Training a horse to accept the saddle and bridle?

Question

Can anyone recomend the steps to training a horse to accept the bit/saddle and to be eventually ridden. Or even a book? I have been asked to train a horse that they dont think has ever seen a bit. I've only ever fine tuned horses and worked with green broke horses. I have a general idea of the best way to start to get them used to the saddle and bridle but more or less need some more input and would like to find out how many times a week I should work with the pony. They do not have an arena, just trails, which might be a pain in the butt but will have to do. Any help is wonderful. Thanks

Answer 1

Let's say you got a job defusing bombs for a living -- would you want to be trained by someone who had never defused a bomb, but read a book and asked a bunch of strangers on a website how to go about teaching you?

Be fair to this horse, do him and his owners and yourself a favor and turn down the job.  Explain to his owners that they are just going to have to pay some money and have a real trainer come out and start the horse.  When he's had his basic training and is ready for some mileage to finish him off, you can volunteer then to "help" out.

Answer 2

The owner of the horse I use just kept putting it on for about 4 week or more or less and just kept riding it everyday.

Answer 3

No, no, no....no no.....you don't start a hors./pony on a trail, you start them in an enclosed area....round pen, barn, etc.   Kindly decline if you don't have the facilities, seriously.

Answer 4

I think the people who are trying to get you to train a horse this green, might not like you very much!  You are asking to get hurt with no more knowledge than this under your belt.  Be honest, be gracious, as in thank you for the offer, but I don't feel that I am knowledgeable enough to undertake training your horse.

Answer 5

I agree with the trail not being the best idea. You do need an arena or some sort of round pen to work in. But, if you do have a hitching post I suggest you tie the pony there (tightly) and first get to know it. Brush and curry alot at first so you build trust. Mess around with it's ears and head and mouth so it gets used to it. We used to make homemade bridles from pieces of rope to train our horses. Try fashioning a loose bridle from rope (nothing in her mouth at first). As far as saddle goes, try putting a light blanket on then try a bareback "saddle" if you have one. We always let the horse smell and "look" at everything we did.  good luck!

Answer 6

From my personal experiences it comes down to trust and respect. If the horse respects you and trusts you they will usually allow you to do almost anything to them.

We bought a 3 year old pony for my son last summer. She was literally untouched by human hands, and it took 2 hours to get her into the trailer to get her home.

Every time I went near her she tried to bite or kick me. Within 14 days she was being ridden on a lead rein by my 6 year old son. A week later my wife hopped on board and a week after that she accepted a bit and bridle without any fuss. When I broke my wife's QH it was the same.

At the end of the day a horse knows whether there is a need to be worried, and alot of that comes from you!!

Good luck!!!