What is the difference between a horse and a pony?

M.T.: What is the difference between a horse and a pony?
I thought it was the size but some people say their pony is the same size as my horse which is 15hds high?

Answers and Views:

Answer by Mordivan
A horse must be 14.3 hands (high) to be a horse. Anything under that is consiered a pony.

EDIT: Please do not listen to the girl below me, she clearly has absoultly no idea of what she is talking about. A pony is NOT a baby horse, wow. A baby horse in a generalization is a foal.

Answer by Alex and Cassie H
Ponies are a baby horse. They can be as a tall as a horse it just depends what kind of horse it is.

Answer by Sue
A pony is up to 14.2hh and a horse is anything over that – so 14.2 1/4 would be classed as horse – just!

Now comes the confusing bit.

Some animals that should be classed as ponies are called horses by their breed society – like Miniature horses, Icelandic ‘horses’ are called horses even though they are only about 12 to 14.2hh. In both cases the name ‘horse’ is applied out of honour for the breed as it were.

Here in the UK some ponies are being bred bigger than their breed standards used to be – eg welsh cobs are ponies but they can legitimately be up to 15hh, similarly with Haflingers nowadays, they’re calling them ‘sport haflingers’ or some such. Same applies to ‘working hunter ponies’ which I think equates roughly with the US hunter jumper classes. Their classes range up to 15hh but they are classed as ‘ponies’

On the flip side polo ponies are only ever horse sized (over 14.2hh)

To sum up it pysically it’s one hundred percent sure over 14.2hh is a horse, unless by breed definition or particular eccentricity of the owner it is called what it is not 🙂

Answer by Mandy R
Horses under 14.3hh are usually considered ponies. Some breeds are pony breeds and they could theoretically be 15hh and would still be a pony, although that would be rare.

So if your horse is a 15hh Quarter Horse, he’s a horse. If he’s a 15hh Welsh cob, he’s a pony.

Answer by aqhaprincess111
A pony is an equine 14.1 hh and below.

A horse is an equine 14.2 hh and below.

I don’t think it is possible for a pony to be 15 hands high. At that point it would be considered a horse.

Sorry, I wouldn’t know much about Welsh Ponies and what they are called, etc. My whole barn is QHs and I have never seen a Welsh before…

Answer by ashlee
the tallest a pony can be is 14.3hh no exceptions, after that they are considered a horse. even if the pony is 14.3 and 1/2 it is considered a horse.

Answer by eventer99
According to the United States Equestrian Federation rule book.. In order for a horse to be a pony it has to be under 14.2 hands. Anything over is a horse.

Answer by Cameron N
A horse is 14.3 hands and above and a pony is 14.2 hands and below. Your horse ISNT a pony! So you can tell those people that your horse isn’t a pony!

Answer by LBentforHPTS!!
It depends on the breed registry. Some read from xx hands up to but not including xx hands.

Most of the them have a minimum requirement, example 14.2 and up.. others 14 and up.

The Jockey Club calls it a horse at 14.2 Under that is a pony

None of their rules say it has to exceed the minimum requirement.