Im pretty young and have a horse im trying to train to jump should i do it alone?

Question

I have this horse im trying to train to jump and im just walking and trotting him over large sticks so far, well im looking on ebay and saving up money to buy a cavaletti and some jumps but im wondering if i should take lessons you know be trained before i start jumping him, i found something that tells you how to train a horse to jump but im not sure, i want to be safe and dont want my horse to fall. What do you think? Can I do it alone?

Answer 1

Good for you for asking the question!  Lots of people starting out are too proud and ignorant to entertain the thought that they may need help.  Funny thing about horses, the longer you work with them, and the more horses you work with, the more you realize how much MORE there is to learn about them!  They are very good at humbling us, and a good horseman/horsewoman is always learning, and seeking advice from experienced people.

The short answer is "yes, you can do it alone - and risk s******g up your horse".  The good answer is that you should seek help from someone who has started several horses over jumps before.  It's not smart to attempt to train a horse to do something that you yourself are inexperienced doing.  It's much more fair for your horse, and safer for him and you to work with someone experienced.

Answer 2

Do you feel comfortable jumping? I do cross rails and 21'' im my less and i do 2'3" not in my lesson. As long as you feel comfortable enough then you can

Answer 3

Not age nor experience will change the fact that you should never train a horse solely by yourself. I wouldn't worry about your horse falling - as long as you aren't pushing him to jump too high or under dangerous conditions, horses have an excellent sense of balance as well as what's safe and what isn't. Jumping is an instinct for them.

But if you want to excel with your horse, you should bring him to a stable where you can get professional help training him. You shouldn't be riding, let alone jumping, by yourself in the first place. Not even the National competitors at my barn are allowed to jump even the best trained horses by themselves. Look around at local riding facilities and see if one of them can offer you their help. My advice is to wait to train him - not only is it not worth the risk of teaching him wrong, but it is definitely not worth your safety, or his.

Good luck, and I hope both you and your horse do great!

Answer 4

You should NOT be owning, let alone training, a horse if you've never had lessons! If you can't afford jumps, how are you affording that horse?! Sell your horse to someone who has had horse training experience, ASAP! Start taking lessons IMMEDIATELY. Really. I'm not trying to offend you, but horses are very delicate and should only be owned by EXPERIENCED horse people. Stop "training" your horse and start training yourself. GET LESSONS.

Answer 5

Please dont do it alone, you need training its not just dangerous to your horse but its dangerous to you. There are positions and feelings and relases that you need to learn. please please please get a coach or go for lessons at a stable trust me its the safest and best thing to do for you and your horse.

Answer 6

age alone does not matter.  if you have no experience training horses (starting with groundwork) you should definitely be working with a qualified trainer... not only for the horse but for yourself also.  not only is it not safe, you could end up teaching your horse bad and possibly dangerous habits

Answer 7

I don't know how old you actually are but you sound a very sensible and mature young rider to be asking the question rather than just going ahead and doing it.  You have started correctly by using trotting poles to get him to look where he is putting his feet and introducing him to them.  However, I think it is a good idea to get an instructor or trainer to guide you.  Some horses take to jumping like a fish to water whilst others aren't so sure and a good start to it will help them be confident over the fences.  The instructor and trainer can then give you things to work on inbetween lessons knowing both your and your horse's needs and limits.  

Good luck and well done so far.

Answer 8

Have an adult around to keep an eye and to just watch to see if your training all right.

Answer 9

NO WAY HOZAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...

Ask a horse expert!!!!!

Answer 10

Well I have a horse as well. I jump a lot. when I started to jump I never did it alone!!!!!~you might get hurt or something and no one would be there to help you or anything so it would be best to do it with a friend or a grown up!

Answer 11

I think it's always good to have someone around but if you have enough knowledge and have been training horses for some time you may not need professional help with the very very basic small stuff. However, if you are planning to compete, or your horse tries to act up, I'd definitely get  help from an instructor. If you're going to compete they need to be able to jump straight, approach them correctly etc. This is hard to teach without someone on the ground to help.

Answer 12

it does help if you have experience, you and the horse are both green right now ( at this training anyway ) so things could go wrong. But if you study up and improve your skills it isvery possible to do it alone. Yes, I wouldprobably reccomend a riding instructor. Below are some websites to help you learn to train and teach jumping.

http://www.youngrider.com/horse-training...

http://lorienstable.com/articles/jumping...

http://horse-training.suite101.com/artic...

also watch "RFDTV" that helps alot with training basics. Read as much as you can and be open to training instruction.

Answer 13

hey...

i have a horse of my own, you have to think are you just jumping for your own pleasure or do u want to take your horse into jumping compatitions?

if u want to get serious about it getting trained is always better

for you and your horse.

If you think you can do it by your self and teach him then go ahead if worse comes to worse you can always get trained. =)

Answer 14

You can kill yourself and the horse.

You should train a horse over crossrails, free jumping thats how I would approach it

Even though you have a book, A MILLION THINGS CAN GO WRONG THAT THE BOOKS DONT TALK ABOUT

PLEASE FOR THE SAKE OF THE HORSE AND YOURSELF GET A TRAINER TO HELP YOU AND GUIDE YOU

Answer 15

You should definitely involve an experience horse person in this process. I'm glad that you asked - a lot could have gone wrong if you had just decided to risk it.

Good luck to you and your horse! :)