Shetland Ponies

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Shetland Isles is a home to notable fiddle players like Tom Anderson and Aly Bain and the late Peerie Willie Johnson, who is a guitarist. Other than this, it also boasts of its brave ponies, the Shetlands.
Shetland Ponies originated from the Shetland Isles which is located northeast of mainland Scotland.

They are believed to have existed since the Bronze Age because of the different excavations on the islands. The Shetlands were believed to have originated from the Cob type of Tundra and the Mountain type from Southern Europe.

Later on, they were crossed with the ponies brought by the Celtic people. Shetlands became hardy animals because of the island’s harsh climate and scarce food. For centuries, the ponies were doing agricultural tasks such as cultivating the land, pulling the cart, carrying peat and coal, etc. At the advent of the Industrial Revolution, children worked in the coal pits. But an 1847 law banned the children from doing so. In turn, the Shetlands worked in the pits on behalf of the children. They easily adapted to the situation.

During this time, the best stallions were used in order to breed the ponies with the bone and substance that’s suitable for the pit trade. Aside from its contribution on the pit trade, the breed was a favorite ride of the children as well as to Queen Victoria who has owned several Shetland pairs. In 1890, the Shetland Pony Stud Book Society was established in order to make sure the animals are preserved purely and of good quality. The Shetland Islands Premium Stallion Scheme was created in 1957 in order to financially support the high-quality registered stallions that would somehow improve the breeding stock.

Shetlands became strong and hard due to harsh conditions of the island. Physically, they have small heads, widely-spaced eyes and small ears. They have short, strong legs and long thick manes and tails. They come in almost every color, but they are mainly black, chestnut, bay, brown, gray, palomino, dun, roan, cremello and silver dapple. They have a very courageous character, gentle and good-tempered.

Today, children enjoy them as riding ponies. Adults, too enjoy them at horse shows in harness driving classes, pleasure driving outside of the show ring. They also provide short rides for visitors at fairs and carnivals. They are also popular at petting zoos and for therapeutic horseback riding purposes.