About the breed

The term "Riding pony" is a horse show classification used to refer to certain types of ponies. Riding ponies were originally developed in the United Kingdom and are now bred all over the world. They were originally of Mountain and Moorland pony breeds, used for riding and hunting.

When pony classes were added to horse shows in the early 1920s, breeders began crossing Welsh and Dartmoor ponies with small Thoroughbred and Arabian horses. From the 1930s into the 1950s, Arabian blood was again introduced to improve stamina and refinement, which included one of the most influential sires, Naseel.

The general riding pony group has developed, aside from various British crossbreeds, into several standardized breeds, for example the Swedish Riding Pony, Australian Riding Pony, Belgian Riding Pony, German Riding Pony, poney français de Selle (developed in the 1970s in France, and said to be a more all-around, less-refined type), Pony of the Americas (developed in the USA in the 1950s), and four specific Welsh pony varieties.

The Riding ponies here at Décors are Swedish Riding ponies and are mostly used in the simulated ponyraces.