About Shetland Ponies
The Breed
The Shetland pony is native to the Shetland Islands, an archipelago off the North coast of Scotland. The pony's roots are unknown, but it is one of the oldest surviving breeds of equidae. The earliest depiction of the breed is believed to date to the 9th century; the Papil Stone was found on the island of Burra and is a carving of several monks escorted by a hooded figure astride a small pony. However, this is predated by evidence of the ponies, in the from of bones, found in excavations of the Bronze Age layers at the archaelogical site Jarlshof, at the South end of the Shetland Mainland.
The development of the breed is strongly attributed to the harsh climatic conditions and the scarcity of food on the islands. Being hardy, surefooted, strong and easily tamed ensured their use in all areas of croft life including carrying peat for fuel, working croftland and providing means of transportation around the islands.
The passing of the Coal Mines Act of 1842 banned all women and children under the age of ten from working underground; this lead to thousands of Shetland ponies travelling to mainland Britain to be used as pit ponies. Their strength is well documented, being disproportional to their size, Reverend John Brand wrote in 1701 'Some not so high as others prove to be the strongest. Yea there are some whom an able man can lift up in his arms, yet will they carry him and a woman behind him eight miles forward and as many back.' With many of the best stock leaving the islands to work in the coal mines, extensively in the North of England, there was the need to actively preserve and maintain the breed. Such efforts by The Marquis of Londonderry, with his stud on Bressay, and the formation of the Shetland Pony Stud-Book Society in 1890 have been sucessful in their goal 'to maintain unimpaired the purity of the breed of Shetland ponies and to promote the breeding of these ponies'.
Shetland Pony Stud Book Society Breed Standard
Height:
Registered stock must not exceed 40 inches (102cms) at three years or under, nor 42 inches (107cms) at four years or over. Ponies are measured from the withers to the ground, by measuring stick, and a level stance, preferably concrete, should be used.
Colour
Shetland ponies may be any colour known in horses except spotted.
Coat
The coat changes according to the seasons: a double coat in winter with guard hairs which shed the rain and keep the pony's skin completely dry in the worst of the weather and, by contrast, a short summer coat which should carry a beautiful silky sheen. At all times the mane and tail hair should be long, straight and profuse and the feathering of the fetlocks straight and silky.
Head
The head should be small, carried well and in proportion. Ears should be small and erect, wide set but pointing well forward. Forehead should be broad with bold, dark, intelligent eyes. Muzzle must be broad with nostrils wide and open. Teeth and jaw must be correct.
Body
The neck should be properly set onto the shoulder, which in turn should be sloping, not upright, and end in a well defined wither. The body should be strong, with plenty of heart room, well sprung ribs, the loin strong and muscular. The quarters should be broad and long with the tail set well up on them.
Forelegs
Should be well placed with sufficient good, flat bone. Strong forearm. Short balanced cannon bone. Springy pasterns.
Hindlegs
The thighs should be strong and muscular with well-shaped strong hocks, neither hooky nor too straight. When viewed from behind, the hindlegs should not be set too widely apart, nor should the hocks be turned in.
Feet
Tough, round and well shaped - not too short, narrow, contracted or thin.
Action
Straight, free action using every joint. Tracking up well.
General
A most salient and essential feature of the Shetland pony is its general air of vitality (presence), stamina and robustness.