Leasing a Pony

Our pony leasing procedure:

Parents can contact us to lease a pony for their child / children. We will first determine the family's needs based on the age, height, weight and experience of the children. This will all play a factor in determining if we have a pony available that will suit them.

The next step is setting an appointment to meet the family at our facility and go over the monthly contract specifics and barn rules. At this time the contracts and waivers are signed and a schedule is set for lessons.

The fee charged will be covering the feed required for the pony they are leasing.

Other fees usually incurred in keeping a horse or pony would include board, farrier every 6-8 weeks, veterinary care both routine and emergency, yearly vaccinations, monthly de-worming, and the purchase of various equipment such as buckets, brushes and tack. None of these fees will be passed on to the leasee aside from equipment replacement or repair due to damages beyond normal wear.

Weekly lessons for one child are included in the lease fee as well. Normal lesson rates would be $15 per child per hour, and additional lessons for the same child or other children in the family will be available at the normal rate.

Each pony will only be leased to one family at a time. There will not be double leasing or sharing of a pony unless multiple families request to make this arrangement. The term of the lease will be monthly, so that if a child quickly looses interest or the family needs to opt out of the lease they may do so with short term notice.

Leasing fee for one pony: $45.00 per month.

Scholarships may be available, and it is also an option to donate money toward a scholarship.

What to do with all these ponies?

My husband and I have 6 full size horses for our own for riding. We have 5 boys, 3 of which are old enough to be more interested in girls and cars than horses. The fourth has about outgrown the pony stage and rides a full size Appaloosa mare. The fifth is almost two and will begin riding one of our soon to be six ponies this spring. The other five will need a job.



So, what shall we do with ponies who were purchased for children who so desperately wanted them and then lost interest, thus abandoning said ponies? The answer certainly isn't to sell the ponies to new families so that they will go through the same scenario. After all, even if the children never outgrow their love of horses they will surely outgrow the ponies in size.



So here lies the solution: we will lease the ponies out.



Not to make a profit, just to pay for their feed. In this manner, we can assure that the ponies are receiving the best care possible. That they are up to date with their farrier and veterinary care - things often overlooked by the novice pony owner. That they are receiving proper nutrition and are not subject to founder, colic or developing insulin resistance - common problems seen in the ponies of novice and not so novice owners. Many owners of full size horses aren't even aware of the extra caution needed in the care of a pony.



Included in the lease will be weekly lessons for the pony-crazed kids in pony care, safe handling, riding and driving.