Harness size

[rainechyldes]

I learned to drive a double & single many years ago.
Now we have a pony, that my son uses for pony club, however he's also been driven in the past so... he definitely needs more work, and I am way to heavy for him obviously, so I thought driving!
I'm trying to work out what size harness, and am at a loss-

anyone have somewhere they can point me?

I found this site http://www.ehow.com/how_4671502_measure-pony-driving-harness.html
but I want to ensure I'm measuring correctly, and I don't know if this is correct.

He's a shetland cross of some sort, 11.2hh. A tad on the chubby size as of yet(pony so loves his diet..not!)

[RidesAHaflinger]

That diagram assumes you'll be using a neck collar style. Here's another diagram that provides more detail and also shows you how to measure for a breast collar and neckstrap, should that be the style of harness you end up buying:
http://www.coachmansdelight.com/CGuidePage.asp?pg=GUI7&k=7

My experience has been with fitting two 14 hand Haflingers who are hard to fit with any tack because some of their parts are horse size, some are cob size and some are pony size. :eek: Off-the-shelf harness has never fit them so I've learned to deal with harnessmakers who will either make the harness to their measurements or re-work some of their off-the-shelf pieces as needed to fit them.

It would be nice to pull the new harness out of the box and have it fit from the get-go but I can't think of a time that's ever happened to me.:lol: All is not lost if you get the harness and it doesn't fit. Parts can be sent back and re-worked or replaced, for the cost of shipping. A reputable harnessmaker will want you to be pleased with your purchase.

Good luck. Yours sounds like a medium pony to me but do provide as much info as possible as to height, weight and conformation as well as the specific measurements on the diagram to help the harnessmaker with giving him a proper fit.

[smhlin110]

Also, if you have questions about sizing and you send a photo of your pony to Andy at Coachman's Delight, he'll be more than happy to help you figure out what you need. He's got good quality, reasonably priced leather harnesses and Zilco synthetic and they'll swap out any pieces for other sizes. Really a pleasure to work with as most reputable harness makers/sellers are/should be. A godsend for us newbies!

[pricestory]

A friend has a pony that is 12.2 and slightly built. He wears a normal pony size. She got her harness from Claudette at country carriages, who is more than happy to help you with sizes and will mix and match if necessary.