A beautiful baby boy

 Dales mare and foal

As I mentioned before, the Dales pony is sadly on the Rare breeds watch list as 'critical' (less than 300 registered breeding females in the UK) and are one of the two breeds of native pony most at risk of extinction - the other one is the Eriskay pony.

Rare breeds watch list

Thankfully their numbers are on the rise, and there are many breeders determined to bring back the numbers of foals born.

Roandale Dales pony stud are expecting quite a few foals this year, and their first one had just been born two weeks before I was there, so I was lucky enough to photograph him.

Dales pony foal

The foal is a beautiful bay roan colt.

He certainly wasn't shy to come and say hello, especially once his mum came up to see me...he even came right up and sniffed my hand.  Look at those amazing eyelashes!

Bay roan Dales colt

Please click on the images to see them larger.

So I keep finding out things about the British native pony breeds that I didn't know before.  I thought that the Dales ponies were always black or dark brown. 

Black Dales pony

 But I was wrong - this is what the Dales pony society says about the Dales' colours - "colours are predominantly black, with some brown, bay, grey and rarely roan".

 Grey Dales pony

In fact it turns out that the blue roan and bay roan colouring in Dales is very, very rare!  It seems it was undesirable for a while and they were discouraged and nearly lost in the breed forever.  Thankfully they are gaining favour again, and the owners of the Roandale stud where I took these photos are actively breeding the roan colours.  They have a very handsome blue roan stallion (which I unfortunately didn't get a photo of as he was indoors at the time).  The Dales ponies come in bay roan and a blue roan, both very beautiful.

 Blue roan and bay roan Dales

Horse colours and how they are bred is a very interesting science - some genes are more dominant / recessive so many colours are harder to get.  Here is a very interesting chart on horse colours and how different genes effect the final colour colour chart

Bay Dales pony

I'm really enjoying this project, and all the fascinating things I am finding out about our lovely British native breeds.

**Please click on the images to see them larger.

A trip to the Dales (Teesdale)

So, after a bit of a break from photographing the British native ponies, I finally arranged a trip to the north of England to photograph some native Dales ponies. The Dales ponies are on the Rare breeds survival trust watch list as 'critical' which is at the very top of the endangered breeds.  This means there are very few breeding Dales ponies around, and they are in danger of going extinct, which is very sad as they are wonderful ponies. 

 Dales pony mare with her young foal

I had always thought that the Dales ponies were from the Yorkshire Dales, but they are actually from a much larger area.  The Dales Pony is a native of the upper dales of the eastern slopes of the Pennine range, from the High Peak in Derbyshire all the way to the Cheviot Hills near the Scottish Border, so that covers North Yorkshire, Durham and Northumberland areas.  The favoured breeding areas have always been the upper dales of the rivers Tyne, Wear, Allen, Tees and Swale.

A Dales pony with a view of Teesdale behind

They were bred in this area, where the lead mining industry flourished from Roman times until the mid-nineteenth century, because they were excellent pack ponies.

Unfortunately, there are no wild or completely free roaming Dales ponies on the Dales anymore, so I found a Dales pony breeder that breeds ponies true to type, and has them out grazing on the Teesdale hills over looking the beautiful Dales area.

This is the website of the very kind people who let me photograph their lovely ponies:

 Roandale stud Dales ponies

As usual I found the ponies and hung out with them for quite a few hours (which went far too quick) to get some natural shots of the ponies doing their thing.

Dales pony

Please click on the photos to see them larger, and remember I have many of my pony images for sale in my Etsy shop 

First off, I'm sorry I have been away for so long, but I'm back now and will try and be more regular with the posts...I have a lot of photos to post !

I wanted to share a few more photos of Dartmoor ponies, as I have a few nice ones of some pedigree registered Dartmoor ponies.

Dartmoor pony 

As I explained in my last few posts there are different types of ponies running on Dartmoor national park.  Whereas the Dartmoor hill ponies are all different shapes, sizes, and colours the ponies that are bred and registered as pedigree Dartmoor ponies by the Dartmoor pony society are all bred to a certain standard.

 

 

 Dartmoor pony

 

 

Their height should not be more than 12.2hh, their colours are bay, brown, black, grey, chestnut and roan.  Piebalds and Skewbalds are not allowed.  Excessive white markings are discouraged.  They should be sturdily built, but with quality.

