# What size pony for my 11 year old



## Mary Bee (3 April 2019)

Well, she is 4 ft 8 now. But I am 5 ft 10 and her Dad is over 6ft. We're all fairly slim builds. She will grow!

She loves small ponies and would like a 12.2 .. - she says small ponies make her feel confident - but I think she will soon outgrow this size. 

I don't want to be having to change ponies again in a year or two...

Also, she is likely to want to keep the pony forever - she gets very atttached to animals..... 

Any advice gladly welcomed. Thank you!


----------



## be positive (3 April 2019)

You need to buy her the pony she fits now that gives her confidence and allows her riding to develop and accept it will be outgrown, she may want to keep it forever most children do but she will learn that after a while she has to sell it to another loving home so she can get a bigger one, children are generally fairly pragmatic when this is explained to them by a rational adult. 

I have just found a pony for a 12 year old boy that will give him about 12 months of fun before it is outgrown and went through the same conversation with him and his mum, they soon realised a good pony will find another home with someone equally caring when the time comes so he can get another one, the people we bought from were just as sensible knowing it was not a home for life.


----------



## Roxylola (3 April 2019)

Get her what she feels confident on now otherwise in 6 months time you will have a pony she doesn't want to ride at all.  If you are honest with her and explain that to have a small pony for her to enjoy now she will need to be prepared to sell so that the pony can continue their useful fun life and she can move on to something more suitable.

If she can't face parting with the pony when out grown she needs to wait til she feels confident on a big enough pony that she can keep


----------



## HeyMich (3 April 2019)

We've recently bought a chunky 12.2 type for our kids - a lanky 11 yr old boy and a tall 6 yr old girl. The pony is fine for them both for now, he is wide enough to take up plenty of leg! I think my son will be too tall within about an year or so, but hopefully he'll have learned enough and be confident enough by then to handle a bigger pony with ease.


----------



## Midlifecrisis (4 April 2019)

My advice would be to loan an appropriately sized pony for right now. Just as other posters have said it will enable your daughter to handle the pony independently and build confidence and confirm that they really want the work and commitment involved.


----------



## Equi (4 April 2019)

Loan would be the better option if you think she will become overly attached..even if its at someone else yard so she associates it as being "theirs" not hers. I think growing her confidence on a pony that suits her now is much more important than buying something that she will grow into eventually.


----------



## NinjaPony (4 April 2019)

Be warned- I was given an 11.2hh aged 10 with a view that we would sell on when I outgrew him. 12 years later he is still with us....! So loaning is a sensible option!!


----------



## ycbm (4 April 2019)

I would try to find a 'perfect' first pony which is a bit bigger than she says she would really like, and encourage her to try it, in the hope that she will feel really happy on it and want to take it home. But if that doesn't work, I would accept that I needed to find a smaller pony but be hard and clear from the start that the pony leaves when it's outgrown. Whether the pony leaves or not is your decision, yet you are writing about it as if it was hers before you have even got it. I think you need to change your own mindset on this one if you don't want to end up with a string of outgrown ponies.

I'm not a parent, and I know that advice is probably easier said than done 

.


----------



## WelshCManiac (5 April 2019)

Welsh section C's fit adults...
Maybe 13hh-14hh and let her choose the breed?


----------



## meleeka (5 April 2019)

I had a 13hh pony and kept her until I was 35!


----------



## Shay (5 April 2019)

My daughter's first was 13.2 She was 6 and considerably shorter - probably only about 4' at the time (at 19 she only stands 5'2.)  Her legs didn't come more than a couple of centimeters of the saddle flap which made for an interesting start.  But he was (and is) the perfect temperament.  We loaned him for 2 years.  Couldn't part with him and bought him. He brought DD on masses (she could already ride well) took her to PC Nat Champs repeatedly.  Strated her on Junior BS.  Then went on to teach - gosh I've lost count maybe 10 or 12 more kids whilst on shares. Took 4 of them to Nat Champs too.  Started DD hunting, has started 4 or 5 more.  Now at 27ish he is partly retired and has a home for life.

At this stage temperament is more important than size IMO.  Absolutely ask around on loan.  The really good ones don't come up for sale.  They get hung onto and loaned or shared.  Plus of course when grown out of they are slightly easier to convince child to part from (It was DH who would not countenance returning ours!).  Obviously you don't want to totally out horse her but look for temperament first.


----------



## Teresalee (5 April 2019)

im 5'2 and I ride a 147 (just under 14.1) and she is a perfect size. so I would say if you want something shes not going to outgrow for a while id say get a 138. Its still small, it will last her longer and theyre are a few exceptional confidence giving bs registered ones on horse quest 
good luck!


