I am constantly blown away by how many times I see the words “beginner’s horse” in wanted ads, for sale ads or even an enquiry of “Do you sell beginner’s horses?”.
I have to be honest and say I don’t actually believe there is such a thing!! I know it might sound harsh or uncaring or even elitist, but it’s not.
There are in my opinion no horses that are truly suited to beginners going it alone, but I do believe that there are horses that are more suited than others for beginners under careful instruction. Most of these have been snapped up by riding schools who collect the tolerant and gentle horses so that their students can learn under the best guidance possible on a balanced and carefully routined horse who knows its job.
Maybe it’s just my careful mothering mind wanting to make sure no one gets hurt, that no one thinks they can take home an elusive beginner’s horse and go it alone, because you’d be surprised at how often this happens! It’s not going to end well!!! Often it can end with unintentional poor treatment of the horse. It can end with injuries to horse or rider and it can even end in behavioural issues to the horse causing it to move from home to home before being labeled as a problem horse and ending up forgotten in a paddock, sold at the sales as an unknown or even worse.
Define beginner’s horse for me?
I think that most people think that there are quiet horses that are tolerant enough of unbalanced riders or riders that pull on their mouths or horses that are so forgiving they’re ok with this on a daily basis. That under no circumstances will they buck, rear or bolt and cause a newer rider to eat dirt. Maybe there are, but to my educated mind these are perhaps the more shut down variety of horse and even these horses can explode should the pressure or pain become too much.
I’ve seen it time and time again, a quiet horse that’s good to ride when they go to look at it and then take it home and things change. It’s most likely that the seller did not sell you a dodgy horse, but instead outside influences create a change in behaviour once you got it home.
Nevertheless there comes a time when you decide you’re going to buy your own horse or pony. This may be in childhood with parental guidance or even in adulthood.
I am sure that the day you tell your riding instructor you’re ready to buy your own is the day they not only feel the lump in their throat worrying that you’ll be ok, but they feel extremely proud of you for reaching the point that you are ready to start your own unique horse ownership journey.
Buying a horse when you’re starting out can be such a daunting process. You don’t know where to look or who to trust or what to believe. You may not know what to feed or what size gear to buy or even how to fit the bridle or saddle properly. Just because you bought the horse doesn’t mean you’re comfortable towing it home in a float either.
For those feeling disheartened by my post please don’t be! There are ways you can learn and I am here to help you because I believe that everyone deserves the chance to love a horse and become a happy and successful horse owner.
How can you bridge the gap between loving horses and horse ownership?
First and foremost you should be starting in a riding school. The years of knowledge accumulated here will be the building blocks to your equine future. Even rusty adults who rode as kids should start back at the riding school on trusted horses.
Be a sponge. Absorb all you can from all the horse sources in your life that you can utilise. Volunteer at a riding school or stable. Follow your riding instructor from place to place and learn. Watch groundwork sessions. Pick up poo or help saddle up horses for a coach. Go to events and shows and volunteer. Watch professional riders on TV. Subscribe to online YouTube channels for horse trainers. Paid riding lessons. Listen to the old school riders and trainers as they are a wealth of knowledge. Visit your neighbor with horses and offer to help them feed or rug. Go to a pony club and offer to hold horses or set up jumps or work in the canteen. Even being around horse people you can learn a lot from conversations. I have done all of the above at some point in my horse career.
Horse ownership is so much more than just buying a beginner’s horse and getting on to ride. You need at least one, but even better, multiple horse people in your life to be able to maximise your learning as an ongoing source of information even after you’ve left the riding school. Make sure you choose the right mentor. Do you like the manner in which they handle their horses? Do they ride kindly? Do their horses look healthy and well fed? Mentors should lead by example and you should choose someone trustworthy and reliable with excellent horsemanship skills.
Some people ask me if I have a riding school horse to give lessons on and the answer is not right now. They’re expensive to keep and would need to be doing multiple lessons a week to earn their keep. Why can’t they ride Ocean? Because Ocean is new to after race life, he’s sensitive and he’s still learning himself. It’s likely he would put someone on their ass if they weren’t sure how to ride and school him.
How can I help you?
Some of my clients have already taken me up on the offer to be my shadow. They turn up from time to time with their willingness to learn and may watch me work horses in the round pen or follow me from place to place as I teach others in a variety of learning scenarios. They’ve cleaned yards or helped me change bandages and held horses for the farrier. For this help I am always grateful.
Those who have been riding for quite some time at riding schools may even have had the privilege of riding some of my horses. I actually quite enjoy seeing a capable rider successfully riding one of mine. It gives me great satisfaction to see them as they transition from riding school rider to real horse rider and learn problem solving techniques as they go.
Those who know me know I can be quite time poor, but that I’ll go out of my way to help someone if they need it. I often say that should I win the lottery I’d do this problem solving horsemanship gig for free, I love it that much! Reality is though that I need to make a living from my passion so yes I do charge for my services.
If you have a new horse and need help getting the right start, I can come to you or you to me. If you have a horse that you’ve had for a while and need a tune up then I’m here to help. If you don’t have the money and want to learn then come and give me a hand and I’m sure you’ll learn a fair bit. Tell me about yourself an what you want to learn!
I’m here to bridge the gap between riding school riders leaving the comfort of their nest and moving to the wonderful but scary world of horse ownership. I can offer guidance and instruction on a wide range of issues and details to help you fully enjoy your new horse or help tune up with your old.