 

Full breed standard here

Dartmoor pony foal

The pedigree pure bred Dartmoor is not so often seen on the commons beacuse they are too valuable to be left out, and also to prevent uncontrolled breeding with non-registered animals, but there are some especially if you know where to look.  I got some insider knowledge of where to find some from Lowertown Farm because they breed pedigree and heritage Dartmoor ponies, and keep a few out on the moors.

They told me where I might find some of their ponies, so I went in search of them.  After struggling through lots of gorse and bracken I found them !

Mare and foal

These wonderful little ponies are still on the endangered breeds list at the moment, but let's hope that with some successful breeding they will be able to come off that list.

Please click on the photos to see them larger.  

 

And don't forget you can check out my Etsy shop to buy prints and canvas of my horse and pony photos.

 

Moorland Exmoor foal project

Exmoor foal

As I mentioned in the last blog, the Exmoor pony is an endangered breed, which is really sad, as they are so beautiful and adaptable, and make wonderful riding ponies.

It would be easy to think that they are endangered because there are not enough of them left to breed in significant numbers, but this is not the case.  Unfortunately, quite a few of those born each year are culled.  How could such a terrible situation arise ?

 

 

Quote from equinetourism.com

 

"Because of strict grazing quotas and the breeding programmes, most foals, especially colts, must leave the moors each year and find good homes. Sadly, those that do not manage to find good homes are often sent for meat"

 

Quote from Exmoor Pony Club facebook page

 

"Up until now, there has been a communication gap between the moorland farmers and potential homes that has resulted in a significant number of foals being culled, when there may well have been better opportunities for them. It is clear that more help is needed to promote and market the availability of the foals and the moorland herds - in addition to all the good work that is already being done.

There is also the fact that more good homes may be available if some of the foals can be socialised and handled to make them more appealing to potential owners. When the existing pony organisations are up to capacity, there are still plenty of foals that need a helping hand to make the successful transition from the moor to domestic life."

Foal running back to his mum

 

Is there anything being done about this ?  Thankfully, yes.

This year Holtball Exmoor Pony Stud / Exmoor Pony Club is running the Moorland Exmoor Foal Project to help support and promote the moorland farmers of Exmoor and their ponies.  Here is how Nick and Dawn Westcott are helping (taken from their Facebook page)

WHAT WE ARE DOING ABOUT IT
So this year, we are buying some moorland foals and giving them their initial socialisation and training, after which we will be looking for good homes for them. The ponies will come to Holt Ball after inspection and be socialised using positive, trust based training.

HOW IS THIS PROJECT FUNDED?
In our first year of running this scheme, there is no funding or support and the price we will be able to achieve for the ponies after their initial training will not even begin to cover the project costs. So we are welcoming sponsorship, support, donations - large or small, in whatever form - to help fund this project.

THIS IS NOT A 'RESCUE' PROJECT
We do not want to pitch this as a 'rescue project'. This is a project run by Exmoor farmers for Exmoor farmers to support, promote and manage the moorland foals who need to come off the moor and try to find them good jobs and good homes, rather than culling them. The Exmoor pony is an Endangered Breed and too many of our genuine moorbred ponies are being wasted through lack of viable opportunities. We want to help change that.

HOW YOU CAN HELP:
If you'd like to get involved to help with the care and management of the ponies, visit us to observe some of their training, generally lend a hand, or become a sponsor, or make a donation - then please get in touch with us.

Beautiful Exmoor foal

If there is anything you feel you can do to help these beautiful Exmoor ponies please get in touch with Nick and Dawn Westcott Here .  Please help secure the future of this wonderful British native breed, and help save these lovely foals.

 

 Few months old foal

 

Camo ponies

 When we first arrived at the Exmoor National park we drove through some pretty villages, and then we went over a cattle grid, so we knew we were into the open part of the park and that the Exmoor ponies would be somewhere - but it's a huge area and there are only small numbers of ponies, so we had to drive really slowly and look very carefully.  The Exmoor ponies are very camouflaged amongst the colours of the moor.

Thankfully, due to my well tuned 'pony radar' I spotted something moving in the bracken.  We slowed down and spotted a few more dotted around.  It was a herd of ponies.  I was so pleased as we had come a long way for these ponies !

