Short pony, low fence line, real strength
A Shetland pony needs fencing about three and a half to four and a half feet high, but the measurement that saves you is at the bottom, not the top. Shetlands stand small and think big: a pony that cannot jump a fence will duck under it, lean through it, or rub it apart, and this breed's dense build and strong neck deliver more force against a weak section than its size suggests.
Set the lowest rail or mesh edge close to the ground for a Shetland, leaving no pony-sized slot beneath it. Horse fencing built for full-sized animals often starts its bottom board at a height a Shetland can walk under with a dip of the head, which is why ponies so often graze contentedly on the wrong side of an apparently sound horse fence.
Materials that stand up to a Shetland's rubbing
Boards, sturdy rails, and tight stock mesh all work for Shetland ponies when they are fixed on the pony's side of the posts and kept in repair. A Shetland rubs hard, especially under a thick winter coat or a mane full of summer itches, and works a loose board back and forth until it drops. Screwed fixings and posts that do not rock are worth more here than an extra foot of height.
Electric tape or rope can reinforce a Shetland fence, run inside the main barrier at pony chest and nose height, but thick coats blunt its lesson in winter. Use it as a stand-off that keeps the pony off the structural fence, not as the only thing between a determined Shetland and the garden, the road, or the feed shed.
The feed shed problem and gate discipline
Most Shetland escapes are motivated, and the motivation is usually food. A pony that gets out and finds rich grass or an open feed shed has been paid for escaping and will invest real ingenuity in repeating it. Site the Shetland paddock so an escape leads to a yard or lane, not straight onto lush grazing, and double-latch the feed store whatever fence you build.
Gates for Shetlands need pony-proofing at pony height. A latch placed for adult human convenience on a tall gate may leave the gate's bottom corner free to flex outward, and a Shetland pushes exactly there, with his shoulder, until the gap fits him. Add a low bolt or chain, and hang the gate so its bottom edge stays close to the ground across its swing.
Following the belly line on your checks
Walk a Shetland fence at pony eye level, or at least crouch at each section. From standing height, the fence looks intact while the bottom rail is bowed, the mesh is bellied outward at belly height, and a dip under the gate has deepened by an inch since last week. Shetlands graze a fence line down and paw at it, changing the ground profile month by month, so yesterday's flush bottom edge can float above a hollow by spring.
Pay special attention after you move a Shetland to a new paddock. The first day is an examination, nose to ground, end to end, and whatever he learns about that fence he remembers. Being present, watching the test points, and fixing them the same day teaches him the boundary is dull and solid everywhere.
A pony this systematic deserves notes as systematic as he is, and KinsLe Family Sharing keeps your Shetland's known test points and gate habits in his profile so everyone in the family checks the same spots.