How Long Does it Take to Train a Horse?

Horse training is a process that has been refined and examined numerous times. Some processes might decrease your training time, but applied to the wrong horse, others could easily extend your training period.

  1. Saddle and Rider

    • Training a horse to accept a horse and rider is a relatively simple process. Horse Whisperer Monty Roberts has refined his art to 15 minutes per horse. Less-experienced trainers might take from one day to a week, depending on the temperament of the horse.

    Greenbroke

    • A greenbroke horse is a horse that accepts the saddle and rider, and understands basic commands for turning, forward and stopping. Depending on the horse but also depending on the previous training, this process could take a week to several weeks.

    Pleasure Horse

    • Bringing a horse from greenbroke to ready-for-pleasure is mostly a matter of repetition. Once the horse has learned the cues, all he needs is for the cues to be reinforced. This can take five days to five weeks.

    Competition Horse

    • A competition horse is one that has been refined beyond the position of a pleasure horse, and knows more cues and responds to much more refined cues. Depending on the discipline, this can take a week to six months.

    Olympic Competitors

    • Horses trained as Olympic competitors will spend their entire competitive lives in training. Every time they leave the stall with a saddle and bridle, training will ensue. It can take as few as four years to as many as 10 to prepare a horse for the Olympic arena.