Hello, i'm just looking for some advice about possible showing opportunities for a newly acquired miniature spotted filly. i believe she may be too tall for her catagory as she is about 9hands now. would she be ok for m&m or anything like that? she has beautiful markings and i am hoping to do something with her over the summer and hopefully try and break her for my almost 4year old daughter 
many thanks
Hi,
With a 2 yr old filly, you will be restricted to in-hand classes only till pony is 4yrs old.
At local level, then you may consider trying in-hand classes for 'youngstock', 'best coloured'/ 'best turned out' / 'best conditioned' classes. Alternatively, Some venues may have in-hand novelty classes you could enter, such as 'pony judge would like to take home', 'prettiest pony' etc.
M&M classes are pretty much for ancient traditional UK native breeds such as Shetlands, Welsh, Exmoor etc - sadly the mini spotted breed does not really fall in this category - but always check the class entry rules because you never know!
When the pony is 4 yrs plus and reliably broken - then you can enter classes that accept lead rein ponies- like 'best lead rein pony', 'best turned out' 'best ridden coloured pony' etc and of course you & daughter can take part in fun things like gymkhanas and handy pony etc.
Every show venue can be different and have different classes / rules so read through the schedule to see what you can enter. To start 'in-hand' try somewhere learner friendly like Tack Farm or MardenDRC where its relatively relaxed & informal.
Good luck!
