14/09/2026
PRESIDENT'S REPORT
14th September 2026
Dear Members,
The meteorological Autumn has started bringing much needed rain to many of us. The dry summer has been trying, yellow fields, reduced harvest and the trees shedding leaves before time. Ponies munching through their winter rations of hay left many of us hunting around to replenish stocks.
The summer has been busy with shows all over the country, but the highlight for me was the trip to Orkney for this year’s SPSBS Breed Show. We took a day to explore the Islands, it was most interesting to visit some of the prehistoric sites. Personally, I am very curious about farming on Orkney and had an interesting chat with a local farmer about rearing and selling cattle on Orkney.
The ISPC (International Shetland Pony Committee) Meeting started off the weekend on the 21st August at the Orkney Hotel in Kirkwall with Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands and France attending. Unfortunately, the representatives from Poland could not be with us this year. We had a very productive meeting, please look out for a more detailed report in the next magazine. In the evening members gathered at the Kirkwall Livestock Centre for the Societies AGM. We were greeted by bagpipes playing, a very fitting official opening for the 2026 Breed Show.
At the AGM we reviewed last year’s minutes, looked at the annual accounts and voted to keep our accountants, Grant Considine for the next financial year. A vote was taken on the special resolution wording “The minutes, in their complete form without any redaction, are to be made freely available to all members by post, online or by email”. Many members who could not attend had nominated proxys. All the names were read out, and a show of hands was counted – 85% against, 15% for – 66 Members were in attendance.
A proposal for a special resolution to include wording to publish a synopsis of the Council Meeting Minutes in the constitution was voted on and carried. This special resolution will be voted on at next year’s AGM.
On the day of the show the weather was kind, many exhibitors had travelled from the Shetland Islands and the mainland, the classes were well supported and the entries for the child handler classes fit for the Guinness book of records. A little rain accompanied the afternoon classes for a short while but the spectators stayed to the end of the show.
A lovely buffet had been organised in the evening giving much needed sustenance to all who attended.
On Sunday several studs opened their gates, and a constant stream of visitors enjoyed the ponies on show. The hospitality was second to none, a lovely end to a wonderful few days. A big thank you to all who helped to make the 2026 SPSBS Breed Show and the weekend a great success.
Looking forward to October, the sales are starting with Lerwick, the show is on Tuesday 6th October followed by the sale on the 7th October. Aberdeen show will be held on the evening of Sunday 11th October with the sale taking place the following day on the 12th October. The last sale of the year is at Worcester livestock market; the show will take place on Saturday 24th October followed by the sale the next day (25th October).
The Society is hosting the Judges Seminar on October 31st 2026, at Shetland House in Perth. The speaker this autumn is Mr. Brian Williams; we are looking forward to this educational event. Please find details and information on the Society’s page and website.
The office encounters a reoccurring problem when the change of ownership form is not filled in and the pony’s passport is not updated with the names of the new owners. Tracing past owners sometimes proves impossible and takes up a lot of valuable time. This problem occurs mainly when ponies are sold privately or through sales not held under the auspices of the Society. It is vital that the pony is transferred into the new owner’s name to avoid disappointment at a later date when trying to register foals etc. I would also recommend that, if you purchase a c**t with the intention of running him on as a future stallion, you ensure that his dam has been DNA tested. A hair sample can be taken from the dam and stored at the office for future use, should it be required.
Kindest regards
Corinna
President
