TV show sets. Are trainers’ welfare concerns being overruled? (LA Times) A “horse palace” in Montreal seeks donors for a makeover. (Montreal Gazette) A woman “gives birth to a pony” during a church service in Nigeria. (PM News) Lady Gaga arrived at the launch …
Shetlands: The Source of Speed
Further research into the equine speed gene “C” has revealed a surprising conclusion, although I think it’s been misreported by the Irish Telegraph, which boldly claims that Dr Hill’s study showed that the speed gene entered bloodlines when the Darley Arabian, the Godolphin Arabian and the Byerley Turk were bred with native British horses, mainly …
Shetland Ponies out of Fashion?
A long piece in The Shetland Times reports that the economic crisis is putting the pinch on the traditional Shetland pony, and how changing fashions in colour and size of pony are affecting the stalwarts in the isles: Looking around the marts, my first impression is of a sea of red-and-white backs. You’d think Shetland …
Schooling Over Fences
Willy Twiston-Davies (son of trainer Nigel) has just won the Foxhunters Chase over the National fences at Aintree at age 16 with the fittingly named Baby Run. I last saw Willy in action at the 2007 Charles Owen pony racing championships at the Liverpool course, where he was riding a 13.1hh pony called Sparky Boy. …
Throwaway Ponies
More abandoned horses: after dead and dying ponies were found dumped on Bodmin Moor, police in the New Forest suspect the same thing is happening in Hampshire: An animal abandoned near Lyndhurst had to be shot because it was in a weak condition. It was found just two days after a dead pony had been …
A short BBC clip on horses on a housing estate in Bradford.