Picking a Trainer

I have wanted to do an article on this for some time now. It is too bad, but it seems there are so many shysters, unethical horse trainers and just plain old rip off specialist out there in the horse world. I see many more horse traders that pass themselves off as trainers, than I see good honest horse people that truly have the horse’s best interest in mind. Since the beginning of man, it seems they have always found ways to use the horse to make money. Not much as changed over the years.

I worked with a horse the other day that was sent off to a trainer for seven months. Let me say that again, seven months with a trainer. After seven months of training, this horse could not caught, could not be lead, could not lounge and was fearful of every thing. This is just a shame for the horse and owner. The owner paid good money for help and thought she was getting her horse trained for seven months. This so-called trainer was leading the horse around by tying it to a quad and dragging it, this was her idea of teaching the horse to lead. Did I mention that this horse did not have his feet trimmed for the seven months it was at training? Why, they could not get the horse to hold up his feet for the Farrier. If I said it once, I have said it a hundred times, just because someone calls themselves a trainer, it does not make it so. When talking to the owner of this horse, I was told that when she wanted to go watch her horse and visit and the “trainer” told her she had to call first before coming out. This is a big red flag. I will list a few red flags you should watch for when picking a trainer.

Red Flags to watch for from “Trainers”:

• If you are told to call before you come to visit

• “I train at varied hours, so I can’t give you a specific time I work with your horse”

• “I always wear spurs, but I don’t use them”

• “I don’t like or buy into that “natural horsemanship” crap”

• “I don’t want you and anyone else working with the horse while I am training it”

• “I need to have time alone with your horse”

• “I need a minimum of 60 or 90 days to fix this horse”

• The trainer never ask what you plan to use the horse for

• The trainer tells you what he is going to do and will not modify for your needs

• The trainer can’t handle your horse any better than you can, on the first day

Your trainer should tell you, and if not you need to ask, what will my horse be able to do when you are done. If you get some mumbo jumbo about it depends on the horse, some horses learn faster, I don’t like to rush the horse or my favorite, they get offended and tell you that you will get your 30 days of training then we will where the horse is after that. If this trainer is reputable, honest and trust worthy, they will tell you a list of things you can expect and if it takes longer then they will not charge you for the additional time. Your trainer should tell you your horse will be able to do one, two and three when you get it back.  Be aware of the trainers that just give lessons and you never see them on a horse.  This is more popular in the English area, but far too often, I see people charging good money for lessons that last years and there is little imporvement.  Many use trainers as high priced baby sitters.  Parents just pay to have someone supervise their child on a horse and call it a lesson.  If  your trainers can demonstrate how to ride or how to do get the horse to do something, then they are not much a trainer.  It does not take a much skill to just sit back and yell "keep your heels down", "sit up straight", "don't look down", all of this sounds like riding lessons but is nothing more than lots of people repeating what they have told over the years.  A good responsible trainer should be able to get on any horse and make it look better.  There are some excuses out there like I can't anymore due to an injury, or I am too old to get on this horse and show you and many others.  I know one trainer that has been teaching at a local barn for 10 years, I have never seen her on a horse in all that time, yet she has no shortage of parents that pay her to teach their kids to ride.

Things you need to make sure and tell your trainer before you hire or pay them.

• I need to know when you work with my horse so I can watch, be there and ask questions

• I need to have full access to my horse while in training

• I don’t want spurs worn or used when I horse is in training

• I don’t’ want any bits other than a snaffle (or bit that you intent to ride) used on my horse

• I don’t want a stud chain used on my horse

• I don’t want my horse dragged or led by any vehicles

• I want my horse to be able to do 1, 2 and 3 when I get it back

A good litmus test when picking a trainer is does this trainer own horses? Can you ride his/her horses? If these answers are no, I would not think this person is much of a trainer for you. You would not take your car to an unlicensed guy, who works in an alley, that does not own any cars and then he tells you he only takes cash and you can’t watch him work on your car. I would call this a “clue”. If your trainer can’t immediately handle your horse better than you, then I would be suspicious. A good horse person can make a horse look worse and more difficult to try and convince that you need to hire them, so be aware.

You need to get weekly updates from you trainer. Like a report card, what your horse has learned, what issues your horse has, what are the strengths and weaknesses of your horse and any injuries or problems.

If your horse is sent away to another location, you need to ensure shots and feet care are kept up to date and your schedule is followed. Have goals defined on what you want from your horse. I want to lead him, ride him on trails, have my inexperienced child ride him and be able to pick up his feet. If you want these things and your trainer trains your horse to slide stop and spin in an arena that will not work for you. If I want to trail ride my horse, I don’t want a trainer that only works my horse in a round pen or in an enclosed arena. If I want to ride dressage, I don’t want some cow cutting horse trainer training my horse on cows. A good trainer should be asking these questions so they know what and how to train your horse.

You have to be actively involved with your trainer and training. You have to know how your horse is being taught, what aids are being used, what leg pressure is being used, how are the reins being used and just general handling of your horse. You need to be able to see how your horse handles pressure, how it deals with fear and too much pressure. By being involved you can ask questions and work on YOUR horsemanship and horse knowledge, so you will be able to continue teaching and growing with your horse.

If a trainer is good and honest he or she will have no problem with any of these requests. They should be encouraging you to be involved and if they are really interested in helping the horse, they will end your horse’s training with a few days or week of training with you and your horse. That way you can get immediate feedback on what you are doing wrong or why your horse is doing what it does with you. A trained horse in the hands of an untrained rider is like giving a car to teenager with no license and no driving experience. The car will be fine and knows what to do, but the danger is with the driver. Not a lot of difference with horses. Any good trainer will know this and will not try and sell you on how good a trainer he is or on how good he can make your horse look when he rides it. Any good rider can make a horse look good or better than an inexperienced rider.

A good little trick that some trainers like to do is tell you how bad your horse is and how it may take longer since your horse is so bad. BS is what this is. Any real trainer knows that a horse can be fixed as easy as it can be messed up, with few exceptions. Any person who knows horses will know how to make your horse look worse than it is, cause it to pull, rear, or act out and then convince you that this horse is really difficult. This is nothing more than a set up for extending the horse’s training and dragging out the training so you feel you have to keep the horse in training longer. Taking advantage of an inexperience horse person is not hard. It is really very easy for any horse person to do. It is wrong, unethical and bad for the horse. By taking advantage of inexperienced owners, these trainers set the owner up to get hurt and set the horse up to get blamed. Inexperienced horse owners be warned!

I hear a lot of people who are fearful of their Farriers, Vet and trainers. They are concerned about upsetting them by asking questions, giving instructions or making demands. You pay these people for a service and have a right to request things from them. If anyone of them wants to get upset about your request, then they should be able to explain why they can’t do something and why they think it is a bad idea. Don’t let people you pay for a service dictate how they treat your horse. With that said, you have to be involved in helping your horse. If you expect your Farrier to teach and train your horse to hold his feet up, that won’t work. If you expect your Vet to teach you how to control your horse safely while getting medical attention, that won’t work.

So do your homework, pick a trainer with caution and skepticism. Ask lots of questions, stay involved and make some clear goals. If at any time, the hair on the back of your neck stands up, pay attention to this clue. Ask another trainer, do some research on the internet, get a second opinion and confirm things for your self. Don’t take anything as gospel, just because this person calls himself a “Trainer”.