"In Early 1936, my husband and I went to England to look at various ponies with a view to raising them... Our
contacts in England gave us somewhere to start, and we saw many
equines. We made our choices, starting off with three Dartmoor mares and
a stallion. We also chose three Welsh mares from three old studs:
Bowdler, Criban and Coed Coch. They followed us over the ocean on later
boats.
In
1938, we had our first foal, Farnley Sirius, a wonderful stallion.
Unfortunately there were very few Welsh mares in this country (and no
other Dartmoors except on the Prince of Wales Ranch in Canada), so we
had no opportunity to breed Sirius at that time. We
started going back quite promptly after the war, I think it was 1946.
We made two or three more trips after that. We brought back ponies on
cargo and passenger ships which had 10-12 passengers and all sorts of
cargo and took a week and a half to make the crossing. We took care of
them, ponies, horses (we also bought Cleveland Bays) and once or twice a
Bull Terrier, and were all firm friends by the time we got home.
I
have never been any good at publicity and the Dartmoors never got the push from me that they should have
had. They are now making their own way. The Welsh have done well, and I
am pleased that our mares may have played a part in their popularity."
Mrs. J.H. Dunning
Joan H. Dunning began Farnley Farm over 75 years ago by importing and breeding Welsh Mountain ponies and Dartmoor ponies. In the late 1940s, her daughter Hetty M-S Abeles started breeding ponies at Farnley with the "Shenandoah" prefix. Hetty Abeles continues the breeding program today with both prefixes.
Joan Dunning
Farnley Farm Great Facilities
Good pasture allows ponies the space to gallop and develop good flat bone and muscle. Space to run reduces the chance that ponies develop bad habits or sour temperament. The bluegrass and limestone of the Shenandoah Valley promote excellent nutrition without the need for artificial supplements. Most feed and hay are grown on the premises or locally.
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