 Exmoor ponies

As you can see from the photos the Exmoor pony is well fitting for their environment.  Their colouring falls within a limited range of bay, brown or dun, with black points (with no white markings) and as such they blend in very well against their native background of heather, grass and bracken.  They should have mealy markings on the muzzle and around the eyes.

Exmoor pony

It's not just their colouring that is suited to the environment - they are very well adapted to survive out on the open and sometimes very bleak moors.  The ponies are very stocky and strong, with deep chests and large girths, the large capacity of the digestive system is important in winter as they consume large quantities of rough material which provides them with internal warmth.

The prominent flesh around the eye provides a defence system against harsh weather, and is known as a "toad eye" .

The ponies have neat, hard feet, and their legs are short.   They have well laid back shoulders and a deep chest. The ribs should be long, deep, well-sprung and wide apart, with a broad back and level across the loins.

In summer their coat is close, hard and bright, but in winter they grow a coat in two layers - the hairs next to the skin are quite fine in texture and form a layer of insulation; the outer hairs are coarser and greasy giving waterproof protection.

The tail is neatly set in and the fan of short hairs near the root of the tail is called a snow chute . The mane, forelock and tail are thick and full, and also shed water efficiently.

Exmoor pony

It's sad to think that these amazing British native ponies, who are so adapted to our environment, are so rare and are on the rare breeds list as endangered.  And what's even more tragic, is that many of the foals born on Exmoor are unwanted - no one wants to buy them and many end up as zoo food !  Thank fully many of the breeders and a charity called moorland mousie trust are working hard to change this.  More about that in my next blog, so be sure to check back soon.

Please click on the photos to see them larger.

An ancient breed

Last month we took a really long drive down to the South of England, to the county of Devon. In Devon are the large areas of wild and bleak moors called Exmoor and Dartmoor.  Both of these areas are home to large numbers of wild roaming ponies - the Dartmoor pony and the Exmoor pony - both completely separate breeds.

First I will write about the Exmoor ponies, as they are the oldest of the two breeds.  They are actually a very ancient breed - they have descended from the indigenous British Hill type pony, without too much inter breeding with other breeds.  You can see they have a very ancient look about them:

 Exmoor pony

They were first domesticated by the Celts when they came to Britain, and they trained them to pull their chariots. The first written records of ponies on Exmoor are in the Doomsday book, when Exmoor was designated a royal forest.  From the Doomsday Book onwards there is little written evidence of the Exmoor Pony but records from the 1500s onwards reveal that the equine population of the moor varied in numbers rising to as many as a thousand at times. The moors, as part of the Royal Forest, were controlled by wardens who ran native stallions there but it is known that non-Exmoor mares were sometimes allowed to roam with these herds.

Wild Exmoor pony

In 1818 the forest was sold and one of the wardens, Sir Thomas Acland took 30 ponies and founded the Acland herd (now known as the Anchor herd running on Winsford hill - which is where I spent the day photographing).  A few other farmers also took a few ponies and founded herds, some of which also still exist.

In 1921 the Exmoor pony society was founded to keep the breed pure and promote them.  For a while the ponies did really well, and were used as children's ponies, helping with shepherding, ploughing and grazing the commons, but during and after the war years the ponies had a rough time due to absent owners, moorland gates left open, trigger happy troops and butchers using them for a meat source during rationing.  In 1946 only about 50 ponies remained and only 6 pure-bred filly foals were registered for the whole of Exmoor.

Exmoor pony society website 

Exmoor mum and baby

Thankfully Mary Etherington, a keen supporter of the breed, and a few other dedicated breeders saved the breed - cattle grids gradually replaced the gates and the boundaries to the commons were secured and the numbers gradually grew.  The numbers are still increasing,  now stand at around 3000 ponies worldwide.  This might sound a lot, but they are still on the Rare breeds survival trust's watch list as 'endangered' - only one up from 'critical'.  

RBST watch list

Shy Exmoor yearling

Please click on any of the photos to see them larger.

And please go here to see prints for sale:

My shop with lots of lovely pony prints for sale

What is the difference between dun and buckskin ?

Back in April of this year, we went to stay for a long weekend up near Aviemore in the Highlands.  While we were there I wanted to see if I could find any Highland ponies living feral to photograph for my British native pony project.

