Pony Tales

The 'Pony Tales' section has been provided as a place for owners and lovers of the Newfoundland Pony to share their stories about these beloved and exceptional animals. If you have a story that you would like to contribute, please contact Pam Thistle at pamthistle@hotmail.com

Table of Contents

Genvieve and Jasper
Skipper of Avalon and his New Family
Belle - A Pony's Story
The Story of Unfortunate Lady

Genvieve and Jasper

I started riding Jasper last year. I had lessons with Colleen and the whole summer I rode him. He went to his first horse show last year at Carmas Stables. We didn’t win anything but that’s ok cause it was his first horse show. This year I started jumping him in the ring and outback and he is doing really well. We had a couple of lessons with Sheila Pickler, a level 2 coach. Jasper is still getting used to the freaky stuff on the jumps like flowers, trees but besides that he is doing very good. I’m sure Jasper misses his old family, but when he is sad, I give him a hug and he hugs me back. Jasper is the best pony I ever had because he doesn’t bite, buck, or do all that crazy stuff. That’s why I love him. He is the most gentle, kind, cutest and calm pony I ever had in my whole entire life and thank you all and for the people that are reading this, Jasper says hi and me too.

Genevieve Bouchard
Boundry Creek, NB
June 2006

Skipper of Avalon and his New Family

Emmalee Nichols is my daughter. Emmalee is a special little girl; she was born with an esophageal stenosis, which is a narrowing in her throat that made it very difficult for her to eat. After countless trips, to the doctor and emergency room and being told she was fine, that I was just a over reactive first time mother, I demanded that they do further testing. At this time, she was 9 months old, and had not kept any food or drink down for nearly a week. A Barium swallow test determined that she had a blockage in her esophagus where the food had failed to pass through the narrowing. She was immediately admitted to hospital, she was anemic, severely dehydrated and was at high risk of her formula, or food getting in her lungs. She was placed on IV for 5 days until she was in good enough condition to be sent to the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton. There doctors attempted to dilatation of her esophagus, however in the process destroyed it. The next day she underwent emergency surgery that lasted 5 1/'2 hours. Her esophagus was completely removed and her stomach pulled up to the beginning of her throat, they removed a part of her bowel and her appendix. She spent a week in ICU and another four weeks in hospital. Unfortunately, one risk of the procedure was that her vocal chords could be damaged, and of course, with Emmalee's luck they were. She would cry but no sound would come out, we were told she may never be able to speak. She would have to be fed by a feeding tube that was placed directly in to her intestine.

Fortunately, two weeks after we left hospital her voice started to come back, 6 months later the feeding tube came out and she could eat normally. It was a long struggle to teach her to eat again and she had 7 further surgeries it is a miracle that she is now a normal, healthy child. She turned three years old on August 4^th, 2005. Skipper was her birthday present from Cliff George. Skipper is her best friend and literally the reason she eats breakfast in the morning.

Emmalee has been riding for about a year. She has been obsessed with horses for as long as I can remember. It is all she wants, all she talks about and where most kids have imaginary friends she has imaginary horses. She was in the pee wee wee class with three other girls. She was the youngest. They all got first place. She rides Skipper without a lead line. It is easy because he just follows me through all the obstacles.

Danielle Simmons is my niece. She is nine years old and in grade four. She has been on horses since she was about three. However, this is the first year that she has done some serious riding. She has done a level 1 riding clinic, horse camp and private lessons. She is also involved in Gymnastics. Danielle received 3, 1st place, 1 second and 2 third. She won best in the peewee class. The only event she came forth in was the barn yard scurry. That was because when I shouted go Skipper and he came to me. I was told to keep my mouth shut for the other events. He is more like a puppy then a pony.

I hope I didn't write too much, but I wanted people to know how much Skipper means to us and why.

