anybody own one? can you keep them inside? info appreciated
Answers:
If you are an experienced horse person and you purchase one with no medical or behavioral problems and you have a proper place to keep it then yes, they are easier to care for as they are smaller, require less space, eat less, exercises less and are not as hard to handle. Please do not keep them inside your house, they still are horses and enjoy grazing and running around. I suggest that if you are interested in owning one you consult a trainer or breeder who can show you how to care for one. We have 26 of them right now and 4 large horses as well. They are easier to clean up after and feed as they eat and poo less. They have smaller stalls and are easier to turn out as they are not as strong as large horses. They are easier to exercise as they only need 20 minutes of work a day, I work 4 at a time in the round pen and they are smaller, so grooming takes less time. They only colic and founder when you over feed them or stress them out. They only need like a tablespoon or grain and 1/2 of a flake of hay a day, and they should be treated like big horses so as not to stress them out (don't bring them in the house or the car just b/c they're small).
Care of the American Miniature Horse
Taking care of miniature horses is much like taking care of their bigger cousins, just on a much smaller scale. A little back yard will do with a small shelter.
Miniature horses need yearly dental care, yearling shots, and hoof trimming every 6-8 weeks.
Miniature horses need a fraction of the feed as the bigger equine. An 8oz cup of feed twice a day with free choice good horse hay or green fertilized grass is a perfect meal for the little ones. Just be sure you have a safe place to put them until the fertilizer melts or soaks in the ground. A good worming every 2-3 months is a must, alternating wormers such as Equimectrin and Safeguard. A good worming program is the best way to insure the best health for your horse. A daily wormer is also available on the market today, but again, different wormer kills different types of worms. Your local veterinarian can help you maintain a good worming program. A mini needs a good 12% grain or pellet feed to keep them at their best. If you notice they are getting a little on the heavy side it is good to cut back on the grass and hay. Miniature horses, just like their bigger friends do need plenty of roughage in their diet.
If you notice your mini rolling, getting up and rolling again or rolling over on their back it is a good idea to notify your veterinarian. Minis do not seem to have a problem with colic as their bigger equine friends, but every precaution should be taken. If they roll, get up, shake and return to their grazing they are probably just rubbing a fly off their back
The biggest favor you can do your mini is to know their regular habits. If they act differently and you are not sure as to there behavior the safest thing to do is call you local veterinarian and heed their advice.
Miniatures also seem to lay out more their bigger equine friends. They seem to enjoy sunning and laying out in their stalls at night when they rest. If, however, you suspect any unfamiliar behavior, do not hesitate to contact you local veterinarian.
Showing the American Miniature Horse
The American Miniature Horse Association (association for the American Miniature Horse) and The American Miniature Horse Registry (association for the Miniature Horse and Modern/Classic Shetland Ponies), offer sanctioned shows across this country as well as in other counties such as Canada, England, Australia, to name a few. The show schedule is designed to include everyone. There are Open classes for the Professionals and Amateurs. There are Amateur classes for the new and old less experienced exhibitors. There are Youth classes divided by the age of the youth as well as the sex of the horse in halter classes. There are driving classes, showmanship classes, obstacle classes and jumping classes for each group of exhibitors. At the end of the year is the Nationals/World Show held by each association. This is why exhibitors work all year, to qualify their miniature horses for the Nationals/World Show. Each Association has show rules and regulations that can be viewed online.
The American Miniature Horse Associations are designed to help miniature horse owners in registration, DNA, show rules and regulations. Employees of both American Miniature Horse Association and the American Miniature Horse Registry are always courteous and ready to answer any and all of your questions.
Color of the American Miniature Horse
The miniature horse comes in all color and all colors are acceptable in the American Miniature Horse Association (AMHA) and the American Miniature Horse Registry (AMHR). They come in solids, pinto (tobianos, overos, toveros, etc.), appaloosas, duns, buckskins, cremellos, and perlinos. Blue eyes are acceptable also. Foaling out a miniature is like opening a Christmas package, you never know what color you are going to see. You also never know what color they are going to become! The American Miniature Horse in nortorious for changing colors as they mature. It is absolutely amazing to watch them change.
