Jessica Jahiel's HORSE-SENSE Newsletter Archives

Teenage Trainer

From: "Aldrich family"

Dear Jessica, your answers are super but I would like to see more teen riders. By the way I also see your name in a web site called Horse Country. www.horse-country.com I think. Anyways I am 13 soon to be 14 years old and have ridden pleasure for a while. I have helped in training younger horses with a experienced trainer. But I want to get a horse again and the cheaper ones often are unbroke. Could someone with minimal experience like me train a horse? My mother doesn't know very much either. Thank you, LeAnn

Hi LeAnn -- my answer is yes, but not yet. ;-) It sounds as though you have had some useful experience, and you should keep on learning as much as you can from the best trainers. What you should be doing now, and for the next five years or so, is improving your riding, learning all you can about riding and training, reading, studying, and generally getting the experience that will prepare you for the work of starting a young horse at some later time in your life.

There's an old saying that is very, very true: old riders for young horses; young riders for old horses. Or, as I sometimes tell young Pony Clubbers who would like to train a colt, the horse and rider combination needs to have a total of at least ONE CLUE. A well-educated, well-trained, experienced horse has a clue. So does a well-educated, well-trained, experienced rider. Put these two together and you have magic! Put a well-trained horse (one clue) with an inexperienced young rider (no clue, or part of a clue) and you get a total of at least one clue -- that works. ;-) Put a young, green horse with no clue together with an older, experienced, well-trained rider (one clue) and again, you have a total of at least ONE CLUE. That works too! But it just doesn't work when you combine a young, relatively inexperienced rider with a young, inexperienced horse -- the total is a LOT less than one clue, and the result is a horse with permanent problems and a rider who is frustrated and can't make progress.

So, what should you do? Get a horse with a clue, and work to become a rider with a clue, so that someday you can have the fun of starting a young horse. Right now, though, it's your time to learn and build a personal reference library of experiences. Instead of a young, unbroken horse, look for an older horse with some mileage; something you can learn from and enjoy.

An older horse can also be kept in a stall with a paddock, perhaps at your instructor's barn -- a young horse will need full-time turnout in a field, and that's not always easy to find, especially when you start thinking about things like safe fencing and distance from home.

Right now, what you need most is a really good instructor and regular lessons. And you'll need something to ride and learn on, something to practice on between your lessons -- so why not get a horse that has a lot of experience? It's true that well-trained horses in their prime are MUCH more expensive than young, untrained horses, but these are not your only options. The best horse for any young rider is an older, experienced horse, and there are many horses that simply can't be campaigned at a high level anymore, and need to have an easier schedule. These horses are PERFECT for bringing on a younger rider, and although they can cost more than an untrained horse, you won't have to wait a year or two or three (and pay the board bill, the vet, and the farrier during that time) before you can start to RIDE your horse.

Your instructor can help you find the right horse. Older horses do, often, come with some maintenance issues; you need to be careful about their health and their turnout, and some have soundness issues that can be dealt with through careful management. All of this will be valuable experience for you.

Ask your instructor to sit down with you and talk about what you want to do and where you want to go with your riding -- then ask her to help you find the right horse. Don't worry, there's a horse out there that IS right, and you'll find it. When you have it, or even before you get it, try to get a copy of this book:

Eleanor Kellon THE OLDER HORSE

which will give you a lot of good information about horses in general and the care and management of older horses in particular.

For general care and maintenance and riding and training information, in a book that's easy to read and understand, with very accurate illustrations, look for the United States Pony Clubs Manual of Horsemanship (by Susan Harris). It comes in three volumes, and Volume 1 would be perfect for you right now. Your instructor may have some other suggestions as well!

Be patient. There's a right time for everything, and if you keep riding and learning, there WILL come a time when you've had the experience to handle and train a young horse safely -- and when that time comes, you'll have much more fun and so will the horse. ;-)

Jessica

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