Cindy Nichols
Reidville, NL
September 2005

Belle - A Pony's Story

Belle and Barb

My Newfoundland Pony mare, Belle, was put to sleep today, January 23, 2002, at the age of 35+ years. I have no official documentation that she came from Newfoundland but I do know that she came to the Maritimes on a meat truck and was picked up at an auction in NB along with her teammate, another blue roan, a gelding. Alvin DeWitt, the trader that bought her said that the trucker was from the Welsford, NB area. Unfortunately, I've forgotten his name, so I can’t contact him for the details of Belle’s Newfoundland origin. Once over here, Belle and her mate were worked in the woods as a team, until the gelding died in a work accident.

I'm not sure how many owners Belle had in NB but an Arabian breeder near here said that he remembered seeing her at a pole-bending competition and she had won it. He said the odds were against her because of her size and her appearance but a lot of money was won gambling on her to beat the powerful Quarter Horses and other favourites. Before she ended up back with Alvin, where I bought her, she was used for pony pulling and in parades. The last private owner sold her back to Alvin because he believed her to be infertile. He had tried to breed her on the third day of three consecutive heats and she had missed each time.

Somewhere along the line, Belle was abused and bore the scars. She had white stripes in the hair behind her elbows from a string girth and another scar on her withers where a saddle had rubbed her raw. She had huge lumps on both knees that may have been caused by a fall in the meat truck or some other abuse. Eventually, her knees and hocks developed severe arthritis.

I heard about Belle being for sale from a horseman near Rexton, NB. He knew I had been looking for a rugged sort of large pony mare to use for riding, driving, working and breeding and he had seen Belle in Fredericton at Alvin DeWitt’s. Even though it was a four-hour drive to Alvin’s, when the horseman told me he thought the mare was a Newfoundland Pony I knew I had to go to see her. Despite big lumps on her knees, a history of infertility, a suspicious eye and her age of over eighteen, I instantly liked her and bought her anyway.

Belle was only home for a week when it became apparent that she was not the pony for me. She bolted dangerously under saddle and the only way she could be controlled at all was in a driving bridle with blinkers. When she ran me into the side of a barn and, the following day, broke her work harness into ribbons "jumping the load"; I regretfully put her up for sale. Despite a low price, no one was interested in taking a chance on her so I continued to try to earn her trust.

Eventually we progressed to the point that I could ride her the two miles to our mailbox without feeling that I was risking my life. On one of those trips, there was a letter from a man who had inquired about her earlier in the month. When I opened it, from up on Belle's back, a check fell out and my heart fell with it - it was then that I realized how much I'd come to love Belle and had changed my mind about selling her. It turned out that the check was for photos and not for her purchase. I hugged Belle with joy and relief and as soon as we got home, I wrote to the magazine and cancelled the sales ad.

It took several months for Belle to really begin to trust harness again but within a year, she became the best horse I've ever owned. I thought I might get a few good years out of her and maybe a foal or two if I could discover why she wasn't conceiving (she cycled regularly). I never dreamed that she would be with us for so long and would produce three lovely colts. Belle had an odd ten-day heat cycle and the key to conception was exposing her to the stallion right up until the end of it.

Belle and Carreg

Belle’s first colt with us was Thornbeck Lachlan “Lachie”, a blue roan just like her despite his palomino Welsh Cob sire. Lachie was born in an unheated but well-bedded box stall on a cold afternoon in early February. It was so cold that the stall filled with icy vapour and I could barely see him yet he stood and sucked within minutes. At no time did he even shiver. The following day, Lachie was turned out with Belle where he played in the deep snow and sunshine.

For almost twelve years, Lachie was my husband’s main mount and driving horse but due to health reasons, we were forced to sell all of our non-breeding stock – Lachie was a gelding and had to go. He is now an accomplished driving and dressage pony in coastal Maine and has stolen everyone’s hearts.

Thornbeck Lachlan “Lachie”

Belle's second colt, "Thornbeck Carreg Llwyd", Welsh for "grey stone", has been doing 4th Level dressage in Massachusetts at a stable operated by an Olympic medallist. Carreg is pictured in the December 2002 issue of the international magazine, "Practical Horseman". Several years ago, he qualified and attended the National Pony Club Finals in Lexington, Kentucky. He won several ribbons there and placed third in the North America in a dressage class.