----------



## Fiona (5 April 2019)

ycbm said:



			I would try to find a 'perfect' first pony which is a bit bigger than she says she would really like, and encourage her to try it, in the hope that she will feel really happy on it and want to take it home. But if that doesn't work, I would accept that I needed to find a smaller pony but be hard and clear from the start that the pony leaves when it's outgrown. Whether the pony leaves or not is your decision, yet you are writing about it as if it was hers before you have even got it. I think you need to change your own mindset on this one if you don't want to end up with a string of outgrown ponies.

I'm not a parent, and I know that advice is probably easier said than done 

.
		
Click to expand...

I am a parent, and might well take this approach...

It seems very sensible.  

Fiona


----------



## Julia0803 (5 April 2019)

We did similar to what ycbm suggests and got a exceptionally kind first pony that was really a little too big, but very steady and chilled personality for my son who was just turning 10 at the time, about 5â€™ and the most nervous rider you could imagine. Perfect pony was a 14.2 cob, pretty wide (even wider now heâ€™s more muscled!). Because he was kind and incredibly chilled and <whispers> rather on the lazy side  my son always felt safe and in control. His confidence grew exponentially and they have spent nearly 6 amazing years together doing pretty much everything. 

Heâ€™s rather outgrown now as son is over 6â€™3  and new ginnormahorse is coming tomorrow. Lovely cob isnâ€™t going anywhere, we canâ€™t bear to part with him. It took son a VERY long time to come to terms with outgrowing him. At one point he said he didnâ€™t think he wanted to ride at all if it wasnâ€™t with him (Not in a bratty demanding way, just deeply deeply sad that they wouldnâ€™t be a team riding together).

Iâ€™m very glad I didnâ€™t go for 13.2 which is what several people suggested as he would have outgrown him inside 18m. His dad is 6â€™3 and heâ€™s always been at least a head taller than his classmates so it was obvious he was going to be lanky.   

Equally I have a friend who has a very stocky 12.3 for her tiny 8 year old daughter. Her feet barely come past the saddle flaps, there is absolutely nothing of her. Most of the time itâ€™s fine and they do really well together, but he has bogged off with her a few times, and dumped her whilst jumping on a few occasions and I do worry for her. Once their confidence is lost it is SO hard to regain. (Son lost his on the loan pony we had before lovely cob, and it nearly put him off for life, he has never felt the same about jumping since)

The hard part is finding the saintly first pony, regardless of size!


----------



## honetpot (5 April 2019)

We were very lucky, I bought a 14.2 from a friend for my older daughter and younger daughter aged 8 stole the ride. He was quite happy to poottle along nose stuck out, completely obedient until asked to more.
   If the pony is not old you may have to pay a lot of money for it. Good childrens ponies are not cheap and larger sizes will have older riders after them.


----------



## Pearlsasinger (6 April 2019)

If you think she is going to grow to match her parents eventually, she is going to outgrow even the next size up pony eventually, so I would follow the advice to buy, or better still loan, a pony, that is suitable for now.  I have seen far too many children be put off by something that 'they can grow into'.  She needs something that she can ride well now.  I agree with the advice that *you* need to take charge of this venture, OP, rather than letting your daughter dictate what will happen.


----------



## D66 (6 April 2019)

I took the view that although the pony was for my daughter to ride I was the owner and I decided when to sell. I discussed this with DD and reminded her occasionally.   We also talked about how the pony needed a job and that other people would love him as much as we did. When we did sell we enjoyed getting updates and pics from the new owners.


----------



## Horsegal98 (9 April 2019)

My 12 year old still looks great on a 12.2hh, but if I were buying I'd probably look around the 13.2hh mark.


----------



## ycbm (9 April 2019)

Pearlsasinger said:



			If you think she is going to grow to match her parents eventually, she is going to outgrow even the next size up pony eventually, so I would follow the advice to buy, or better still loan, a pony, that is suitable for now.  I have seen far too many children be put off by something that 'they can grow into'.  She needs something that she can ride well now.  I agree with the advice that *you* need to take charge of this venture, OP, rather than letting your daughter dictate what will happen.
		
Click to expand...


It isn't about 'growing into' a bigger pony PaS, it's about just how quickly an eleven year old with a mother of 5ft 10 and a father of over six feet will outgrow a 12.2.   I don't think anyone is advising buying a pony to 'grow into'. That , for me would be talking about a pony the  child was unable to properly get her leg on. Which I agree would be a very bad idea with a child who is expressing a wariness of bigger ponies.   A 13.2 with the right temperament should still be a fit, size wise, with a girl of four foot eight. She can still almost see over its withers.

It's a challenge every time finding a new pony when one is outgrown, and one less of those searches surely has to be a good thing?   ONLY if the first pony is the right pony, of course.


..


----------

