Horse Training Games

Playing games with your horse is an excellent way to train him without making him bored and sour. Just like people, horses get tired of doing the same thing over and over again. By using a variety of training games, horse owners can instill confidence in their mounts and train them to be safe and reliable trail or show horses.

  1. Ground Poles

    • Setting up a series of ground poles for your horse to cross is an excellent way to teach horses to pick up their feet and watch where they are going. These ground poles are excellent training tools, whether you plan to eventually move on to actual jumps or not. The ground poles can be spaced differently and moved around to create new challenges for every ride.

    Trail Course

    • In order to be a reliable and safe mount, horses need to take new objects in stride and without spooking. Setting up an ever-changing trail course is one of the best ways to teach horses to approach each new situation calmly and without drama. Horse owners can use a variety of objects to create new obstacles each time the horse is worked, ranging from tarps laid on the ground or bridges for the horse to walk over to a bag of cans that must be dragged from one end of the arena to the other.

    Roping Games

    • Roping can be an educational activity for horses even if their riders do not intend to actually rope calves. Simply throwing the rope around the horse's head teaches him to be quiet and calm, and working the rope is one of the best ways to train the horse to back quickly and quietly. Horse owners do not have to use actual cattle to complete their training--they can simply purchase a plastic calf head that is inserted into a bale of hay. Roping games are the perfect way to teach horses to be obedient and calm no matter what is asked of them.