Little Ponies, Small and Devilish, or Managed Wrong? Mini Muse / Rant

We've all seen it, that 18hh draught horse that is completely bombproof, and the 15 year old Shetland that is busy being the most naughty and difficult little creature in the world to handle. 

What is it that makes the little ones so feisty, is it just the way they are. Do we tolerate too much from them? 

I have a few ideas as to why I personally think there are so many naughty little ponies. 

And seeing as I don't have a training post for you yet this week I figured I would give you something to muse over. 

I have had a fair bit of experience with small ponies over the years, Shetlands, Welshies, Exmoors, allsorts of them.  

From personal experience I would say that yes, these smaller native breeds are fairly feisty to begin with. And this isn't just Horses. 

I also keep Shetland sheep and I also find those incredibly feisty and much tougher than their larger and steadier farm mates. For example the Suffolk and Beltex rams that are on the farm are much more laid back than my Shetland Ram.

I think the same applies with ponies, they are smaller, and therefore would have been easier prey back when there were wolves to hunt them. Therefore what they lacked in size they had to make up for in wit , intelligence and pure toughness. 

Over time though I think that the fault for ponies with bad attitudes comes more towards us as owners. 

Don't get me wrong, just like some people are a general pain in the backside and that is their personality, I think that the same applies in horses and other animals. 

Occasionally you do get the brat , just as you do with people. 

Then I ask myself, where does a brattish attitude come from in children. 

Being over indulged , over encouraged in the wrong things and experiencing a large lack of boundaries. 

I think that more often than not, a nine hand Shetland that is a pain for the farrier, rears, kicks, bites, whatever it does, will get away with it whilst people laugh at it. 

Because lets face it , it can appear quite comical for such a small beasty to be so feisty.

But if that had been 16 hands of event horse, would the same behaviour be tolerated.... I doubt it. 

Maybe the Shetland missed out on actual boundaries as a baby, because it was small and cute so people just cuddled it. 

I see the same with dogs, if my collie grumbles at other dogs, people frown and avoid her.

When she is out in her muzzle, people automatically assume that she is aggressive towards people, when in fact she just gets snappy at dogs and I muzzle her in public to avoid bad situations. 

In contrast my sister is the proud owner of a miniature dachshund. Shes a small dog, and to be honest, is less reliable than my Collie around new people and dogs. Not a problem when she knows someone but still can be snappy with new people.

The reaction to her is totally different, people laugh. 

They think because she is small she is totally harmless.

Its a frustrating situation in my eyes. 

Just because an animal is smaller, or cuter, does not mean that you should miss out on correct handling and training. 

Mini Rant over, I would love to hear other peoples views on this topic. 

Let me know what you think!

Am I mad or am I onto something?