We found some information from various people saying they had spotted ponies on the Loch Ericht Estate, near Dalwhinnie.  The ponies are wintered out on the estates vast land, but are quite often seen near Loch Pattack.  As with all of these large estates, people are welcome to walk, cycle and horse ride on their land because of the Scottish right to roam laws, which is great.

The land where the Highland ponies might be, and Loch Pattack are at least 7 miles from any public roads, so we decided to take our mountain bikes and ride up to the area along a track.  Even though it was the middle of April, it was freezing, and there was still snow on the higher ground - we were having extremely cold weather for that time of year !

We wrapped up with lots of layers and I put all my camera equipment in my rucksack and off we set.  It was a lovely ride, the scenery was beautiful and while we were cycling I was warm enough, but as soon as we stopped I started getting cold.  Unfortunately, I only managed to shoot for about an hour before I was frozen and I had to give up, but I got a few really nice photos.

The Highland ponies when we first spotted them

As you can see there were four of them, and some really pretty colours - a dark mouse dun, a yellow dun, a very dark dapple grey and a white one.

Two of them were very inquisitive and decided to come over and see what we were up to.

Dark dapple grey Highland pony

 

Look at the highlights on this one - women pay lots of money to have hair like that !

Yellow dun Highland pony

This brings me to a very interesting question - What is the difference between a dun and a buckskin ? (my Icelandic is called buckskin on her passport, but she looks the same as this Highland pony)  Highlands are never classed as buckskin, only dun - so are they the same thing?  Actually, no, even though they can often look very similar.  It's all down to genetics.

Both dun & buckskin can be a golden/yellow/creamy coloured body with a black mane, tail and legs.  The body colour can range from a light, creamy colour to a deep, rich yellow or gold.  But they are different because each of them come from a different dilution gene on a bay base.

Buckskin comes from a cream dilution gene on a bay horse.

Dun comes from a dun dilution gene on a bay horse.

Dun horses also always have at least one primitive characteristic – a dorsal stripe, striping on their shoulders, legs and/or forehead.

 

For a more detailed explanation, with pictures to help, see this article:

 

Dun or buckskin ? That is the question ! 

 

You can just see his dorsal stripe in this photo.

Yellow dun pony bum

Please click on any of the photos to see them larger.

Finding the Fell ponies

2 beautiful Fell ponies

Shawn and I decided at short notice to have a week in the lovely lake district in Cumbria, as it's only 2 hours drive from where we now live, and we hadn't been there before.  This is the area that the beautiful Fell ponies originate from.  I couldn't visit that area and not try to find some feral ponies to photograph, so I did a quick bit of research to see where I might be able to find some.

I emailed the owners of Lunesdale Fell pony stud - they are Fell pony breeders that have grazing rights on Roundthwaite common, and asked if there were any Fells out on the common that I could photograph.  They said there was, and I was welcome to go to the common and look for the ponies, but they also mentioned that they may be hard to find.  What I hadn't realised was the common is really large - over 6 miles long and quite wide, including many hills and valleys.  They normally go out on a quad bike to find them and even then it can take hours !

The huge area where the Fells roam

Well, I really wanted to see them so Shawn and I (it was me really) decided to go for a drive around the area and see if we could find a way up to the common and decide if it was worth looking for them.  We drove to the area through some country lanes and into a little village.
I looked up onto the hills ahead, and guess what - I spotted some tiny black dots on the horizon.  Shawn thought they might be cows, but I was convinced they were ponies.

We stopped and asked a farmer if we could get up to where they were, and he said the best way was to go back down the road, and then up through some fields onto the ridge, and then to walk along the ridge.  So we parked the van, near the place he had pointed out and got ready to walk up.  Just then a cross looking man came out of his house and asked what we were doing, he then said the way we wanted to go up would involve walking through his field, and he told us he would not allow us to go through his land !  We were a bit disappointed, and headed back towards the first farmer.  He very kindly took us to one of his fields further along and showed us another way up to the ridge.  The field was really, really steep, and I was a bit worried as he said there was a bull in the field somewhere !

After about 1/2 hour climbing up the hill we got to the stone wall around the common and climbed over.  The ponies were right there :-)  I felt so lucky that I had found them.

