Selfsufficientish.com

There are at least a million horsepower being wasted every second in the UK. Horsepower can actually be produced by horses, and of course ponies donkeys mules etc. Guess where it got its name. If we are bringing back windmills, tide mills and all the other stuff that used to be in the history books and is now in new technology, why are we ignoring the horse power.

All terrain vehicles, voice activated control systems, totally organic, (look what comes out of the exhaust) and rather than using fossil fuels to power mowers, I use the lawn to fuel my transport system.
The big problem is remembering that in 1900 95% of all ponies, horses etc were working with and for the working classes. Horses never were elitist, after all white van man drove them. If we are rethinking windmills and tide mills, lets rethink horsepower.
Simon
http://naturaldriving.co.uk/content_tools.php

Gidday

Good onya mate. The only trouble is they are a bit slow for some modern peoples.

It's not democratic tho, Simon.
They had no vote whether to work down pits or not, or carry some
fat git.
And think of all the Co2 emmissions from the farts.
Nice to see however, smart pony and cart only going out on a Sunday .

Jack, quite agree on speed, a big tractor would rip through the work, but I thought this was selfsufficientish not agroprofitableish, sorry for the confusion.
And Archie, is it more democratic to let them get bored and die of laminitis. Henry really likes going out, not as you put it in some smart cart on Sunday, but in a modern vehicle and harness built for his comfort that allows him to do useful work and cut down on fossil fuels. He mows the lawn which fuels trips to the town, rather than going to town in a car to get fuel for a lawnmower, polluting my local atmosphere with noise and fumes etc. Again though this approach might appeal to selfsufficiencyish and apologise for the mistake.
Simon

just some of the tools that Henry can pull including, fertiliser spreader, logging rig, yard broom, spring tine harrow, lawnslitter, aerator, roller and a trailer. A garden tractor pulling that lot would do a lot more than fart.

hmm and a bright animal would know the way home from the pub too.. so you could doze off.....

can you be done for being drunk in charge of a horse powered vehicle? not that I would promote such behaviour, obviously...

I can see as fuel becomes more expensive, horse power will make more of a come back.

Try finding someone to teach you how to use a horse plough, horse mower, etc. Or how to use one for hauling out logs.

I wouldn't mind having a working horse on the croft, but with zero practical knowledge I definitely need help as I know my limits. There are courses and training days, but all the ones I've been pointed to are in England and too far away.

In one of my internet rambles I found a little self suffiant community (I think in Wales). They were offering classes to teach people how to use horses for work. Might be worth googling if anyone is interested in this option.

Training is a lot simpler than you might think because my system is safety based. If anything goes wrong, or is likely to go wrong, pull the ripcord and the pony is not attached to the vehicle. If the pony is likely to attack if released, use a different pony. I have had complete beginners driving at a canter in the first minute, and I can put a pony in a saddlechariot in under two hours. That is an animal that has never even had a saddle on its back. Hauling logs is dead easy, mowing, I am working on a 30" fingerbar mower, and once oyu can drive in straight lines you can mow in straight lines.
To get good is a lifetimes work but to do an acceptable job might take under a month including training the pony.

Its not the most useful bit of kit, but you can tow it.
And the power of small ponies is incredible. Henry in the picture gets loads of "isn't he cuddly/sweet/gorgeous comments." He is the same size, weight and power as an adult male grorilla. If an adult male gorilla decidedes to drag something, it gets dragged.
Simon

Nice set-up Simon...that last trailer looks like a gun carriage.

Dead right, and the first time the Cornish Muzzleloaders Association fired it with Henry in the ring, he certainly woke up, mostly because of the huge cloud of smoke that suddenly appears.

So is that a genuine Cumbrian pony, Simon...seen the pack horse bridges, and done a ton of walking in The Lakes. Senn some I tyhink around Patterdale.

That's an impressive piece of kit there, Simon. Your invention? Looks clever as all hell.

Just out of interest, how much "lawn" would such a pony need to thrive sustainably? Other than grass, what's the feed / maintenance requirement?

ETA: That'll learn me to read the "Hello" bit first, won't it? So it is your invention. You're a smart chap. Kudos...

Gidday

If you go down the motorway and fire that thing a few times you will save a hellava lot of fossil fuel cos there won't be no cars following you for long Eh!

What breed is he? I think it is great he can pull/do all that and just think what you could do with a bigger working horse! Course it's not all about just learning how to teach a pony or horse to pull things, you've got to learn all about them and their needs first and get lots of experience.

The ultimate backfire. the food requirements of small ponies are mostly trying not to feed them. Laminitis, caused by too much, too rich food, maims and kills small ponies. But if they are worked, and leading an active life,they are less likely to suffer. The space requirement is defititely a piece of string question because it is not just about grazing as the grass only grows during brief periods. However you can buy hay, or make your own, so feeding is not wildly expensive. I used to keep Henry in Essex, renting grazing and a stable and buying hay and bedding, paying for foot trims and wormers and the total was £500 a year.
It should be possible to keep a small pony for around a quid a day, less if you can rent it out as a lawn mower. How green is that, someone pays you to put fuel in your organic quad bike.