[1] Ponying can be used to exercise horses too young to be ridden, or to provide light work to injured horses or those recovering from illness or surgery.
It is a useful method by which a single individual can condition more than one horse at a time,[2] and multiple polo ponies are often exercised at the same time by a single rider.
[5] The pony horse must have a calm and steady disposition.
Geldings are often preferred mounts due to their more reliable disposition, particularly for ponying stallions.
[2] Sometimes ponying is done from a western saddle to give the pony rider more control over the led horse because it allows the rider to "dally" or wrap the lead rope around the saddle horn if needed to maintain control of the ponied horse.