What I Wish Horse Owners Did Before They Sent Me Their Young Horse
I will be honest, not all horses start from the same starting line. Some horses (like some people) come with baggage, and other horses come with less. If there were an imaginary starting line that young horses start their training from, that line would be the “neutral” position. Some horses, like those with previous injuries, histories of abuse, or with super sensitive or very aggressive personalities, those horses will start with a disadvantage a few steps behind the starting line. On the opposite end of the spectrum are horses that get a head start, and will start a few steps in front of the starting line. Horses that are naturally well balanced, horses that jump well, horses that are super trainable, or easy going about everything, they all get a few steps ahead of the line. Now, all horses have both the “negative” and “positive” characteristics, because despite what 10,000 sales ads on social media will tell you, unicorns do not exist, and every horse has something to overcome. The trick is having more traits that put your horse on the positive end of the spectrum rather than the negative.
As a horse owner, you try to give your baby horse as many advantages as you can. If you bred them, you tried to give them the best temperament, confirmation, movement and athletic ability, but even if you bought your young horse, there are things you can do to help them succeed before they even get to me. I do want to say this is my own personal wish list, and just so nobody reading this panics, I have started horses that lacked many or most of these, and they have still turned out just fine.
The very first thing I want is a young horse that is comfortable with people and every day barn life. If a young horse has been handled since birth, has some idea of a normal barn routine, can be led, groomed, have its feet picked up, and come in and out of a barn, that is a good enough foundation for me to start with. If it’s pushy when being led, or scared of the wash rack, or doesn’t understand the clippers, all of that is just fine. I consider that to be a normal part of the young horse development process that I will go through with them.
The better the physical health and shape a young horse comes to me in, the better and more quickly the training goes. I expect baby blemishes: scrapes, kicks, missing hair, missing tail, I don’t bat an eye at that. What I do want is a recent dental exam, feet that are still barefoot and regularly trimmed correctly, a baby that is up to date on its shots and deworming, and extra bonus points to the owner who has had their baby seen by a body worker for just good maintenance practices. I would say obviously the babies should be sound, but I have actually started a few horses where, after being cleared by a vet, I both started and rehabbed them at the same time, but that is not the norm nor my preference, but it can be worked with.
(So now that the more common sense stuff is out of the way, here are my more personal and particular asks).
I will not start a horse unless I have an enclosed space to work in. Full stop. I have turned down starting horses on someone else’s property if I do not have an enclosed arena, or at minimum, a round pen to start the horses in. That’s non-negotiable for me. Let’s jut say I have had “incidences” in the past where not having an inclosed space was, or could have become, a significant safety issue for me and the horse. Obviously we would all like an immaculate arena with GGT footing, fans, and a ground crew, but I am happy to settle for a dirt arena or dusty round pen, it just needs to be fully and safely enclosed.
I am an army of one, and I don’t have an assistant that regularly works with me, so if I start a horse on someone else’s property, I need to know that there is someone on the ground who can help me at crucial points. For the vast majority of horses, I just need someone with horse sense, who is confident working with horses on the ground, and who doesn’t panic when things (very literally) go sideways. I can talk them through what I need them to do and usually that goes well. I do start the majority of horses with someone on the ground for the first 5-10ish rides depending on the horse. There are occasions where I actually prefer not to have someone in the arena with me. Some horses are more distracted by having a ground handler, so much so that it makes it difficult. With horses like that, I simply request that someone watch me and make sure that if I end up on the ground, I get right back up.
Next, the more that has been done with the young horse, not necessarily the better for me. To be blunt, I don’t like having a young horse come to me with someone else’s ground work already ingrained. I spend a minimum of 30 days doing ground work with the babies that come to me. It is essential to the efficiency and safety of how I start horses that I go through it with them, and when I have had horses brought to me that are “ready to ride” becuase someone else “has done all that ground work stuff already” not only does that not save me time, I actually end up spending more time undoing whatever the previous training was. Basic ground handling is good, but I prefer to teach anything more than that.
Now don’t misunderstand me, I don’t want the horses to be unhandled or feral, in fact, I love when young horses have been 0ff-property before I start working with them. It doesn’t really matter why they have been off -property (except to go to the vet, that doesn’t count), whether it was an in-hand show, a play-date at another farm, or an obstacle course, all of those are good. The most important thing is that the experience is positive, with positive reinforcement from humans, and not too stressful. I don’t need a two-year-old to have been off the property every weekend of its life, but even if its had one or two positive off-property experiences, that can be beneficial.
And lastly, I like babies to have been through a jump chute, or at least to go through a jump chute with me. Even if a horse isn’t bred to be a jumper or isn’t going to learn to jump with me, it can be really good for their confidence and give me a good idea of what I am working with. When I teach horses to jump under saddle, it is notable that the horses that have been through a jump chute are significantly easier to teach. They understand what they need to do, they are more confident, and have a good idea of what to do with their feet. It is also a good way to see what you have in a horse, how athletic they are, how brave, and how they respond to pressure.
That is my “wish list” of sorts. These are things that over my years of starting babies I have come to find as some of the most important and beneficial things to have in place before the training process begins. If your horses hasn’t done all of those things, don’t fret, but if you are looking for ways to give your horse an edge, or if you want to earn brownie points and get your horse into my program, consider this your cheat sheet.