Building a strong, trusted bond with a horse through gradual training makes for a safe, rewarding bond that improves communication and responsiveness over many years of fun riding. A natural bond between the horse and rider is important for training, but tried-and-true methods also help set training goals that meet the needs of both the horse and the rider.
The basic ideas behind current, kind horse training for dressage, jumping, or trail work are covered in this book. We talk about taking charge, doing the necessary prep work, the first riding lessons, and how to build an intuitive relationship based on mutual understanding.
Getting people to trust and follow you
Doing groundwork is an important part of building communication skills that are needed to train horses under saddle in the future. When done right, these activities build trust, respect, and leadership between people without using fear or force. Never anger or impatience as a prize for trying. Always praise them.
Some important groundwork basics are:
Desensitising means making horses used to sounds, sights, and barriers.
Leading: Remind the dog to follow the handler’s voice and actions.
Lunging: Get people to move your body. getting ready for riding orders
Obstacle work—Negotiating items can help you feel more confident and aware.
Grooming and handling: Lots of positive attention and care
Routine groundwork gives handlers a chance to show constant leadership through clear cues and body language. When trainers show that they are worthy of following, horses become open. When you build a connection based on trust and understanding, you can ride more responsively.
Introducing Riders and Saddles
The first rides are important because they show the horse that a saddle and person are just tools for better long-term training and not something to be afraid of.
Some important tips for early riding are:
Work in a comfortable, enclosed space where you won’t be interrupted by outside noise.
Sessions should last no more than 10 minutes at a time.
At first, ride alone instead of being led by another person.
Use calm praise and treats every so often. gives rewards often
First, work on basic walking skills like stopping and starting, and driving without turning. End on a positive note before you start to feel anxious.
Slowly extend the time over several days as you get used to it and feel more confident.
As your skills get better over time, let the horse decide how fast to go. It’s better to wait an extra day if there is pushback than to push through it and hurt trust. When you rush through your first ride, you could cause mental problems that cause many horses to start bucking or bolting. It does pay off to be patient.
Getting Better at Riding Moves and Cues
Regular groundwork and riding helps the horse and rider understand each other better, which is important for progressing in training for dressage, jumping, or field work. Now, more complex features can be added properly by:
slowly added tack features over time, such as bits, martingales, and so on
Do figure eights, turns, and small rounds. – enhancing side-to-side moving
Positional give and take can be practiced by going backwards and sideways.
Opening gates or low fences can help people solve problems.
Walking on trails over logs, ditches, and narrow roads will make you more aware.
Set up teaching situations so that they can succeed, not fail. If you don’t have the right skills, go back to the basics before going on. It’s better to have a horse that is too well-prepared than to be in a situation that makes you feel scared because you doubt your own abilities. Complete trust and relationship are needed to train a horse to do its best.
Refinement by Doing It Again and Again
To train a horse to the highest level, you need to ride it for thousands of hours and make subtle cues second nature. This is easier to do with consistent weekly lessons that drill important basics like
How to move from one gate to the next: walk, trot, and canter.
Making big turns to the side and switching directions
Stopping and staying still on voice command
Going back straight from a stop on a slight leg signal
Getting around clean paths with obstacles
Getting faster and stronger for hard work
Hacking research and drills should happen together so that people don’t get bored and their communication skills stay sharp. Competitive riders may include horse shows as a way to get more real-world experience.
Being aware of your role as a leader
When teaching horses, people who are in charge must be calm and firm. Being too passive or too forceful hurts the leadership that is so important for building mutual trust. Be the consistent teacher by having kindness and understanding. Know that calling behaviours “good” or “bad” is often due to outside forces or a lack of training.
Set yourself up for long-term success by:
Short, clear instructions that don’t get emotional
Taking note of the smallest attempts and small steps towards improvement
Not moving on until the basics are mastered solidified
Paying attention to what the horse wants Everyday Making tasks enjoyable instead of laborious
To really connect intuitively with horses, you have to be very dedicated for years. But for those who fully commit to the leadership responsibilities of consistent, immersive training, amazing synchronicity shows up on the trail, in the ring, and beyond.