Urgent advice needed re: ponies and children

[kaya]

I have a rising 5yr old welsh A who I have owned for 2 years, she is fab when being handled groomed led the whole package. My 3yr old grandaughter has been on her lead reign for the past year however, for the first time I let my grandaughter in the stable with her, although she has been in the stable with her before she has always been in my arms, our pony pinned her ears straight back and turned her bum towards my grandaughter, when I lifted my grandaughter up our pony was then fine.
Today I had my friends daughter out to see our pony, she is a petite 5yr old, again our pony had her ears pinned back whilst she was in the stable. We tacked her up and the girl walked her around arena and into stable, unharmed and fed pony even brushed up around her while eating. The girl wanted to lead her out to field and initially our pony was fine, then she pinned her ears back and swung her bum round as if to kick out at the girl as I was at the other side of the pony I wasn't sure if she did actually get kicked but she was on the ground and seemed injury, I think that our pony's bum must have knocked her over before she kicked.
I urgently need to know how best to get our pony to accept little people around her before some child gets hurt. Please any help would greatly be appreciated. Xx

[CityLights]

how strange, usually horses really like kids, not sure how to fix it really, maybe getting them to give her treats and stuff but she might just get really pushy then so it might not really help

[kaya]

Thanks anyway, it seems like anyone that is smaller than her she feels threatened with them, with her obviously only ever going to be a childs pony I need to do something about it and other than having children around her I am not sure how to approach this without a child being injured :-)

[beks the artist]

Is the mare in season perhaps?

[kaya]

Nope she is not in season. She was majorly spooky when I got her as a 3 year old but we have got her desensitised to just about everything except obviously the one thing she should be looking after, children. She has loads of teenagers and adults always round about her and she never bothers and the twice we have had mini mees around her she looks aggresive, but when they ride her she is no problem. x

[BEX101]

Children move different to adults and with them being smaller dont have to go far along a horses side before being out of eye sight. It can make them a bit jumpy.

It could also have something to do with the ranking system. When a horse at the bottom of the field ranking is friends with one near the top its ranking is altered whilst in its friends company (ie the other top ranking horses will tolerate it) but if on its own its back at the bottom and the other top rankers may bully it.
Your pony may see you and other adults as top rankers so is respectful but little kids are at the bottom in her eyes.
If she ok when your holding a child the next step i'd take is to have the child on the ground but with you directly behind her (literally close enough so your bodies are touching)
1 - you are close enough to guide the childs movements
2 - you can scoop her up if anything does happen
3 - hopefully the pony will respect the child even though its on the ground

gradually you may be able to step further back as the pony gets used to them.

[sherman74]

Thinking from a ponies point of view, being in a stable firstly takes away their escape route so anything they may fear would be exagerated ten fold, little people do scare some ponies expecially if they are not used to them, they make sudden screams and because they are at their leg level some ponies could feel threatened as there legs are obviously there flight tools, and not knowing what they are doing there could make them feel scraed and agressive i guess. what is she like in the field with them (under supervision of course) say if you sat the child on your lap and see what she does then, x

[kaya]

Thank you Bex and Sherman. She definately feels threatened with small people on the ground, when I lift the child up she is fine with them.