2007 photo courtesy of Donna Hanson

Excalibur, also known as x man, is the synopsis of "short, round, and low to the ground", which is the phrase we use to describe UK shetland Ponies. How can you tell a miniature horse from a UK Shetland? If they look like a mini draft- it's the UK shetland. Excalibur was part of the 4 ponies that came to us from Nebraska. I didn't have a horse trailer, and needed to pick up 4 ponies. I did some research on how much weight a mini van could hold and it was 900 lbs on the rear axle... I found a volunteer, whom I had just met to drive the 10 hours to Nebraska with me and we slept in the rest area waiting for the ponies to get there. When the horse trailer pulled up and they opened the back, I took one look at Excalibur-the little short fat guy and said, "oh my, they may not fit, he might pop my tires!" Trust me we prayed all the way home for the tires not to blow. We made it, and the ponies did great in the mini van. It was a bit stinky and a long 10 hour drive back but all made it safe and sound. However, the minivan will never smell the same. Excalibur is used as a promotional pony and is eligible to go to a home which has horse experience.