So a couple of months ago, my dad tried introducing Valentine into the herd of sheep thinking they were the same size, all herbivores, and so they'd be fine......not the case. After Val decided to chase the sheep around and then bite our sheep dubbed "granny", he was promptly removed from the pasture and the search for another pony began.
Just a couple of weeks later, we met a couple who just so happened to have a three year old miniature they had no use for. Sugar was kept in the pasture right next door to Val for about two weeks before being allowed together to buck, bite, love on, and then give each other mean looks all they wanted. Closely supervised for the first hour or so, of course. Pretty soon the brotherly arguing died down and we all figured out Val, the stud, was on the bottom of this little pecking order.
Sugar is a wonderful miniature and has such a sweet, gentle soul. When he first came to the farm we were unable to approach him from the side or make ANY sudden movements without him freezing up in fear, and he had major trust issues. Now, he's been worked with for a month and a half (ish) and trusts us far more, we can approach him from the side sometimes though if your new, his face is the best bet, and while sudden movements still scare him a little, some gentle talking is enough to get him to calm down.
Soon we will start free lunging him so we can get those verbal commands down pat, then proceed to start ground-driving (also called double-lunging), and then move on to driving!
He also loves "giving sugar" by putting his nose out for you to kiss.
-Felecia