Needs pro shootPony Play
from age three
Twenty minutes brushing and making friends, then forty minutes riding on a lead rein. One child, one pony, and a parent beside them the whole hour. It is the gentlest introduction we know how to give.
- €80
- One child, one pony
- 1 hour
- 20 minutes brushing, 40 riding
- From 3
- The youngest we take
- Private
- Nobody else in the arena
Most people who ring about this are ringing about a three-year-old who has pointed at a horse in a field and not stopped talking about it since. That is exactly who the hour is for.
It is private. There is no class to keep up with and no other children waiting for a turn. The pony is chosen for the child, the pace is set by the child, and the hour ends when the hour ends — not when something has been achieved.
Wed – Sun in term, 7 days in school holidays. Ring the yard first if it would help to talk it through with somebody who will be there on the day: +353 87 223 7981.
The hour, in two halves
A third of it on the ground, two thirds on the pony. The bar below is drawn to scale, because that is genuinely the shape of it.
Brushing, and making friends
The pony is brought out and stood still, and your child meets it at their own height. A body brush they can hold in one hand, the mane, the soft part of the nose. They learn where to stand so a pony always knows they are there.
Nothing in these twenty minutes has to go right. It is the part that decides whether the next forty are any fun.
Riding, on a lead rein
Up from the mounting block, with somebody at the pony’s head and you at its shoulder. Walk only, the whole time. Round the arena, then round it again, then over a pole on the ground if that is wanted, and out to look at the field if it is dry.
If your child has had enough after ten minutes, they get off after ten minutes and we go and give the pony a carrot. That counts as a good day.
What “a parent stays” means
It is the promise people most often assume is loose. It is not loose. You are within arm’s reach of your child for the whole hour.
- You walk beside the pony. Not behind a rail, not in the car park, not in a café. At the shoulder, where you can put a hand on your child’s leg.
- Somebody else has the pony. One of ours holds the lead rein for the whole forty minutes, so your only job is your child.
- Take all the photographs you want. Nobody minds, and nobody is going to ask you to stand somewhere else for them.
- You can stop it at any point. Say the word and the pony halts. There is no moment in the hour where that becomes awkward.
“So kind and patient with the kids. My five-year-old was nervous for about two minutes.”
Needs pro shootNot every pony can do this
Of the 30 palominos on the yard, only a handful do this hour. They are the old, slow, unbothered ones — the ones that stand still while a very small person leans on their shoulder, and go on standing still.
- Small enough that your child is never far off the ground.
- Led on a rein the whole time, and wearing a headcollar under the bridle, so there is always a second thing to hold.
- Used to noise, to buggies, to a child changing their mind halfway across the arena.
- Walk only. No trot is offered in this hour, whatever anyone asks for.
What to bring
- Long trousers. Leggings, tracksuit bottoms, jeans — anything that covers the leg. That is the only thing your child needs to be wearing.
- A rain jacket, and a spare jumper. The arena is covered, but the yard is not.
- Nothing else. A riding hat and a pair of boots in your child’s size are fitted when you arrive, free, and put back when you leave.
- Fifteen minutes. Please arrive 15 minutes early so hats and boots can be fitted. It is a calmer start than arriving on the hour.
When you can come
- Wed – Sun in term, 7 days in school holidays. Mornings suit this age best, and the yard is quietest then.
- 4 start times a day. Two before lunch and two after, so there is room to work around a nap.
- Free cancellation up to 48 hours before. Small children get sick at short notice and we know it.
What it costs
| What you book | Price |
|---|---|
| Pony PlayOne hour, one child, one pony. Private. | €80the hour |
| Two children togetherTwo ponies, two leaders, the same hour | €160€80 each |
| Gift voucherIf it is a present and you would rather they picked the day | €80valid 12 months |
Paid when you book. Nothing is added at the yard, and hats and boots are free.
When it becomes a lesson
Pony Play runs to about five. After that a child is ready for the thing it was preparing them for: an hour in the arena with an instructor and four or five others, learning to steer and stop on their own. Same yard, same ponies, and you can watch from the rail rather than walk beside them.
There is no rule about the day they turn five. Some children want the group at four and a half; some would rather have one more private hour first. Ring the yard and we will tell you honestly which we would do.
What parents ask us
Is three too young?
Where do I stand while my child is riding?
What if my child will not get on the pony?
What do they need to wear?
Can my two children come together?
Book the gentlest hour we do.
€80 for the hour, private, from age three, with a parent beside the pony the whole way. If you would rather ask a few things first, ring the yard on +353 87 223 7981.