Can Ponies & Horses Breed? 4 Important Things To Consider

A half horse and half pony hybrid would definitely look cute. Right? But is it possible? Let’s take a look at what happens if you mate a horse with a pony.

Can Ponies And Horses Breed?
Ponies and horses can breed. They belong to the same species and it can be a good option if you want a smaller horse. You just need to be aware that it might cause complications during the birth of the pony mare breeds with a much larger horse.

Let’s take a closer look at how the outcome looks like and a few things you need to keep in mind.

Can Ponies And Horses Breed?

In fact, a pony and a horse can breed and produce a crossover. The foal will typically be compact like a pony and have thinner legs like the horse. The foal becomes a great animal for kids to ride.

As you can see below, the outcome is very cute.

There can sometimes be complications for the mare pony or for the foal. But typically it goes well when there’s not too much of a difference in height between the mare and the stallion, as we will see in a minute.

How are ponies and horses related?

Ponies and horses both belong to the same species, namely the “Equus ferus caballus“. That’s a subspecies within the “Equidae” family also known as the domesticated horses.

Equus basically means “horse” in Latin.

For many competitions, the official distinction between a horse and a pony will only be in regard to the height of the animal. When the animal is taller than 58 inches (147 cm) it to be considered a horse. And when the animal is smaller it will be considered a pony.

So its a thin line between a pony and a horse.

When you compare a foal from a horse with a pony you will see some clear differences:

1. The legs of the horse foal are thinner than the legs of the pony.
2. The body of the horse foal is also sleeker than the pony.
3. The horse foal will also be more playful than a fully-grown pony.

So all in all, the pony will behave more like a grown horse but be the size (height) of a foal from a horse.

Ponies are often known to be more stubborn than horses. Much like donkeys. Head over here, to read more about the differences between a donkey and a horse.

Here’s A Picture Of A Pony/Horse Crossover

Here’s a picture of a half pony half-horse hybrid. It’s a super cute little creature that looks more than a horse than a pony.

It will normally be closer to the pony-size (if the pony is the mare) and it will be a little more flexible and have a horse that looks more like a horse.

Let’s start by looking at free issues you need to consider before you go on with the project.

4 Things To Consider When Mating a Pony And A Horse

As we mentioned above, it’s totally possible to mate a horse and a pony. But there are situations where you’re might avoid these because of complications to either the outcome or the pony.

Here are the things you should think about first.

1) Choose A Stallion That’s Not Too Big

If you want to go along with this you need to make sure that the stallion isn’t a lot bigger than the pony. The reason is that it can easily cause birth complications for the pony if the foal becomes too big.

The pony is simply not built to give birth to a full-size horse foal.

But as long as you use this deli and that’s only around 3 hands (30 cm) larger than the pony you should be fine. If you go higher than this your might cause complications for the pony and that would simply hurt the poor animal.

Here are five smaller horse breeds that would make a great mate for your pony (according to their size).

According to some research, the size of the fetus is actually more determined by the size of the uterus of the horse or the pony than by the genetics of the foal. So it might not be a problem if you do it the other way by mating a mare pony with a horse stallion. Even if you find a pretty big horse.

But it doesn’t look like much research has been done in this field so it’s probably best to be on the safe side (read on..).

2) Consider Breeding A Mare Horse To A Pony Stallion

By turning things around you make sure there is enough space in the womb for the little one.

If you have a mare horse mating with the pony stallion you will end up with a fine result in many cases. You can create the most beautiful warmblood pony!

You can actually go either way but this is preferably in most cases depending on what animal you have of course.

The possibilities here are endless and you can really create some amazing pony-horse hybrids.

However, we did also find some examples of problems where the mare was a big animal and the stallion was a small pony. So I guess the lesson here is to not cross two animals that are too far apart when it comes to height. Luckily there are a lot of cute little horse breeds as we linked to in the section above.

3) Always Consult A Vet Before You Start

You need to always consult with the local vet on this matter. The reason is that you need a professional opinion on whether it can be done to whether it’s a really bad idea.

There are a lot of things that come into play and a veterinarian will help you sort things out so you don’t end up in a bad situation.

This is actually the case every time you crossbreed two horses or two ponies as well. There might be some known issues that you are not aware of and talking to a vet will probably clear things out and give you a much better overall picture of the situation.

The more information the better, in these cases. There might also be some better alternatives from using a surrogate mare.

4) Pony And Horse Crossovers Are Great For Kids

If you have kids you might be looking for a small horse for the kids to ride. In case you don’t have a small horse breed on the farm you might consider creating one yourself by crossing a pony and a horse.

They are great for learning how to ride a real horse and they are typically friendly too.

As long as you introduce the kids to the foal early on they will form a special bond and the foal from the pony and the horse can be a companion for many years.

You can read more here about miniature horses that are also great for learning to ride for the smallest kids. They can typically be ridden by kids of the age of 4-9 under close supervision from the parents or other adults.