Basics of Horse Training

Many people think that training horses to act a certain way is an extremely challenging and time consuming endeavor. However, the theories behind training horses are quite simple really, and surprise most people who are not involved in the horse industry. Although there are several theories and guidelines that allow humans to be able to teach an animal 8 times their weight respond to simple cues with minimal struggle and restraint, they truly are quite simple, as horses are simple creatures. If they are scared, they run; they are prey, not predators as are most herbivores.

Of utmost importance is having the horses undivided attention. All distractions should be removed before attempting any training, as well as ensuring that the horse is relaxed, not scared of anything, nor should he be full of energy. The horses energy level is extremely important. If he was in a stall all day and unable to exert energy prior to training attempts, the attempts will likeliy be unsuccessful. If the situation is not ideal, he will not be able to learn. The trainer must consider the environment where they are teaching and where the horse is most comfortable.

After ensuring the environment is adequate and the situation is ideal, the trainer needs to look at how they feel. A good trainer is relaxed, calm and walks into a ring with patience. The horse will take his cues from the trainer. If the trainer is excited or nervous, the horse will be the same. It is important to remember that the horse mimics the trainer when it comes to energy levels, tension and relaxation. Besides attitude, body language is extremely important and accounts for a large part of a horses reaction to a person. According the Gene and Sandy Miller, "A good trainer will give a horse a cue and then give the horse enough time to figure out the response the trainer is looking for."

Reading a Horses Body Language

Horses will give you signs indicating how he is doing, feeling and what he is thinking. A good trainer will be able to pick up on these signs and adjust their training. Some common indicators include:

Ø  A relaxed eye- indication that he is understanding what you are asking.

Ø  Head up, white of eyes showing, snorting, ears perked, frozen body - fear, scared, spooked

Ø  One ear pinned back - confusion or anger, if the rider doesn't pick up on this and make a change, he may buck

Ø  Both ears pinned back - anger and frustration, change something quickly

By understanding his body language, you can avoid confrontation and training pitfalls, but most importantly, keep an eye on his eye.

How Horses Learn

Ø  Small Steps

Ø  Repetition

Ø  Consistency

Ø  Make the right thing right

Ø  Correct bad behavior immediately

            Horses learn in small simple steps. Trying something too complex will only create a frustrated and even scared horse. This is the most challenging aspect of training a horse from a human’s perspective. We are not used to breaking a small task into even smaller and smaller tasks, but once we have mastered the art, we can become better trainers. It is important to remember that if it sounds like a confusing task for you, it is guaranteed to be confusing to the horse unless it is broken down into small enough steps. If a horse gets frustrated, confused or mad, it is usually because the steps are too big. The trainer should go back to the last thing that the horse understood where he is relaxed and continue training but using smaller steps. Small steps will allow for faster learning and less confusion.

             Repetition is also extremely important in the training process. The trainer must ask the horse for the same thing by using the same exact manner each time. He can tell where your hands and legs are, keep this in mind when you are training and creating a cue. If the trainer is not consistent, they will be teaching the horse the same thing over and over again. If the trainer can maintain using the exact same cue, the horse will only need to learn the cue once. A good trainer is able to control their entire body including arms, legs and seat when establishing cues. If the cue should only use hands, the trainer needs to make sure that is what they are doing. Horses can feel flies; they can feel every movement a person makes. If the horse understands and responds to a cue one day, but does not respond the next day, it is safe to assume that the trainer is not asking using the same exact cue, now the horse must be taught the cue again.

In addition, consistency is also important in any type of training, including horses. Horses need rules, guidelines and parameters. Having consistency will let the horse know what is acceptable versus unacceptable and when certain behaviors are acceptable. Horses will quickly learn that when they enter an arena, they are expected to learn and work, while they might know that when they go a different direction, they are being taken out to graze. They should know when it is okay to become excited.

The most important part of training a horse is the use and release of pressure. This is all trainers have to tell a horse what it should do. By applying pressure, the trainer is asking the horse to move away, once the horse moves away from the pressure, the pressure is released, which is their reward. They quickly learn what the trainer is asking and how to do it as well as what the reward is. It is important to be sure to release pressure once the horse exhibits the behavior or demonstrates an understanding of what is being asked. If the horse finds a way to get away from the pressure in a way that you did not want, he has still learned how to get the “reward”. When applying pressure, the trainer should use the least amount of pressure required to get the horse to respond. The pressure should always stay the same until he does what the trainer is asking. If the trainer is asking him to move his head right, the pressure should not be released if he moves his head up and down, but only when he moves his head to the right.  If the pressure is released when the head is thrown up, he will think that is what is being asked of him.

Lastly, if the trainer is experiencing difficulty, they should think the problem through. If the horse continues to fight, tie his head around and let him fight himself until he relaxes. If the horse is trying to take off, he should be brought into small circles, eventually he will learn that it is a lot easier to slow down than it is to take off. As trainers, it is important to think about why a horse is doing what he is doing. Make the right thing easy, and the wrong thing hard and be sure the horse has enough time to figure it out and be sure that bad behavior is corrected within one or two seconds.