Birthing American Miniature Horse Foals
Silverleaf Farm monitors all their mares with the Foal Alert System. They wear a halter with a transmitter attached. When the mare lays down for any length of time the transmitter is tilted and sends a signal to a small hand size beeper which we carry with us as we do our daily chores and keep by our bedside at night. A visual monitor shows whether she is foaling or just laying down for a short nap. When the mare starts the birthing process we are there immediately, silently watching in the corner, to make sure everything goes as it should. Our foals are then towel dried and imprinted immediately upon birth. After the foal is up and nursing we leave Mother and baby alone to bond. The monitor still on, we watch to make sure everything is well through the night for mare and foal. A wonderful book we have explaining the entire birthing process and explaining what do if anything goes wrong is Blessed Are The Brood Mares by M. Phyllis Lose, V.M.D. This book also takes the foals through their first few weeks.
STANDARD OF PERFECTION FOR THE MINIATURE HORSE
A small, sound, well-balanced horse, possessing the correct conformation characteristics required of most breeds. Refinement and feminity in the mare. Boldness and masculinity in the stallion 鈥?the general impression should be one of symmetry, strength, agility and alertness. Since the breed objective is the smallest horse, other characteristics being approximately equal.
The size of the miniature horse should not measure more than 34 inches at the withers, at the last hairs of the mane.
The head should be in proportion to length of neck and body. Broad forehead with large prominent eyes set wide apart. Comparatively short distance between eyes and muzzle. Profile of head slightly concave below the eyes. Large nostrils. Clean, refined, Even bite.
The ears should be medium in size, pointed. Carried alertly with tips curving slightly inward.
The throat latch should be clean and well defined allowing ample flexion at the pole.
The neck should be flexible, lengthy, in proportion to body and type and blending smoothly into the withers.
The shoulder should be long, sloping and well angulated, allowing a free-swinging stride and alert head/neck carriage, muscled forearm.
The body should be well muscled with ample bone and substance. Balanced and well proportioned. Short back in relation to length of underline. Smooth and generally level top-line. Deep girth and flank, Trim barrel.
The hindquarters should be long, well-muscled hip, thigh and gaskin. Highest point of croup to be same height. Tail set neither excessively high or low, but smoothly rounding off rump.
Legs should set straight and parallel when viewed from front or back. Straight, true and squarely set. Pasterns sloping aabout 45 dgrees and blending with no change of angle from the hooves to the ground. Hooves to be round and compact. Trimmed practicable for an unshod horse. Smooth, fluid gait in motion.
Any color or marking pattern, and any eye color, is equally acceptable. The hair should be silky
Basically some say they are more kicky and bitey but i dont hink so. one the other hand they are just smaller horses so take less space and food
well i know a lot about horses but to tell you the truth they both take equal part in having a big responsability.
I don't own one, but I've heard they're pretty hard to take care of, and it all has to do with temperament. They are infamous for having that "pony" attitude: stubborn, fussy, and altogether pushy and mean.
However, I think most of the view is based on the owner--they are probably just not training the animal right, so it develops stubborn and dangerous bad habits.
I've heard of keeping minis inside, at least those that live in the city are usually kept indoors...many work as guide animals for handicapped people, such as the blind.
My close friend breeds and raises Mini's. I have noticed she has more trouble with her mini's then big horses. They all seem to founder easier and have generally more problems. She has lost mares and foals do to unknown or uncontrolable problems. I believe they are more senstive to feed and weather (heat and cold) changes than full size horses. But about temperment, I think they are the same as big horses. Since they are small (the same with ponies) people don't respect or treat them the same as big horses so they develop that "pony" attitude. If they are treated as you would treat and respect a big horse I don't see any behavior problems.
Taking care of a miniature horse is exactly the same as a normal sized horse. The only differences are their size can make them easier to handle %26 control, and of course, you don't need such large quantities of food %26 medications etc for a tiny horse. Also, you can keep them on a smaller property. In terms of general care though - whatever a large horse needs, a small horse needs too.
I think there are a number of people who've kept their horses inside with them, at least part of the time. I'm not sure how this is done re toilet training etc. I hope someone who has done this replies to your question - I'd be interested to read it!
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