At Farmer Parrs we have 2 miniature Shetland ponies - Thomas and  Tabatha. Thomas and Tabatha are 2 of the oldest animals on the farm. Thomas is pictured to the left and is a firm favourite with visitors to our animal show and petting zoo.

We also have 4 Falabella miniature horses. Duchy the dad, Mimi the mum, Coco the most recently born and Tinkerbell and Tiffany - Duchy's off-spring from a previous wife. Coco and Mimi are pictured below. Coco is extremely naughty and very mischievous. He was so small when he was born he could be carried and was about the size of a springer spaniel. He likes to jump up just like a dog too. He has become a real favourite with staff and visitors and was featured in the local Fleetwood and Blackpool newspapers too.

The ponies all like to have company and enjoy grooming each other and grazing out in the paddocks. They have to be kept on strict diets so please do not feed them, as this can lead to colic and laminitis (a problem ponies can get with their feet when they get a little chubby).

The Shetland pony is a breed of pony originating in the Shetland Isles. Shetlands range in size from a minimum height of approximately 28 inches to an official maximum height of 42 inches (10.2 hands, 107 cm) at the withers. Shetland ponies have heavy coats, short legs and are considered quite intelligent. They are a very strong breed of pony, used for riding, driving, and pack purposes.

Today, Shetlands are used as children's riding ponies, are shown by both children and adults at horse shows in harness driving classes as well as for pleasure driving outside of the show ring. Shetlands are ridden by small children at horse shows, in riding schools and for pleasure. They are seen working in commercial settings such as fairs or carnivals to provide short rides for visitors. They are also seen at petting zoos and sometimes are used for therapeutic horseback riding purposes. In the United Kingdom, they are also featured in the Shetland Pony Grand National, galloping around a racecourse with young jockeys.

Miniature shetlands have been trained as guide horses to take the same role as guide dogs.This task is also performed by other miniature horse breeds.

Shetland Ponies are hardy and strong, in part because the breed developed in the harsh conditions of the Shetland Isles. In appearance, Shetlands have a small head, sometimes with a dished face, widely-spaced eyes and small and alert ears. The original breed has a short, muscular neck, compact, stocky bodies, and short, strong legs and a shorter than normal cannon bone in relation to their size. A short broad back and deep girth are universal characteristics as is a springy stride. Shetlands have long thick manes and tails and a dense double winter coat to withstand harsh weather. Different breed registries have different height standards, but the outside ranges are between a minimum of 7 hands and 11.2 hands (28 to 46 inches (71 to 117 cm).

Shetlands can be almost every colour, including skewbald and piebald, but are mainly black, chestnut, bay, brown, gray, palomino, dun, roan, cremello, and silver dapple. Registered shetlands are not leopard spotted (Appaloosa), nor do they carry the champagne gene, though these colors are sometimes seen in Shetland-sized crossbreds.

Shetland ponies are generally gentle, good-tempered, and very intelligent by nature. They make good children's ponies, and are sometimes noted for having a "brave" character, but can be very opinionated or "cheeky", and, if not handled properly, can be impatient, snappy, and sometimes become uncooperative, traits often lumped under the label "stubborn" by those who fail to understand that pony behavior is influenced by the quality of human handling. Due in part to their intelligence and size, they are easily spoiled and can be very headstrong if not well-trained.

For its size, the Shetland is the strongest of all horse and pony breeds. It can pull twice its own weight under circumstances where a draft horse can only pull approximately half its own weight, as well as many being able to carry up to 9 stone – 130 pounds (59 kg). Shetland ponies are found worldwide, though mainly in the UK and North America. In general, UK ponies tend to preserve more of the original characteristics of the breed and are often stockier than their American cousins.

Many ponies are long-lived, it is not unusual for a Shetland pony to live more than 30 years. Conversely, their small size also predisposes some individuals to a greater probability of heart problems than in larger animals, on occasion leading to early death. Shetland ponies, like many hardy small horse and pony breeds, can easily develop laminitis if on a diet high in non-structural carbohydrates. Therefore owners must pay careful attention to nutrition, being careful to regulate feed quantity and type.

The Falabella miniature horse is one of the smallest breeds of horse in the world, seldom taller than eight hands (78 cm/32 inches) in height at the withers. The Falabella is a rare breed, with only a few thousand individuals existing worldwide. The Falabella, despite its size, is not considered a pony, but rather is a miniature horse.

The ancestral stock of the horse of South America descended from horses brought to the western hemisphere by the Spanish of Andalusian and other Iberian  bloodlines. In the southern part of the continent, significant numbers of these horses developed within geographically isolated conditions and by the mid-nineteenth century, there were any number of smaller, inbred animals in the herds of Mapuche Indians of southern Buenos Aires province in Argentina.  The Falabella horse was originally developed in Argentina  from local horses of Criollo stock, beginning in 1868 with the breeding program of Patrick Newtall. When Newtall died, the herd and breeding methods were passed to Newtall's son-in-law, Juan Falabella. Juan added additional bloodlines, including the Welsh Pony, Shetland pony, and small Thoroughbreds. With considerable inbreeding, he was able to gain consistently small size within the herd.