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It
seems that many owners of miniature horses are not
aware of the joys of
driving them or, possibly, have not
had the opportunity. I have been
driving mine now for
about 8 years and I cannot emphasize enough the
huge amount of fun I, my daughter, my grandchildren
and my very dear
friend, Claire, have experienced.
With some initial help from a driving
instructor, we
broke-in a young gelding, but since then we have
broken-in
all our own minis as well as sold some on
as miniature driving horses
complete with harness
and carriage. In other words.....'ready to go'.
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These
little animals simply love it, are enormously enthusiastic
and very willing to learn. There is no doubt that
it does appear to come
naturally to them. They are far stronger than anyone thinks
- more than capable of
pulling a small trap and two adults. In addition, they
are amazingly brave when it comes to traffic and 'strange'
things which
they may not have seen before. They are very accepting of all that
surrounds them whilst out
driving. We regularly go on drives of up to 6
miles+ which they can handle more than adequately. I believe
too, very
strongly, that these very intelligent little 'people' are far happier and
content when they
have a purpose, occupation and something to think
about.......they thrive on it.
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We are
members of The British Driving Society,
an extremely
active organisation,
which is affiliated
to all sorts of driving clubs all over the UK.
Many of
these clubs organise interesting and
sometimes testing drives during the
winter months
and, during the summer, there are shows all over
the country
where one can participate at many
different levels.
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Another extremely satisfying aspect is charity work.
We have been
to
schools for children with learning
difficulties as well as fund
raising
events where we
give short trips in a trap/carriage.
Children
who attend special schools relate
exceptionally well with the
miniature horses and
vice versa: specifically, I think, because
the horses
are small enough to
allow a very 'hands on' experience.
The photograph on the right shows one of our visits
to such a school. |
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It is
a hobby/interest for all ages. For instance,
Wolverley and District Driving
Club organised a
Junior Drivers camp over 3 days. 18 turnouts took
part
with youngsters ranging in age from 6 to 14 years
with 9 instructors. An
unbelievably well run camp where
the young were kept busy all day long and
with them
and their ponies/horses fully occupied and interested
all the
time. Obviously the majority were small
Shetlands, but there were also
several miniature
horses taking part.
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If
anyone would like further information on this amazingly appealing and
fascinating subject then please don't hesitate
to get in touch; I would be
more than happy to help. I
personally find it is truly so much more rewarding than huffing
and
puffing ( ! ) around a show ring 'in hand', but having said that I fully
appreciate that a lot of people enjoy showing.
We do have one or two of our youngsters shown for us each year and have
enjoyed success thanks to the very
capable and experienced hands of Sharon and Derek Matthewman of Shadel
Stud.
Please do give me - Elizabeth - a call
(evenings are best) if you would like more information. Tel:
01684 594426,
or send me an email -
archer@wellandcourt.freeserve.co.uk
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