Horses are often investments—meaning they have to be trained to do what they are intended to do so their owner can profit from them. Whether that’s trail riding, straight forward horse riding, show jumping, eventing, or dressage, owners need their investment to pay a return. A common mistake is to expect the investment to repay too quickly.

Once there was a big gap between eastern and western schooling methods. The difference mostly is in the rate or the pace in which the horses were trained with the objective they were intended. A dressage horse trained thru historic western orthodox techniques would begin its equestrian career early, and by the time it reaches its prime it would probably be retiring from dressage competitions. Whilst a horse trained through eastern orthodox coaching techniques would only be starting its career when the western trained horse retires. For the investor, the horse owners, the old western way means rapid profit. For owners of horses trained in the old ways of eastern training, they’d need to wait longer for their investment to return a profit, but they would reap the results of the investment for longer.

There are a few reasons as to the reasons why rushing a horse results in a shorter equestrian career. One is that almost all of the time training entails physical development in the steed. Their muscles need to grow used to the motions they are going to be doing for a lifetime. This means conditioning the muscles, getting them used to the required motions without straining them, and taking care to keep them that way. Another vital factor is that the routine established in training must be instilled effectively into the horse’s mind. This needs time. Whether or not a stud or mare can be taught to jump over sizable obstacles in a short while, you can’t expect it to perform the same way every time if it wasn’t given sufficient time to memorize the jumping motions such that it becomes virtually second nature.

There’s also a human aspect in this: the rider also needs time to learn his role and the way to effectively play his part. He must learn the best way to use his aids and what cues work best for his horse. Like the horse, if the rider is not given enough time to take everything to heart, this would result in a less than perfect execution of the routine and would in turn result in a dulling of both the horse’s and the rider’s sense for the routine.

So while there are trainers that are talented enough to teach horses lessons in as little as 3 to six days, the results won’t be as distinguished or lasting as a lesson taught in 3 to 6 weeks.

Next time you’re coaching your pony and her learning curve is slowing your pace, always recall that she best learns without undue haste.

Horses are Heather Toms’ passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100’s of articles with other horse lovers… like all things about stable rugs