Newfoundland Pony Conservancy Center
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 NoFear-aphobia - Newfoundland ponies are fearless and curious about everything. They do not react to the “scary” things that horses normally react to: Loud noises, tarps, unfamiliar objects. They enjoy or will simply ignore fireworks. Newfoundland Ponies think first, check it out, then react if absolutely necessary. 
All kidding aside, the Newfoundland Pony has no known genetic disorders.
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 A Heritage Breed, the Newfoundland Pony is a walking time capsule of old genetics. It is the only indigenous pony breed in all of North America that has not had been purposely altered or “improved” by selecting out certain traits and/or by crossing with other breeds. Like many heritage breeds its genetic base is diverse and hardy.
This is a partial list of health issues in some breeds today. Arabians - Cerebellar abiotrophy. SCIB. Lavender Foal Syndrome. Guttural Pouch Tympany, Appaloosas - Equine Recurrent Uveitis. Congenital Night Blindness. Saddlebreds - JEB. Lordosis. Belgians - Junctional epidermolysis bullosa (JEB). MCOA. RLN. Draft breeds - PSSM1. JEB. RLN. Roaring. Chronic Progressive Lymphadenopathy. Silver-coated Horses: Rocky Mountain, Icelandics, Shetland, Morgans, Miniatures, Belgians, - Equine multiple congenital ocular anomalies (MCOA) Friesians - Megaesophagus (chronic dilation of the esophagus). Aortic rupture. Dwarfism. Hydrocephalus (fluid on the brain). Corneal Dystrophy. Paso Finos - Congenital Stationary Night Blindness Thoroughbreds - Recurrent exertion rhabdomyolysis. Tying Up. Recurrent Laryngeal Neuropathy (RLN). Congenital Stationary Night Blindness. OLWS. Roaring. Dutch Warmbloods - Osteochondrosis/osteochondritis dissecans. PSSM1 German Warmbloods - Equine Recurrent Uveitis. Guttural Pouch Tympany. PSSM1 Quarter Horse - PSSM1. Glycogen branching enzyme deficiency. HYPP. HERDA. Malignant Hyperthermia. Overo Lethal White Foal Syndrome. Paint Horses - Overo Lethal White Foal Syndrome. Miniature Horses - Dwarfism. Equine Multiple Congenital Ocular Anomalies. Overo Lethal White Foal Syndrome. Connemara - Hoof Wall Separation Disease New Forest - Myotonia Shetlands - Lateral Subluxation of the Patella Coming next week - genetic anomalies of the Newfoundland Pony. © Emily Chetkowski 2018  There are so many lovely ponies and horses out there, and many of us have been fortunate to have a beloved horse in our lifetime, one that we will never forget. As I am writing this, my favorites immediately come to mind and thoughts of them warm my heart.
These days, my life is filled with Newfoundland Ponies and nothing else. Docile, willing, friendly, sane, once you know a Newfoundland Pony you quickly become aware of how special they are. The qualities we desire and cherish in our horses/ponies are not just in select animals of this breed. With the Newfoundland Pony those desirable traits are inherent to the entire breed. To know that 99% of Newfoundland Ponies are beyond docile, and easy to be around, is really remarkable. Despite my owning really nice horses, until I lived with a Newfoundland Pony, I had no idea that an equine like this even existed, I only knew what was available out there in the horse world. I didn't know it could be better. Once I owned Newfoundland Ponies, it still took me many years to stop automatically expecting a typical negative horse reaction, which just does not happen with the Newfoundland Pony. For me it started with a cross-bred. That cross-bred soon turned into a full-blooded pony. That full-blooded pony soon turned into the rest of her family. And so on and so forth. Quickly I learned of their plight and ponies just kept finding me. Within a few years we grew into a sanctuary, and a non-profit at that. We now have over 20 ponies under our care, on farm, at fosters and at adoptive homes. Of all of the ponies I have encountered since being involved with this breed, every single one has that amazing temperament and personality, even ones that have been mistreated. The Newfoundland Pony is what every parent dreams of for their child. The Newfoundland Pony is what a whole lot of us adults dream of too. Sure, it is critically endangered and it has a great mind but that is not the only reason we should save it. There is more, much more that is precious about this breed... Join us next week to learn the other reasons. © Emily Chetkowski 2018  (*Story courtesy of Newfoundlander Cle Newhook, long-time pony advocate and former Newfoundland Pony Society president. Photo courtesy of the Newfoundland Pony Society.)
I grew up in a small coastal fishing community on the East Coast of Newfoundland, Canada. There was no electricity, indoor heating or running water and of course no indoor toilet facilities. My God how we hated that freezing cold outhouse in the winter months! Most families grew their own crops and cut their own firewood for the stove and a lot of families kept Newfoundland ponies. We knew them only as horses and they certainly earned their keep hauling kelp and fish offal from the beach to the vegetable gardens and dragging home great sled loads of firewood from the nearby woods over the winter months. They were hardy horses and well able to do a day’s hard work. And yet they were always calm and gentle (unless they were eating oats in which case it was best to leave them alone!) I loved going into the woods with Dad and Rex and most every Saturday if the weather was nice I would join Dad on the back beam of the bob sled and watch as Rex kicked up clumps of snow and ice from his shoed hoofs. We used to go to the same spot every weekend as the cutting was good. And I would sit proudly on the load of wood and hold the reins as we headed home with a full load, although Rex knew exactly what to do. Our house stood at the top of a pretty steep hill and Rex would always stop at the bottom to take a good blow before tackling the hill. At a word from Dad he would take the strain dig in his heels take the hill in one great pull. At the top he would be sweating with the hard work but never did he refuse that hill. One Saturday after we had loaded the sled Dad suggested that I was now old enough to take the load home by myself. “Just unload the sled and give Rex his head”, he said “he’ll know what to do”. So off I went large as life and proud as a peacock hoping that I would see some pals along the way. Everything went well and as usual Rex to0ok the hill in one final great pull right to the top where I unloaded the wood and turned the sled around. “I clicked the reins and told Rex to walk on. So off we went along the lane and into the woods path. Rex seemed to know the way and in any case would not have paid any attention to me if I had told him where to go. We went up a fairly steep hill into the thick woods where Rex finally stopped. I didn’t see Dad anywhere – for a very good reason. Rex had taken us to the spot that Dad had used the winter before! Despite my tugging on the reins and shouting at him he would not budge an inch so I just sat there and waited. After a long while I heard Dad shouting to me. I shouted back and was relieved to finally see him coming up the path. “Rex took you to the wrong spot I see” he said. “Yes, I know” I said “now tell that to Rex”. And he did. © Cle Newhook 2018 |
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July 2025
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