12/14/2025
Hey you know what your kid DOESN’T need this year? A half-handled pony from a horse trader.
Don’t do it. I don’t care if they put a bow on it. I don’t care if they named it “Snowflake” or “Jinglebells” yesterday at the auction they dragged it home from. I don’t care if they tell you it does long division and will parallel park your car for you.
Get them the lesson package instead. Give them a certificate to attend a summer riding camp. Don’t make an impulse purchase of something with teeth, hooves and worst yet testicles. We see minis and ponies offered this time of year every year, and then they are kicked out in a big pasture with cattle to founder or put back on Craigslist in a month or two. Think twice about giving a life as a gift, it’s a big commitment and the little ones aren’t really less complicated than the big ones to care for PROPERLY.
They literally go, “my tummy hurts I think I’ll try to die about it because we can’t vomit” and “mmm grass is good, except sometimes it can cause changes that literally cripple us” and “when we hurt somewhere and you don’t notice our micro expressions, we might have to just hurt you to communicate our pain in a way you’ll notice”. It’s a big responsibility. Please don’t take it lightly.
Credit to the Humane Society of Kentucky.
