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Meet our Ponies

Introducing our Ponies at the Shiresmill Centre! They have been trained specially so that children and people with physical disabilities, medical conditions, learning difficulties and youngsters on the autistic spectrum can ride them.

All of our ponies are now available for sponsorship. Visit our Sponsor a Pony Page for more details.



  • Angus
    Shetland Pony

    Angus

    Angus was born in 4th June 2007. He is a grey dun Shetland Pony standing at 10.2h. Angus has the most beautiful colouring in his mane that all of the volunteers are jealous of. 

    Before joining us at Shiresmill Angus was used to teach many children how to ride, you can see him becoming very curious and interested whenever children are around.

    Angus has quickly formed a close bond with Peat and they are never far apart from each other in the field. Some mornings they even swap breakfast with one another.


  • Billy
    Cob

    Billy
    Billy is a 14hh piebald cob although looks at times looks like a skewbald! He was born in Ireland on 10th April 2016 . He loves being brushed (especially his mane) as he finds this relaxing. He is very friendly and will come over to say hello if you are doing any jobs in the field. One of his closest field mates is Joey and they can often to be seen together. 


  • Harry
    Yellow Dun Highland Pony

    Harry

    Harry is a beautiful Yellow Dun Highland Pony. He is 14 hands high and was born in on 12th June 2005.  He is a typical Highland and he does love his food, especially if it is green!  Harry has competed to a high level in the past before he joined the herd in 2014. He has a very gentle nature and is well suited to his job equally at home with novice or experienced riders. Most of all he loves going on hacks and exploring. 


  • Joey
    Blue Roan Irish Cob

    Joey

    Joey is an Irish Cob. DOB 4.5.15. He is 13:3 hands and Blue Roan in colour.

    He grew up on a farm in Ireland and by some his behaviour I think he used to share in a cup of tea.

    He likes a quiet life in the herd, staying out of trouble. He is a curious and friendly boy who likes nothing better than to get involved with anything going on in the field, helpful or not!

     

    He loves attention from all the humans especially if they give him a good scratch on his chest.

     

    His favourite occupation seems to be making himself as muddy as possible having a good roll or two or even three!

     


  • Louis
    Swedish Ardennes

    Louis

    Louis is a 15.2hh Swedish Ardennes who was born in 2017. This makes him the youngest in our herd. Like Baloo, his name is inspired by another Jungle Book character, King Louie!

    Louis is super friendly and loves spending time with people. He is extremely relaxed and comfortable with many toys including tennis balls.


  • Mac Baloo
    Swedish Ardennes

    Mac Baloo
    Mac Baloo is a 16hh bay Swedish Ardennes, born on 10th May 2010. Mac Baloo was funded by Cargill who also gave him the name Mac. He is a big strong gentle giant who loves attention and a good ear scratch! Mac Baloo is a quick learner and is taking RDA life in his stride. He is well travelled having worked in a Swedish riding school for a few years before moving to the Netherlands then on to Cumbria before he came to Shiresmill!

     

     


  • Murphy
    Black Cob Cross

    Murphy

    Murphy is our black Cob cross. Although he is mostly black, he has a large white blaze on his face and big white socks on his legs! He stands 15.1 hands high and was born in 1999, making him the oldest member of our herd! He is big and very strong (some of our volunteers refer to him as a tank!) which makes him very good at his role of weight carrier. Murphy is a fantastic RDA horse who has taken several of our riders to RDA Dressage competitions, always doing his best and making everyone at Shiresmill very proud. 


  • Noah
    Skewbald Cob

    Noah

    Noah is a 13.3hh skewbald cob gelding who is the most recent arrival to our centre. Although we know he was born in 2014, he does not have a birth date so we will celebrate his birthday on the day he arrived at Shiresmill on 25.1.24.

    Noah is the most kind and gentle soul, making fast friends with Joey and Billy. His talents were found and nurtured during his time at his previous home and by Forth Driving Group RDA. He has a lovely active walk that makes him a super dressage pony. He has a lovely brown spot on his nose that gives him three colours to his coat.


  • Peat
    Black Shetland Pony

    Peat

    Being a Shetland Pony, Peat stands at just 8.2 hands high, but he has a big personality! He’s very hairy and has little legs but can gallop very fast. Peat was born on 10th May 1999. Peat is used for teaching volunteers who are new to ponies how to lead and groom as he is very responsive and loves to be brushed. Peat is also used to get our new riders used to being around ponies and how to care for them. He's a very clever little guy and likes to boss some of the bigger ponies around in the field, he has also learned to play football and can sometimes be seen having a game with Harry!


  • A Message from the Ponies...

    We are a happy herd of 9 ponies that live and work at Shiresmill Therapy Riding Centre.

    We rely on our volunteer friends for so much; in the mornings we eagerly await them coming up to our field to give us our specially prepared feeds and hay, with a good morning smile and pat!  They make sure our field is safe and tidy, and that we're all looking happy and healthy.

    On different days each of us are taken down to the Centre and we have a lovely grooming session with our volunteers.  They clean our feet and groom our bodies and manes and check us over to make sure we're in tip-top condition.

    When we're being used for rides they warm us up getting us tacked up with saddles, bridles and sometimes special equipment to suit each rider.  They maintain our equipment, ensuring it's clean and in great condition for the lessons. 

    When our riders arrive our volunteers help them to safely mount us and then lead us, or walk alongside us to provide support and encouragement to both ourselves and our riders. We form special relationships with our riders and our volunteers; we're specially trained so that children and people with physical disabilities, medical conditions, learning difficulties and youngsters on the autistic spectrum can ride us.  Our volunteers assist with our on-going training and through this we develop real connections with them.

    We love working at Shiresmill and if you think you'd like to come and work with us, we'd love to meet you! Simply go to our 'Volunteer' section.

    Love and nuzzles,

    The Ponies heart


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