Shetland Pony Foal

Question
ok, im getting a ten month old shetland pony this week for my 5 year old and 1 year old daughters and i have a problem. I have been riding since i was 6 years old myself and i have helped training and breaking horses since i was 13 the down fall is ive never rode a shetland and ive never trained one, i dont know the age this lil foal needs to be before i train her for riding, once my girls out growing riding her i will be keeping her as a pet but id love for my girls to know how to ride by starting out on a shetland pony, i my self have been thrown from full grown horses since i started riding and then starting to help in the training of the horse but my knowledge does not include shetland ponies and when its ok to start there training. Every mini ive been around has already been trained and i just had to lead them with the lead when young children have begun learning how to ride. Any advice you could give me about a good age to start training it i would really appricate it. Thank you so much.

Answer
A horse is a horse is a horse. Train your pony the same way you would train any other horse. Start with the ground work to get a good fundamental on your pony and go from there. If you have trained other horses I don't see any problems with you training the pony. It's just a small horse. Good luck and have loads of fun. It can be a rewarding experience.