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What is a German riding pony ?
It is a lot of horse in a little space.
The breeding associations as well as leading breeders aim to breed a horse with the looks of the sportive German Warmblood horses but also with typical pony characteristics like robustness and excellent character.
How did the breed of the German riding pony develop ?
About 35 years ago the German pony breeders were looking for an independent horse breed that can be used for junior riders. Because of their high ambitions they founded a new horse breed that should lead their talented junior riders to success. In the beginning English pony breeds, Arabs and small thoroughbred horses had been used to cover the native German pony breeding stock (for instance native mares from the ""Nordkirchner" bloodline), meanwhile the German riding ponies play an important part as one of the leading European pony breeds.
Which stick measures and colours are usual for German riding ponies ?
The majority of German riding ponies measure between 1,40 metres and 1,.50m metres in height.
German riding ponies are also very popular among adults because of their outstanding talent for horse-sport in combination with their good riding qualities. In Zitna stud you can find both, ponies in the pony sport size, and ponies of 1,.50 to 1,55 metres high.
The most commoun colours are black, brown and chestnut, but you can also find palominos and pintos.
Why should I choose a German riding pony for mounting ?
The German riding pony is easy to handle, robust and can be kept in open stables. Because of its riding qualities and affableness it is the ideal partner for kids and juniors. The excellent movements and show jumping abilities make this breed to a capable sport horse that accompanies young riders from the start of their riding carrier career up to the highest level of the sport.
For which fields of horse sports can the German riding pony be used ?
You can use a German riding pony for numerous horse disciplines such as dressage, show jumping, eventing and driving. This breed is also very popular among leisure riders, and in the therapeutic horse scene it is much in demand as a mount for handicapped riders.
Which is the life expectancy of can you count for a German riding pony ?
On the condition that proper care and good keeping are provided by the horse owner, a German riding pony can reach the age of 20 years and more. A well trained pony can be passed on from one member of a family to the next member, so a German riding pony can give different generations a lot of pleasure.
Which conditions have to met for the proper keeping of a German riding pony ?
German riding ponies can be kept in groups with other horses.
Ponies need a stable, closed at least on three sides, with a dry and clean surface (for instance covered with straw or wood shavings) and an any day accessible water supply. Additionally, they need salt and hay of good quality (but with a low protein content). Ponies can also be kept in boxes (Minimum size 3 metres x 3 metres) but in this case the horse owner should provide that the pony can spend time on a pasture everyday in order to sustain the well-balanced character of the ponies. Ponies should never be kept alone, without and isolated from any members of the same species. Horses are gregarious animals in general and can only develop a sense of well-being in the company of other horses.
How to feed a German riding pony ?
A pony should be offered 3 kg hay per 100 kg body weight per day, distributed out over a minimum of two feedings per day. German Riding ponies of medium size are supposed to have weigh between 350 and 400 kg body weight. Pregnant mares, young horses and sport horses do need in addition cereals (oats is the usually most common cereals in German horsefeed) or horse pellets. Some ponies get by on very little cereals or horse pellets. It is important that the protein content in the used horse feed is not too high.
To make salt daily available for the horse is a Must. The use of horse feed additives (minerals and vitamines) can be necessary, depending on the area where the horse is kept and the keeping conditions. For instance the additives used in Zitna stud also contain selen and essential aminoacids in addition to the standard vitamines and minerals content.
If a horse can not be trained for some reason, the amount of cereals or horse pellets have has to be reduced because in this kind of horse feed a lot of energy is contained that can lead to high spirits in horses that are not been worked at full capacity. Another important point in feeding a horse is to stick to the feeding times and to obtain an expert´s advice if problemes occure.
Who sets the conditions for the high standard of the German riding pony breed ?
The breeding of German riding ponies is supervised by the relevant breeding association of the respective area.
The breeding association keeps a breeding book for all registered animals and is also in charge of the realization of measures for the selection of the breeding stock, such as stallion licensing. The breeding association also issue for the official papers (the so called ""Equine passport") ") for registered ponies and breeding animals.
Last, but not least, there is also an important job for the breeders. Every breeder has to make it his or her business to find the suitable stallion for covering his mares, and this decision requires not only luck but experience and knowledge about horse breeding.
Which demands have to be fulfilled by when breeding animals in Germany ?
Every German riding pony entered as a breeding animal has to fulfil the standard of the breeding register. Therefore the ponies have to be presented at the age of about 3 years in the basic gaits (all ponies) and in loose free jumping (only stallions) to a commission jury appointed by the breeding association.
The main German registries for German riding ponies run general studbooks and -for extraordinary mares - special divisions of the general studbook. Like the division for elite mares (have to be mothers of a number of state premium mares and approved stallions) and the division for premium mares.
At Zitna stud we only use elite mares, premium mares, daughters of elite mares and mares that performed in dressage and show jumping on highest level for our breeding programme.
State premium mares are riding pony mares that belong to the very best 5-10% out of all mares of their age . The so called state premium is awarded at the federal mares elite shows every year.
For instance, between 1999 and 2006 eleven state premium mares originating from Zitna stud achieved the “Staatsprämie” (german) at the Bavarian elite mares show. Pictures can be found under the topic “references”.
It is possible to send a young breeding horse to a performance test that is organized by a breeders organisation for German riding ponies.
For pony breeds with a stick measure below 135cm it is also possible to undergo a performance test in driving instead of riding.
How can I get a general idea of individual successes of a particular riding pony in concerns with regard to breeding and sport ?
Successes such as winnings and placements in breeding events, e.g. like state premium mare shows and performance tests, are supposed to be entered into the Equine horse Passport. In the case of older mares and stallions, it can happen that some successes may not be mentioned in the papers but can be asked for at the office of the respective German breeding association (Every German federal state runs his own breeding federation). Winnings and placements of German riding ponies in sportive events in Germany are registered by the FN , the official German horse sport organisation - - Thiese statistics do not comprise successes of German riding ponies in foreign countries like Austria or other EU countries.
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