I very quietly took a few photos from a distance, as I didn't know how tame they were.  They tolerated me but as soon as I tried going closer they ran away.  So I took a few more photos from a distance, then this time got closer and closer very slowly.  They let me get quite close, and I just watched them and took photos for ages.  After a while they realised I was no threat, and got quite inquisitive - quite a few of them, including some foals, came right up to me and sniffed and nuzzled me.  It was such a lovely feeling that they felt that safe with me.

 Fell pony saying hello

 Inquisitive Fell pony foal

I had a lovely time being with these beautiful native ponies, and it is great to see them in their natural setting, looking healthy and as nature intended.

Please look back for the next blog as I have lots more lovely photos, and I will be writing about Fell ponies, and their origins, characters etc

Happy new year

Happy new year to you all - I hope you had a good time over the holidays.  

I really must get back to the blog now.  I have lots to catch up on - I already have the Fell ponies and New Forest ponies to write about, and this year I would like to visit Shetland or the Highlands to photograph them, and I also want to go to Yorkshire to photograph the Dales ponies.  Then that just leaves the Exmoor and Dartmoor ponies.  I'm not sure whether to include the Irish Connemara ponies in this project as I'm not sure whether they are British ( as far as I know they only roam feral in Southern Ireland, although they would have once been all over Ireland, and Northern Ireland is British ! )  What do you think - please leave your thoughts in the comments as I would love to hear your opinions on this. 

Just one last blog with photos on the Carneddau Welsh mountain ponies:

 

White Welsh pony mare

The wild Welsh mountain ponies might have an uncertain future, but the section A Welsh ponies, which are the closest  to the wild mountain ponies, are very popular.  There are also 3 other types of Welsh pony categories ranging in size from under 12hh to exceeding 13.2hh with no upper limit.

The Welsh Stud Book contains registration details of four "types" of Welsh Ponies and Cobs.  These types include the Section A Welsh Mountain Pony, Section B Welsh Pony, Section C Welsh Pony (Cob type) and Section D Welsh Cob.  Each Section, or type, has specific characteristics, but all retain the pony character, versatility and excellent temperament of the Welsh breeds.

Because these ponies were the hill farmers' main means of transport, herding sheep and wild ponies over rough and mountainous country, they had to be hardy, balanced and fast.  This ensured that only the best were bred from. These qualities, combined with a natural jumping ability, and the temperament of their Welsh Mountain Pony forebears make the Welsh ponies and cobs really great riding ponies and all rounders.

You can read about the breed standard and characteristics on the Welsh pony and cob website

Welsh mountain section A and Welsh pony section B 

Welsh pony cob section C and Welsh Cob section D 

I think this Welsh mountain stallion is beautiful and even though he is wild and a bit unkempt he really shows  where the different types of Welshies get their looks from.

Welsh mountain pony stallion

Some last photos from Carneddau - they seem to be very itchy ponies !!

You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours

Little foal in the middle wants a scratch too

Its my turn

 The stallion has to scratch his own bum !

Just one last photo - what do you think of this ?  It was an experiment, but I think I like it :-)

Welsh pony in pink

I'm really looking forward to writing the next blog - it will be about the beautiful Fells of Cumbria.  I have some great photos of them, so please come back to read it.

 

Taming the wild ponies

“People assume they are too wild to tame,” said Mr Thomas, of Crymych, Pembrokeshire.

Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/06/25/happy-horse-whisperer-who-tamed-wales-wildest-mountain-ponies-91466-28938196/#ixzz2DcPU11D1

“People assume they are too wild to tame,” said Mr Thomas, of Crymych, Pembrokeshire.

Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/06/25/happy-horse-whisperer-who-tamed-wales-wildest-mountain-ponies-91466-28938196/#ixzz2DcPU11D1

 Welsh mare and foal

Here is some more about one of Britain's wildest pony breeds (and one of the most endangered) living on the Carneddau Hills in Wales. 

They are actually pretty wild, on alert all the time and are very suspisious of anything unusual happening around them.

While I was there I was quietly watching a group of ponies having a nap in the sun.  They were all quite relaxed, but some were still on the lookout.

 Welsh ponies dozing in the sun

   Quite relaxed 

All of a sudden, out of no where came a scary plastic bag flying about on the wind.  The ponies were all instantly awake and running from the 'predator'.

Fleeing the plastic bag

They ran for a bit then stopped to see if they were being chased by the scary bag, and when they realised that the bag was just a bag, they soon settled down again and began to graze.