Thornbeck Carreg Llwyd

"Carreg is a good moving little horse who has competed well at second level Dressage. He certainly could have been trained to higher levels, but he is schoolmaster for his owner instead. He is exactly the kind of fun horse that I would have loved to take to higher levels just to show up the fancy warmbloods." Lendon Gray, Olympic medallist, Jan. 25, 2005

Thornbeck Magnum “Bailey” was Belle’s final colt before she could no longer conceive. Bailey had a rough start. To begin with, he was a surviving twin. The other twin, a filly, was aborted at three months gestation. Apparently, it is quite rare for one twin to be retained and continue to develop normally, as Bailey did. More often, both fetuses are aborted at the same time. When we saw Belle lose the filly, we didn’t realize she had been carrying twins so it was quite a surprise in the spring when her udder began to form and her belly swelled. When I felt the fetus kick at about seven months along, I knew that Belle was going to have a foal after all.

At three weeks of age, Bailey developed tetanus. Belle had been vaccinated before she foaled so at first we didn’t think it was possible. The first vet we called refused to believe my diagnosis and we lost precious hours. Most horses with tetanus die unless it’s a very mild case but Bailey’s was severe. He was so paralyzed that he was unable to move at all, even his ears and needed to be fed with a stomach tube for at least two weeks. After the tenth day, he began to show flickers of movement and we thought we were out of the woods. As his body began to “thaw” he was so determined to get back onto his feet that he strained himself before his back had recovered and sustained a severe scrotal hernia. The vet came and prepared for surgery but Bailey’s still weak heart couldn’t take the normal dosage of anesthetic and it stopped beating. The vet pronounced him dead after checking for any vital signs and finding none. I couldn’t accept it and immediately began CPR. After five long minutes without breathing or a pulse, Bailey revived! There was still a chance that he had suffered brain or heart damage but all we could do was wait and see. Bailey made a full recovery and is now a much-loved family and show horse in southern Maine.

Thornbeck Magnum “Bailey”

Belle failed to conceive after that, due to old age. We hadn’t tried to breed her for a couple of years after the ordeal with Bailey and by then, she had become too old to conceive.

Even though we owned other ponies, Belle and I were "best buddies" for the whole time she spent with us - we did everything together, from competitive trail rides, to parades and camping trips. I also drove her in a cart, sleigh and a wagon and worked her on the farm. Just before I retired her completely in 1995, she was the equine star in the PBS film "A Midwife's Tale". Belle has been seen by over a million viewers on the TV screen!

Eventually the arthritis in her knees caught up with her and although she didn’t seem to be in pain, she was often stiff and gimpy. She had never needed veterinary attention for anything until her last week when she became very picky about her food. Because so little nourishment was getting into her system, she failed daily and became more and more feeble. Toward the end, we decided to turn her loose on the farm to see if freedom would perk her up. She did the rounds to say, "Hi" to all the other horses before settling in to paw for dried grass under the snow. She grazed for a full two hours that day - the most she had eaten in a week. The following morning I turned her loose again but instead of going to graze she came right back to her paddock and stood at the gate to be let in. At noon she laid down for the first time in forty-eight hours. I think the reason she hadn't before that was because she was afraid that she wouldn’t be able to get back up again. She was right. Two hours later, Martin, my helper, found her trying to rise, but by then, she was unable to lift her head for more than a few minutes at a time and was very upset. Martin and I sat on the snow with our backs propped against Belle’s back so that she wouldn’t keep struggling as we waited for the vet to arrive to put her to down.

Belle’s heart was strong right to the end but cancer prevented her from eating. Her passing was peaceful, in her paddock under the wide-open sky, with the people she loved. She is buried along our driveway near a lilac tree where we can remember her every time we pass. Not that I need to be reminded -1 will never forget Belle and there will never be another like her.

