Makes sense. Or longspears for a little variety.
Any spear combo is fine by me.
I just realized an easy way of solving this problem was checking what the Hek in UK6 are armed with.
It turns out that the Hek tribesmen have shortswords (1-6 damage) and the leaders have longswords (1-8), with both using leather + shield as armor. Those that ride Giant Striders use light lances (1-6 damage).
So, longswords and spears for weapons? Those both do 1d6 in a small creature's hand.
Wow...good idea.
Yeah, that suggestion appeals.
Feat: Weapon Focus (longsword)?
Maybe split ranks between Handle Animal and Ride?
Self-Sufficient is fine, though it doesn't play too well with the available warrior skills. What about something like Animal Affinity? Or do you want to spread out the bonuses a bit?