Exmoor Pony Society

The Exmoor pony lives wild in several parts of Exmoor. It is a descendant of ancient wild ponies which became isolated on Exmoor. Sir Thomas Acland is credited with preserving the pure breed when he founded what is now the Anchor herd, which grazes Winsford hill.

Although the ponies live freely on the moors all year eating grass, heather, rush, and gorse, their breeding is carefully controlled by their owners. The herd is rounded up once a year at autumn gatherings. Ponies are branded with a mark, an anchor in the case of the Winsford herd, and a number. Young ponies are then removed for sale and domestication.

For several centuries ponies from the moor were sold at an annual fair in Bampton. In the 19th century pony wrestling was a popular sport. In the early 20th century ponies were widely used by Exmoor farmers for herding livestock and getting around their land. The Exmoor Pony Society was inaugurated in 1921 and registers all ponies. Exmoor National Park is home to the very special Exmoor ponies, who have remained pure blooded since the Ice Age and exist today in unique free-living herds in the moorland areas. The Exmoor Pony Society have been custodians of the ponies since 1921 and each and every pony on the moor has an owner.
As there are so few ponies in existence, the breed is considered to be endangered so the work of the Society is vital in protecting and conserving the bloodlines and encouraging breeding programmes.

The Society inspects and registers ponies each year and, as there is a strict grazing quota on the moor, some of the young stock must be brought in ground to find homes in domesticity. It takes patience and kindness to gain the ponies trust, but once socialised, the highly intelligent, quality Exmoors make excellent all round performance ponies who excel in many equestrian disciplines from showing and working hunter pony, to TREC, endurance and dressage - and can be ridden by both adults and children.The Exmoor Pony Society works closely with Exmoor National Park Authority to protect and conserve the moorland herds and would like to thank the Authority for its continued support of this ancient rare breed.

New members are warmly welcomed to the Exmoor Pony Society and you can support the Society through associate membership even if you don't own a pony.

If you're interested in purchasing an Exmoor pony, or simply finding out more about the breed and how the moorland herds are managed, the Society will be delighted to help you - and you can visit the Friends of Exmoor Ponies stand at shows and events.

There is an excellent film 'Discovering Exmoor Ponies' available on DVD or video, which includes wonderful footage of the moorland herds, the autumn gatherings, and some of the many people and ponies involved with Exmoor activities (available from www.friendsofexmoorponies.ltd.uk).
For more information about Exmoor ponies please visit www.exmoorponysociety.org.uk or contact the EPS Secretary, Sue McGeever, on 01884 839930 email secretary® exmoorponysociety.org.uk

See also:

www.exmoorponysociety.org.uk

Contributed by: Gail Tomkins