MINI PONY HIRE
.....Creating memories since 2008.....
''Thank you for visiting our site, Mini Pony Hire is a family business based in beautiful Northumberland, who NEVER compromise on our ponies welfare or the safety of the people we work with''
Our story started when my dad helped police remove a miniature shetland from the A1 motorway in 1993, I offered the pony a forever home, named him Smurf and he became part of our family. Smurf and I moved to Northumberland and he remained my best friend when I met and married my husband and had 2 children.
As my children grew up, Smurf was a big hit with their friends and soon became a huge part of our community, involved with fundraising for our village school and local charities, so we decided to make it official and started Mini Pony Hire in 2008.
Smurf 1990 - 2020
Smurf was an extremely handsome Miniature Shetland who was a part of our family for almost 27 years.
He was completely blind for the last 6 years of his life but his disability never stopped him from living life to the full, meeting thousands of people and having the most extraordinary experiences. He achieved so much and was a fantastic ambassador for the Shetland breed, living with sight loss and showing the therapeutic affect of ponies for those living with special needs or dementia. He visited care homes, hospices and schools (often as a Golden Unicorn!) and was voted Horse & Hound 'Pony of the Year' for his therapy work! He also starred in panto and attended birthday parties, weddings and every type of family or community celebration you can think of.
Smurf 'The Giver of Love' passed away in August 2020, aged 30 years old. He is lovingly remembered by all who met him and leaves the most wonderful memories, the biggest legacy and massive amounts of inspiration. He was the smallest of ponies with the biggest of hearts. Mini Pony Hire would not exist without our little star and he will forever be the heart of our business.
His two younger brothers Marley and Tom continue Smurf's valuable work of providing smiles and memories, educating children on animal welfare and keeping the heritage and history of the amazing Shetland Pony in the spotlight.
Marley
Stonecellars Kinross
Marley is a stunning Standard Shetland who joined our family in 2010, when he was 18 months old.
Tom
Stonecellars Sandwood Bay
Tom, is Marley's half brother and came to live with us in 2017, at just 7 months old.
Our unique attraction always produces plenty of smiles and happy memories - the fun and enjoyment is the visible part but please be aware of the training and preparation that goes into our business......you can book us with full confidence that all Health and Safety regulations and legal requirements are adhered to:
Mini Pony Hire has:
- Public Liability Insurance of 5 MILLION pounds.
- a performing Animal Licence issued by Northumberland County Council. (NAP/8)
- an Animal Transporter Authorisation Certificate issued by Animal & Plant Health Agency
- a HUGE professional support network that advise us on current legislation and assist with training and management of the ponies......we believe you can NEVER stop learning and improving!
- gained COVID-19 Industry Standard for Visit England's 'Good to Go' scheme.
Our ponies are:
- Passported, Microchipped, Vaccinated and Registered
- regularly health checked by Vet, Farrier, Dentist and receive treatments from an Equine Massage Therapist and Reiki Master.
- part of our family and have been from a young age. As they have been trained by Lisa, we know their individual personalities and their likes and dislikes. Our ponies' health and happiness will ALWAYS be our number one priority.
Lisa has:
- a current HSE Approved 1st Aid qualification
- an Enchanced DBS/CRB certificate
- Child Protection and Safeguarding training
- Certification in the Safer Recruitment of Staff Working with Children & Vulnerable Adults
- Post Graduate Degree in Educational Management
- training in Dementia Awareness
- worked with horses from a young age, been a groom for horse drawn weddings, funerals and filmwork as well as travelling the country with a very successful heavy horse show team. Lisa also worked as a Community Manager and Chair of Governors for Northumberland schools for 14 years.