About Finley
Height: 12.2hh
Breed: Welsh A
Colour: Flea-bitten Grey
Gender: Gelding
Finley, a pretty flea-bitten grey is a popular children’s and small adults pony.
He has three correct paces and loves all types of riding lessons. He is good for all level riders from complete beginners who are learning to walk trot and canter all the way to very experienced riders.
Finley is one of the older ponies on our Riding School, despite being one of the smallest! He's very sweet, and a firm favourite when it comes to the pony rides.
His coat colour is described as flea-bitten grey, which is nothing to do with fleas! Grey is used rather than white, as with many "white" horses and ponies, they have dark skin and have darker coats when they're young, which get light as they get older. Flea-bitten means speckles of black or brown throughout the coat - it's not a single colour like Ted, but lots of tiny dots of colour across his whole body.
About Welsh A
Finley (and our smallest pony, Ted) is a Welsh Section A pony. There are four closely related horse breeds coming from Wales, which are primarily defined by their height, they are conveniently known as Section A, B, C and D! Welsh ponies and cobs are known for their good temperament, hardiness and good movement. The Section A ponies are the smallest.
It's thought that Wales has had native ponies hundreds of years, maybe even as far back as 1600BC. They've been around for a long time, and are thought to have evolved from the pre-historic Celtic Pony, so even before the Romans came. Living as semi-feral herds, roaming the mountains and moorlands of wales, Welsh Ponies have turned into a tough, hardy breed!
Throughout their history, Welsh ponies and cobs have been used for all sorts of work, and the modern breeds are still popular for many different disciplines (like showing, jumping and such, as well as just for fun!).