An article from Wales online written in June 2011 explains how the wildness of the ponies could be contributing to the decline of them, and why the farmers who owned the ponies decided to ask Barry Thomas a local horse whisperer to help - here is a small piece from the article:

        " “People assume they are too wild to tame,” said Mr Thomas, of Crymych, Pembrokeshire.

Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/06/25/happy-horse-whisperer-who-tamed-wales-wildest-mountain-ponies-91466-28938196/#ixzz2DcPU11D1

“People assume they are too wild to tame,” said Mr Thomas, of Crymych, Pembrokeshire.

Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/06/25/happy-horse-whisperer-who-tamed-wales-wildest-mountain-ponies-91466-28938196/#ixzz2DcPU11D1

“People assume they are too wild to tame,” said Mr Thomas, of Crymych, Pembrokeshire.

Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/06/25/happy-horse-whisperer-who-tamed-wales-wildest-mountain-ponies-91466-28938196/#ixzz2DcPU11D1

 “Therefore they are not marketable, they cannot be sold, they cannot fetch a price, so the farmers cannot afford to keep breeding them.

“There are only around 200 of the ponies left on the hills of Snowdonia, so anything that can be done to save them must be done.”

After an end-of-season sale last year in which 45 of the Carneddau ponies were sold for just £430, Mr Thomas was asked to see if he could do what nobody has ever done before: tame and train a Carneddau pony.

The Carneddau Pony Society hoped the training would help increase the animals’ market value, which in turn would give the Snowdonia farmers the incentive to breed them."

 A similar thing had been done before by Monty Roberts, the American 'horse whisperer' when he had tamed and trained a wild Mustang.  Barry Thomas is actually one of Monty's students and was glad to accept the challenge.

He captured 2 of the wild ponies and brought them back to his farm.  He did succeed in taming and training them, and there was a programme filmed about it but unfortunately I can't find it to watch.  Whether it has helped with the popularity of the Carneddau wild ponies, or whether people will want to own them is to be seen, but the Carneddau ponies more domesticated cousin - the Welsh section A pony, is very popular.  In the next blog I will look at the breed characteristics and see why they are such great little ponies.

Read the whole article here

 Beautiful chestnut mare

Welsh ponies outsmart Henry VIII

 Welsh mountain pony

This isn't the first time the Welsh mountain ponies have been threatened with extinction.  The ponies were nearly made extinct 100's of years ago, around the beginning of the 16th century.  Apparently King Henry 8th, who had a reputation for killing anyone and anything that got in his way, demanded that the ponies all be destroyed.  His reasons for this were that they were too small - too small to carry a knight in full armour !  Luckily he didn't succeed, and some of the ponies survived. 

The Romans recognised their strength and agility though, and used them for many jobs while they were in Britain, and even took some back to their homeland .

They were also used in the 19th century by the coal miners to pull carts down into the coal mines.  That must have been a pretty miserable life for them.  Some of them even lived in the mines, staying in stalls built down there and living on hay, never seeing the light of day.

All this has made them very tough and strong, and made them into the hardy little ponies that they are today.  The welsh pony and cob society says "Bred in the mountains and wild regions of Wales for many generations, their acknowledged beauty does not mean they are merely a 'pretty toy' — centuries of 'survival of the fittest' has ensured the sound constitution, iron hard limbs and great intelligence"
 
society website

You  can definitely see they are tough and hardy little ponies, but they are also very beautiful.

 Some more photos here of the Welsh mountain ponies on Carneddau.  It started rain while I was photographing them, but they were starting to get used to me and I didn't want to leave so I carried on taking photos.  I didn't realise how wet my camera lens was getting, until I look at the photos later - you can see the photos getting more and more misty - but I actually think it gives quite a nice effect, kind of like a soft filter !

 Yearling welsh pony

This one has dreadlocks as he's loosing his winter coat.

 Yearling welsh pony

 Beautiful welsh mare

Welsh mare and foal

Even though people have recognised the ponies usefulness and adaptability during the centuries, they are still facing an uncertain future.  Some are being used for land conservation, but they are not very saleable, going for only a few pounds each at the sales.  In the next blog I will write about how a Welsh horse whisperer was bought in to try and help improve this.

Remember many of these prints can be purchased on my website or my Etsy shop

my website

my etsy shop