# This pony is worth all the money in the world to me!



## Indyhorse (Dec 3, 2009)

I took some pictures/video of my son riding his pony yesterday, so I thought I'd share it. Sorry for how shaky the video is - walking and recording at the same time is not yet a skill I've mastered *lol*

So this is my son Spencer, who was born prematurely, is 6 years old, and diagnosed classically autistic. He is riding his pony Misty, an 11.2 hh Welsh/Shetland cross mare who we have had for about 8 months. Spencer has been riding since he was a baby, but only been riding off leadline for about 5 months. Misty is in heat, grumpy because the biting gnats were REALLY bad (are they seriously impervious to all kinds of fly spray?), and being buddy sour because I have Claymore tied near the barn. I'd just hopped off him for a few minutes to take pictures - forgive her attitude, or as Spencer puts it, their "arguments". 

I removed the audio, because at about five different points during the clips I hollered "GET OUT OF HER MOUTH!!!", or "HEELS DOWN!!", RIGHT into the camera microphone *lol* Sorry!

Also, minor disclaimer, I'm aware he needs to move up from his 10 inch saddle to his 12 inch saddle that I've already gotten for him. I keep telling him if he had longer stirrups he'd bounce less in the trot. But one of his typically autistic traits is he has a LOT of trouble dealing with changes. He's used to this saddle, and I have to give him a while to mentally adjust to the idea of a new saddle before I can switch it on him.

And yes, he's riding in crocs - I know, I know. He's outgrown his boots and I haven't gotten new ones yet - nor were we planning on riding yesterday afternoon. It was a split second decision - I was feeding the chickens and he was begging to ride. I should have at least made him change into his sneakers, but I didn't. Don't yell at me.



But the thing is.....look at him smile. Look at him speaking to me. It's hard to remember that not all that long ago, he was completely non-verbal, non-communicative, and would not make eye contact with anyone. This is what inspired my dreams to open my own therapuetic riding facility. I firmly believe dogs and horses are a large part of what has opened up his world for him, and I am so grateful that we found this amazing little mare. She is worth more to me than all the money in the world.


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## barrelracer892 (Apr 3, 2010)

How adorable! That's wonderful he's doing so well! And I really admire that you opened a therapeutic riding facility. P.S. I have ridden in crocs once before myself :]


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## lolayla (Jul 25, 2008)

that is asbsolutely amazing and heartwarming.


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## Walkamile (Dec 29, 2008)

Fantastic! He is just beaming and that pony is worth it's weight in gold!


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## corinowalk (Apr 26, 2010)

How cute! Your boy seems so happy to be riding! He does really well for his age! I donated my first horse (and love) to a theraputic riding center and am so thankful in his elder years he was able to serve children the way he served me. There is just something special there between a child and a pony...you guys are so fortunate to have found the right one!


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## BackInTheSaddleAgain (Apr 20, 2009)

GIRL, I know all too well what you are feeling. My son is autistic. He looks at you several times in this video and smiles.... something that many take for granted, but for us, it means the WORLD. The gnats may have been irritating her, but that pony KNOWS.

I can't wait to get my boy one of his own.


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## Indyhorse (Dec 3, 2009)

BackInTheSaddleAgain said:


> GIRL, I know all too well what you are feeling. My son is autistic. He looks at you several times in this video and smiles.... something that many take for granted, but for us, it means the WORLD. The gnats may have been irritating her, but that pony KNOWS.
> 
> I can't wait to get my boy one of his own.



You got it, exactly. Even the specialists can't believe the change in him. 90% of the people who meet Spencer today have trouble believing he is autistic at all. He is bright, outgoing, and engaging. If they could only have seen him as a 2 year old, laying on the living room floor in complete silence, lining up his toy cars over and over - the only utterance he would make is a high pitched scream if someone jostled his car line-up slightly out of order. I was blessed in having a brilliant OT though first steps who, after the first few sessions, said to me "You have a pony for him, don't you? Is there any chance we could hold our OT sessions in the barn and utilize her in his therapy?" _*The whole world changed right there.*_

Although he was non verbal until almost 4, today, Spencer talks your ear off, and has an incredibly enriched vocabulary for a 6 year old. He's read himself the Harry Potter books (and those are heavy reading for a little guy!), and while I recently pulled him from public school kindergarten due to some social skill issues, he had long since left his class level behind, and was in first grade reading/writing and second grade math. He is showing savant level memory skills. But more importantly than anything else, he is displaying a very HIGH level of empathy - something commonly lacking in most autistic children. He is emotionally expressive, snuggles the barn kittens with glowing eyes, spends hours lovingly brushing his dog Bonnie, and displays great pleasure over every cookie Misty daintily takes from his hands. While he still wont make eye contact with strangers, he regularly makes eye contact with myself, his father, and my best friend Tracie. He still has impulse control problems, and no sense of personal danger. At public school he turned into a runner, something he doesn't do at home and the primary reason I pulled him to home school.

Overall, I owe his previous pony Flaxie (whom I also donated to a therapy stable in South Bend) and his current pony Misty sooo very much. You are right, a good pony just _knows_.