Note: If anyone reading this story recalls a sturdy blue roan mare, about 13.3 hh, with lumps on her knees and scars on her girth and withers, please contact me. Belle had a few white hairs for a star and no other markings. One of her hind hooves had a crease running down the side of it, perhaps from a previous injury. The scars may have occurred after she left Newfoundland so I would appreciate information on any big, blue roan mare that might have been shipped, probably in the late 70’s or early 80’s. I would love to know how Belle spent the earlier years of her life and whether she has any living relatives.

Barb Brown, Nortondale, NB Email: fergneil@,nbnet.nb.ca

The Story of Unfortunate Lady

Unfortunate Lady and Barnaby Blue

My dad adopted Unfortunate Lady in the summer of 1999. She was four years old at the time and a prettier pony you couldn’t hope to find. She came to our farm with her neck twisted tragically out of shape. Her neck hangs abnormally to one side and she cannot raise her head very high. Her accident was an unfortunate and sad beginning to what should have been a normal and carefree life for a wonderful little mare. Her original owners had gone on holiday and left her in the care of an inexperience person. While Lady was tied in her stall in the barn, she became bored. She chewed through the rope and eventually got herself free and out of the barn. She wandered around until she was spotted by a neighbour who called the person in charge. The caregiver took Lady back to the barn but this time he tied her in the stall with a plastic wrapped wire clothesline. It was far too long having an extra 5 feet or more of line down around her legs. She got tangled up and became frightened. She proceeded to turn around and around in her stall getting herself into more difficulty. She fought the wire but to no avail. This incident resulted in Lady dislocating her neck and permanently damaging some of the spinal bones.

It is a wonder that this accident has not prevented Lady from living a somewhat normal and happy life. She does refuse to go inside a barn. She is too frightened. Lady stays outside all year round in her paddock which is sheltered from the harsh weather by trees. She is a very keen pony and knows when it is feeding time. We’ve made a special feeding bin for her so she can stand straight while eating. When Unfortunate Lady grazes, her legs are slightly separated. Her near front leg is always underneath her and her far front leg is always forward and thus gives her a balanced position. Our veterinarian, Dr. Peacock, thinks that she is quite content and that we have provided a good home for her.

The accident has not hindered Unfortunate Lady in her production of foals. She has blessed us with five foals since she made her home with us. Coltin B was born May 4th 2000. Coltin is a strawberry roan (radical changer). On April 25th 2001, she gave birth to Enlands Blazer. He is a sorrel with a full blaze and flaxen mane and tail. On June 6th 2002, she gave birth to Barnabyblue. Barnaby was coal black with a stripe when he was born. He is now turning grey. The following year and on the same date, Lady gave birth to her first filly - Little Lady K. She was also born coal black but with a star. She is changing colour and is now steel grey. This year Lady gave birth to another filly. We named her Summer Joy. Summer was born bay but is changing colour rapidly. Her head, limbs, mane and tail have remained black but her body is now greyish. She may turn out to be a radical changer like her brother Coltin B. Enzo has sired all of Unfortunate Lady’s foals since her arrival to our farm. It was not our plan to breed Lady every year but being the escape artist that she is, she has managed to find Enzo wherever we have placed him. Last year Lady escaped from her garden and with her foal at her side, she showed up at the barn a half a mile away. It was her time and she was looking for Enzo. Of course, Enzo was more than willing to participate and that’s how we came to have Summer Joy.

This lovely white pony named Unfortunate lady has brought great joy to me. My heart sings just to watch her run to me at full speed from the top of the garden whenever I call her name. To me she will always be a special pony. Her future days on our farm will be a great reward for me and hopefully for her too. She has been retired from being a brood mare. I will be able to look after her for the rest of her life, fill her days with contentment and give her the special care that she deserves. This wonderful pony is an excellent example of the best a Newfoundland Pony can be. Unfortunate Lady is a survivor and has made the most of her lot and her life.

Unfortunate Lady kicking up her heels for fun in the snow.

Debbie Bray, Harbour Grace, NL

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