Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1885-04-29
HORSES AND PONIES.
Shetinnd Ponies and the Prof,,
There Is i'm I2aising Them.

A veteran horse and mule dealer who
has followed the business ahout The
stables on North Broadway for the nast
twenty-five years, in speaking of the trade
TO st. Louis Globe Democrat remote,
yesterday, said: "You can't tell at tb;s
season OF the year what dav viii hrino
forth IN our line. The latter part of last
week our pens were overrun with stock
with scarcely a buyer in sight. SATURDAY.
there was big change, and things have
frightened up great deal since them
How is it about horses?v
wen, there are more horses here inst
now than we want; there were only few
Loads shipped out during the past week
Ihere are good many horses coming in
next week; the market will be glutted y
what are horses selling at now ?"
small olocky horses or mares, IA TO
to.@ hands high, for plantation use, 90 at
80 and upward. A good, chunky.
smooth. nice-driving horse. such rs
planters drive to buggy or light spring
wagon, sells at about $1l0-that is. for
horses 10 hands to 10 hands inch higb y
Is there demand now for any special
grade of horses p"
Yes, for coach horses. A coach taan,
can't stay in this market for DAYS. Sucb
horses are rare and in demand. Dealers
nave orders ahead all the time for fancy
coach horses. To come up to the re-
qulrements the team must be matched
aud close to l61a hands high. The breed
known as the Cleveland bays come nearer
to filling the bill than any other stock of
horses. They are long-bodied, we'll
shaped animals, with splendid knee
action. long necks and high heads. It's
style you want in coach horse, and not
much OF anything else Speed don't
count; any of them will travel fast
enough for the purpose. Most of the
tine coach horses come from Michigan, a
few from Iowa and Illinois, scarcely anv
from Missouri. In this state farmers
take fancy to raising the half Norman
breed; they are splendid draft horses.
and good workers anywhere, but they
are too chunky and short-necked for
coach teams"
The discussion turning upon ponies, a
well-known gentleman who was standing
by remarked: Il can make money
easier and faster raising Shetland ponies
than any other kind of stock | know of.
I've got herd of more than forty of
them out on my place, and they're not a
so than a flock of sheep would be. Just
let them run in the field all winter, where
they can browse around a clover stack,
and that is all they need. They get
their growth in two years, and then they
sell for about $l25 a head"
What put it into your head to raise
ponies ?''
Nothing, only the idea of making
money. The ponies mature quicker than
a horse, and in fact mnch sooner than
any other stock that | know of that can
be sold for anything likt the same amount |
Of money. There is no need of grooms !
in raising horses, and the losses from &C
cident or from the different foals amount |
to nothing in comparison, as the points
that 60 to make fine horse are not |
taken into account when it comes to the |
valuation of ponies"
"What is the average height of Shet |
land pony? ''
''Thirty-four inches. You can put your
arms around them and carry them most
anywhere. They are very docile 1t
takes no trouble or skill to break them
In the spring put all the 2-year-olds in
the front yard, where my children catch
them and break them to ride"
at must keep your children pretty
busy, doesn't it ?''
"Well, l don't know, I've got a good
many children, too, and they enjoy the
fun; it keeps them out of mischief and
gives them plenty of good outdoor eXer-
else. They are the best playthings
children can have; and then the best of
1t Is 1t costs next to nothing to keep
shetland pony. They eat anything that
a sheep will, aud not much more, either.
iheYH eat kitchen slop and grow fat on
"Who buys Shetland ponies? ?"
on, great many people buy them
1or their children to ride and drive, then
the clrcuses take good many. A
piebald pony, With tail
and name reaching to the ground, is
worth about $3.50 for a circus animal. 1
have sold them for circuses and private
use to 90 all over the country Not long
since | sold a little stallion for $500 to 90
to the Safe of Maine He was only
thirty-two inches high The smaller the
pony the more valuable he is generally
that is, in this country-but in Scotland
it's just the other way, the heavier the
pony the bigger the price. In that cOun-
try they use the ponies in the collierys,
much the same as they do the donkeys,
or burros, in the silver mines out west.
They can walk, you know, and pull
dump cart, anywhere man can 60 on
his knees. When you are out my way,
give me a call, and I'll tell you my ex-
perience in trying to raise Mexican and
Indian ponies. / don't like them"