Category Archives: Horse Training Tips

While last week’s tip was about training around obstacles, this week is about the physical location. Always train your horse in a safe place!  Avoid places that are too small for the horse, or are so packed with obstacles that he will no be able to move around safely. Always try to use the same place for training, and not for other common activities, such as eating. Horses are very place-sensitive animals; when the horse enters this zone he will [...]

The thing that makes a great trail horse great is the fact that he has seen it all and done it all, so nothing seems to phase him.  This all starts in training – one step at a time. The first thing we will do is lead the horse. Lead him over and through anything you can find just get him used to the fact that he can do it. That way, later on when you are on his back [...]

Training a horse is all about pressure and release. Pressure to a horse is perceived as the command, and the release of pressure will be the reward. You will want your horse to respond to pressure to move forward, backward, and side-to-side. Start training for this on the ground. Example:  Moving back – get a training stick or rod (I use the sticks they sell for working cattle with a rubber tip on it); halter your horse and bring him to a safe [...]

Trust…it seems like a no-brainer, but it is the foundation of all interactions with a horse (or any animal, for that matter). It is just as easy to teach a bad habit as it is to teach a good one!  Be careful how you handle your horse and above all, think before you act!  Have a plan and follow through.  When training a horse, it is all about repetition and doing it the same way every time. Always try to [...]

Ropes are a great training tool . Some folks ask, “I am not going to rope any thing with this horse, so does he need to get used to ropes?”  Well the simple answer is: yes.   You will be using lead ropes, halters (maybe not a rope, but close!), reins, cinch straps dragging all over the horses body, and if you are around any kind of group ride your horse will see a lot of rope. Getting a horse used to ropes of all kinds is just [...]

To follow up with last week’s training tip, this week is about Ground Work: What is ground work?  Simply put it is everything you do with a horse on the ground. (As in, not in the saddle.) For example, right now I am working with a young horse that is spooky - jumps at his own shadow - so I need to get him over that and get him comfortable with all the other stuff going on around him!  Through ground work,  he will be [...]

Owner and founder of Show-Me Trail Ride Outfitter, Jeff Strahle, has compiled some training tips that we will be sharing with you on a weekly basis. For those of you who have had the privilege of riding one of Jeff’s trail horses, you know that he puts hours of training into his horses to keep them at top performance! Jeff has a no-nonsense method of training that requires no gimmicky props or special rope-throwing techniques; it’s just good hard work [...]

Training a horse takes time – usually about 3 months, depending on the individual horse.
Here is an outline of what those 3 months involve.