Alvin may be the smallest horse on the farm, but he makes up for it with his larger-than-life personality!
Being small isn’t so bad
When we think of horses, we often are whisked away to images of horses galloping in a large meadow or riding a horse at a farm.
Alvin, a 10-year-old Shetland pony, may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a majestic, large horse.
Alvin lives on a farm in Sweden and is taken care of by farm owner Paulina Tufvesson.
On Paulina’s farm, she primarily trains horses but she also takes care of sheep and dogs.
Alvin is the smallest horse on the farm, but he sure does not act like it.
Alvin loves the spotlight
Paulina often takes videos and pictures of the animals on her farm.
Whenever the camera is taken out, Alvin immediately switches into celebrity mode.
He will find any way to be on camera, whether it’s sitting on a rock or jumping around on his hind legs.
“He will do anything he can to make sure he is in the frame,” Paulina shared with The Dodo.
The spotlight wasn’t always on
Even though Alvin has a big personality, he was not always this way.
When Paulina first met Alvin, she knew something was special about him.
He was a bit shy upon their first meeting, but Paulina knew she could get him out of his shell.
With Paulina’s expertise in animal training, Alvin presented himself to her as a new challenge.
She was going to help him overcome his fears of people!
Alvin slowly opens up
Paulina was already using clicker training to train her farm dogs.
Paulina thought that Alvin could respond to the clicker training, so she had the idea to use the training methods on him.
She knew it would take a lot of time and patience, but she knew it was worth a shot.
As Alvin became more accustomed to the clicker training, this helped him get over his fears of humans.
Paulina was excited to see his progress and believed that if he was not trained, he would not be the horse he is today.
The training also helped bond Paulina and Alvin together, and now they are inseparable!
Alvin is thriving!
Since being trained, Alvin is able to run around on his own and has even befriended the sheep on the farm.
Paulina believes that Alvin’s friendship with the sheep comes from the fact that he’s bigger than them, whereas the horses he tends to shy away from them, as they’re so much bigger than him.
With the sheep, Alvin feels at home!
Nowadays, Alvin is no longer the shy and insecure horse that he once was.
Alvin has found his place on the farm and in the hearts of many worldwide as he’s a social media celebrity!
You can see more of Alvin’s adventures on social media where he has 185K followers.
For a good pick-me-up, watch Alvin’s journey below!
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