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## Deerly (Apr 18, 2010)

I'm having an emotional day but oh my goodness this made me absolutely start bawling. What a beautiful, wonderful pair! You can just see him radiate happiness and autonomy and you are just wonderful parents to be able to give him the gift of that pony and that freedom!

Amazing!


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## MacabreMikolaj (May 9, 2009)

That is absolutely fantastic - how amazingly heart warming! It's unbelieveable what animals have the ability to bring out in us, how many times over and over they manage to bring all sorts of people out of their shells.

He looks like a darn good little rider to, liking where his hands are and how he asks his pony to turn! Definitely much more "knowledgeable" hands then your average 6 year old happy to go "GIDDYUP PONY"! :wink:


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## Indyhorse (Dec 3, 2009)

MacabreMikolaj said:


> That is absolutely fantastic - how amazingly heart warming! It's unbelieveable what animals have the ability to bring out in us, how many times over and over they manage to bring all sorts of people out of their shells.
> 
> He looks like a darn good little rider to, liking where his hands are and how he asks his pony to turn! Definitely much more "knowledgeable" hands then your average 6 year old happy to go "GIDDYUP PONY"! :wink:


To me it's an enormous blessing that Misty has rotten days, days she acts up, days she gives Spencer a little more trouble. To me that improves his riding ability a million times more than a pony that did whatever he asked all the time. He gets in her mouth a lot more than I like, but we are working on that and at least he doesn't yank. His hands are _okay_ - he has a tendency to hold them uneven (one arm closer than the other) because her reins on that bridle aren't exactly even - the stitching on one side goes up a about an inch farther than the other, and he feels the need to hold them on the same spot on either side, making his hand/elbow positions a bit uneven. That's an easy fix at this point, just need to get a new set of reins - but I need to do it soon before uneven becomes a habit for him. Misty doesn't neck rein So Spencer rides two handed, although he switches both reins to one hand and holds on the saddle horn at this point to trot, but he keeps asking if he can stop gripping the horn so we should be able to adjust that soon. When he is in correct length stirrups his seat is very good. He is very, very eager to start showing and compete, so it's a huge motivator for him to learn, and with his memory skills he doesn't need to be reminded very often once he gets something.

Anyways, thanks everyone! I am very proud of him!


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## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

that was sweet. But darn those mean old bugs! somebody permatreat them! poor pony, trying to be a good girl and bugs attacking her wittle ears!

it was really sweet though.


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## Indyhorse (Dec 3, 2009)

farmpony84 said:


> that was sweet. But darn those mean old bugs! somebody permatreat them! poor pony, trying to be a good girl and bugs attacking her wittle ears!
> 
> it was really sweet though.



I know, it's not the normal flies, it's those tiny black biting gnats! They are horrible out whenever the humidity gets above a certain level. Misty was doused in her duraguard but I might as well have rolled her in sugar for how much good it does against those gnats. I haven't found anything that works on them at all.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

What an amazing pair!!!

Even with his pony being a.... Itch, he is making her behave and doing it well. And he looks so happy. Gosh. It is priceless.


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## payette (Jun 3, 2010)

I love it!


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## mistygirl (May 13, 2010)

that is soo cool that you got him his own poney. I love volenteering at a therapetic riding stable close to my house i love watching the kids and there faces just glow with joy. I don't know what it is but i love Handicap kids they bond so nice and are so sweet i'm not a very social peroson never was haha. smiles the place i volenteer at has this one girl who i think is about his age she gets on the horse and when the horses walks she just giggles and giggles and when she trots she giggles even more she gets the whole group of people laughing.


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## BackInTheSaddleAgain (Apr 20, 2009)

Sent you a PM, Indyhorse


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## themanjana (Jul 26, 2010)

Wow. I loved this movie


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## AfterParty (Jun 4, 2010)

What a sweet pony ! 
I love ponies when they are so well behaved , your son does an amazing job with her . Such a cute pair


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## charlicata (Jan 12, 2010)

Your video gave me chills Indy. It's just so beautiful! I have recently had the pleasure of meeting an autistic 23 yo. She is shy around new people, but what I wouldn't give to be like her. She is happy all the time, without a care in the world. She's very high functioning and pretty much has a photographic memory; but can't remember names. I am either Buddy or Girl. She's like being with a child but with no arguments whatsoever. You tell her not to do something and she just stops, says ok and bounces (literally) to something else. She's one heck of a rider!!! She forms a visible bond with any animal I've ever seen her interact with. I had met her when I went to pick Rookie up, but had the pleasure of camping with her a couple of weeks ago. I had taken my dog Leo with me who is normally shy around new people. As soon as he got out of my truck, he went directly to her. You would have thought he was her dog. The second day we were there, she was riding her horse bareback around the field, and Leo zig-zagged right in front of them as if he was looking for any type of hazzards. I found this amazing as by breed (Catahoula Leopard Dog) he is a herder. I'm so happy that your son has made...and IS still making such progress. You are truly blessed!!!


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## SorrelHorse (Apr 9, 2009)

Adorable! I cant even begin to imagine how much you haveto love that pony. Misty is taking such good care of him it's amazing 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## A knack for horses (Jun 17, 2010)

That is soo amazing. It is a wonder how animals have the ability to "cure" autisim.


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