If you're going to be using mounted combat you need a reason not to use a lance. What's yours?
Rapid Shot with javelins and without Quick Draw is odd. I don't understand that part of the plan - are the javelins just for level 1?
A combat trained pony is only 45 gold, and a much better option than taking rich parents and a riding dog. I'm also not sure rich parents is a PBS legal trait. Is it? Either way, you get a mount for free at level 4, so just ride that pony til then. At that point I recommend a wolf over a dog. He'll be medium until level 10, and then you can cast reduce animal if you need to go indoors.
If you're going with a reach weapon I recommend a lance. It'll deal double damage on a charge which is better than the sunder bonus from your Lucerne hammer.
Alternatively, main your greataxe and let your mount attack on the charge too. That's a solid option.
Consider dropping your STR to 15 after racial modifiers. It'll be lousy to have 15 STR to start, but it gets you 4 point buy points back which can be used to pump your other stats, and you only have to rough it for 3 levels.
Skip heavy armor proficiency, you'll have enough DEX that you don't want a full plate anyway.
And max handle animal as a skill too.
A lance can be used 1H mounted, so you don't have to drop your bow to get it out. Or you can draw and throw a javelin without dropping the lance. A switch hitter who doesn't want to leave their weapons littering the battlefield will find this useful. Less so in PFS where you never have to retreat, admittedly.
And then there's the double damage on a charge of course.
Unfortunately, rich parents isn't legal for pfs.
The thing about pfs is that you get free rebuilds until you level to 2nd level. So, you could play your first 3 sessions as a cavalier and then reroll to your actual build when you start playing as 2nd level. You should easily be able to afford it by then.
The biggest issue is this: you can't always rely on charge, but with your feat progression, you can't always rely on archery either. You're not taking precise shot at all, so as soon as your pals get into melee, it's a big fat -4 penalty on all your ranged attacks. I think the treantmonk switch hitter works well because it isn't trying to squeeze mounted combat into the equation too. I'd either focus more in one direction (mounted melee or mounted archery) or lose the mounted stuff. You still have an animal companion with some cool abilities, you just don't have to invest feats in riding him.
Other things to consider. First, there's an FAQ that explains that when wielding a lance one-handed it keeps the 1.5x power attack damage bonus, so the lance damage will be 7-14 or 14-24 on a charge. As power attack grows in damage bonus, the difference between the hammer and the lance will matter less and less. But at 16 STR and small size you'll want to maximize damage somehow. Upgrading to twohanding a hammer isn't that bad a way to do it.
The riding dogs start at medium because you're buying a full grown, trained animal. Your dog companion starts out as a small-sized pup, so you can't ride him until he reaches medium size at level 7. Wolves on the other hand start medium and get large. Typically this is a liability, but as a ranger you can usually cast reduce animal to shrink him down for dungeons.
You probably can't count on charging a whole lot in PFS. I've only played a few times, but the scenarios don't tend to have huge maps. That's one reason it's nice to be small. If you were playing an AP that was out doors a lot, you could count on charging more.
If you like the idea of being more of a ranged specialist, forget switch hitting, pump your DEX up more, and take all archery feats. When you get pinned down you can have your Wolf make melee attacks while you dismount and get back into ranged attack position. Many of your spells will beef your Wolf up, and you can take Boon Companion (from the free download PF Society book) if you want him to be 3 levels stronger.
And no, I don't think a feat and 10650 gold for armor that reduces your speed to 15' is a great deal. Especially since you're taking mounted combat and rangers don't get anything to help with the nasty ACP on ride checks. If you take Armor master a mithral breastplate has an ACP of 0 and costs far less while still letting you move full speed.
You only need 10 feet of move to charge. The real problem is getting a clear charge lane.
Shoot, sorry. I thought it was from the PFS Primer, but it's in Seeker of Secrets and Animal Archive. I meant armor expert, not master.
You'll be roughly equivalent numbers-wise to start and then later it'll even out as bonuses start stacking up. Nothing to worry about too much.
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I highly suggest the Animal Archive Book for you. Its a small cheap supplement that can be bought in PDF form to save you money.
Click my avatar. I play a Halfling Beastmaster Ranger 7/Fighter 1 that rides a Giant Gecko. I run along walls and ceilings to make charge lanes. Like others have said getting a charge lane can be difficult. I've had people not want to give it because I 1 shot bosses....and other wanting to troll by standing in front of me all the time. Any ceiling 10-15ft high is an amazing advantage because not many can block your charge lane from those crazy angles of attack.
As far a Switch hitter and mounted combat your not getting enough feats to do everything. Myself if I ever get dismounted (only happened 1 time for a single fight) I rely on Str+Power attack+Favored Enemy to do damage...and it still is effective enough for PFS play. I highly recommend Focusing on Mounted combat and if you need ranged. I never did need it. I invest in Potions/scrolls of Fly and air walk....so where some use a bow...I just charge it down....Because I value my feats more than Gold in most cases and I intend to get the most use out of it.