Most people do not think that they are capable of training a horse, but there are many different levels of horse training. Anytime you are around a horse, you are training them, you just may not be aware of it. This is why it is important to know the correct way to train your horse and the reasons behind horse training.

Everyone’s idea of a “good horse” is one that is well mannered and quite. Most horses are not born with this type of good behavior; they are taught how to act this way. It is important to start at an early age (if possible) and to teach the horse the correct way the first time (it is much harder to re-train a horse than it is to do it right the first time).

The first thing that you will want to teach your horse is to lead quietly in your hand. This is the most important thing that you can teach your horse because everything that you will want him to do in the future will depend on if he can lead or not (like get into a horse trailer). After you have mastered this skill you will be able to move on to a new skill.

Once you have your horse leading properly, the next thing that you should teach them is to allow you to touch and handle all parts of their body. All horses need to know this skill regardless if they are going to be a pleasure riding horse or a show horse. Your horse needs to stand still and let you touch them so that you can bath and clip them, or if your horse we to get injured, it is imperative that they stand still and let you or the vet take care of their injuries.

Another thing that your horse should do is allow you to catch them. You may own the best pleasure riding horse in the world, but how are you going to ride him if you cannot catch him in the pasture to put the saddle on.

The final basic skill that your horse should know is how to stand tied. There will be many times when you will have to tie up your horse and leave him unattended (at a horse show or tied while you un-tack him) and you want to be certain that he will stand and not get into trouble.

Once you have taught your horse these basic skills, you will have laid the ground work for teaching your horse anything.