From the 1840s, Shetland ponies began to be ______________ in British coal mines as new laws did not allow the employment of women, girls and, later, boys. Hardy, resilient and very ______________ for their size, the ponies made ideal substitutes as they were able to pass through low underground tunnels hauling truckloads of coal.
At first, ponies were simply rounded up and exported from Shetland but, from around 1880 until the end of the 19th ______________ , there were breeding pony farms in the islands.
At home on the Sheland Islands, Shetland ponies were used as workhorses - cultivating the ______________ and transporting peat from hills.
Shetland ponies are uniquely suited to the Shetland Islands, able to graze on the hills and rough heather clad moorland which would prove challenging for many other animals. In some ______________, where land and sea meet, the ponies can supplement their diet with nutrients from mineral rich seaweed on ______________.
There is plenty of open space to roam freely and ponies can seek natural shelter, if need be, behind hillocks, old stone walls or peat banks.