Training horses is not rocket science... but it's not a walk in the park either!

The horse training industry has gone from the "horse whispers" in the past who had mysterious powers of animal control, to the current ideology that anyone can train a horse by reading a few books and taking in a lecture or too.

The truth is that while it doesn't take super natural powers to train horses it does require a few critical ingredients:

1. Patience to break the training into small steps. Patience to ask and wait for the correct response. Patience to not rush to the next step until the previous step is thoroughly understood.
2. Consistency to ask the same thing the same way each and every time.
3. Repetition, repetition, repetition - at least a 1000 times to truly say the horse is trained in a particular behavior.
4. An eye and feel for horses so you can see resistance and give no matter how small. This is only done through natural ability coupled with working with (multiple) horses over a period of time.
5. and did I mention patience, which cannot be stressed enough.

Not every person can train horses just like not everyone can be a race car driver or a marathon runner. But everyone who owns a horse does have the ability and responsibility to learn and apply the basics once they have been established in the horse.

My training methodology is not revolutionary and is very simple. Give the horse a choice (you cannot force a 1200 lb animal anyway so why try). Create "pressure" for the wrong choice and reward the right choice with "release". By applying the above 5 basic ingredients with the pressure/release methodology the results are a safe and pleasurable mount that is happy in his work.

Not every trainer can train every horse. One of my pet peeves are trainers that have absolutes. They go around spouting that if you do x then horse will react y and results will be z (x + y = z). If only it were that simple - but horses are living beings and come in all shapes, sizes, temperaments, and dispositions. Not every training technique will be equally effective on every horse.

I am a trainer not an expert. The training process is always in flux and I continue to learn with each and every horse I work with. I work with horses that are green, have minor behavioral problems, and/or need some basic polishing. I am not a trainer of "show" animals and I don't take on dangerously aggressive horses. If you have a horse with serious behavioral problems or want to do extensive showing of your animal I know of trainers that I can recommend.

Before taking on any horse for training I do an evaluation of the animal and discuss in length the desires and goals of the owner. I believe that communication with the owner and setting realistic goals/expectations is vital to the success of the horse. If I believe that I cannot obtain the goals of the owner I will be honest and tell you so. During the training period I will reevaluate and formally communicate to the owner on the progress of the horse against the original goals every two weeks.

Make sure to take a look at the people and horse pages to gain more insite into me and my training philosophy.

see services for information on training program cost and people for more information about the trainer