Horse Training Secrets - What Is The Best Age To Start

By Author: Paul Zayer
Total Articles: 63
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If you make a compilation about secrets on training young horses, you may finish with a volume as thick as any dictionary. There has never been any scarcity on tips about training young horses; and like opinions, many of these advice may never have been proven to be wrong or right. The truth is, a lot of facts are important for horse trainers in their quest to build up a young horse's performance and physical characteristics.

For those who are beginning horse training, the sheer number of tips on training young horses can drive them to madness. Some techniques and principles that abound can be conflicting to each other; and the confusion can be more evident. However, to actually learn on training young horses, a person has to be open to trying out diverse techniques by combining different horse training methods. Here are some of the most common but successful training tips for young horses that have been practiced by so many trainers for generations.

Five years old is the average age that a horse can begin training. Although at this age, horses are still very young and therefore shouldn't be handled strickly because ...
... at this age, a severe training program can do damage to their physical development. Letting the horse feel what it is like under the saddle should be the focus at this age.

All horse training regimen depends on the breed of the horse being trained. Horses have slow and fast learners just like humans. For example, the mountain horse, which could be trained under the saddle as young as two years of age. Or the Arabians, which are especially slow on their development; Therefore, at two years old, they can barely be trained for anything yet. Even under one breed, individual horses still have their own development pace; knowing this will enable you to modify your horse training program accordingly.

While it is true that horses can begin training at two or five years old, young horses should never endure a training program that is meant for fully-grown horses. Training classes for younger horses must begin with fifteen to thirty minutes of training periods.

In the training of young horses, the training environment has a very important role. For instance, deep layers of soft sand in the riding ring may not be good for young horses because in order to move their feet out of the sand, they will have to pull harder. Also, it could be stressful for a young horse's developing legs to train in an incline ground; therefore, a level field is preferable.