The first thing you should look at is whether or not the trainer has expertise in the discipline in which you want your horse trained. Don’t just take his or her word for it that he/she is proficient in a certain area; check it out. Ask for references and verify them. And make sure the references have enough horse experience to know a good trainer from a bad one. If a reference is basically clueless about horses, how would he know if the trainer was any good? If your potential trainer gives you references that consist only of his/her friends and family, you might want to investigate a little further. Ask about the accomplishments of horses she has trained. Watch the potential trainer work different horses at various stages of training before you commit your horse into his/her care. I can’t stress this enough. You can usually tell in a matter of minutes if a person has “horse sense” or not. If they don’t, look elsewhere.

When the trainer spends a lot of time telling you of all the tiny accomplishments they’ve made, but you don’t see them, don’t doubt yourself. They probably aren’t there. Don’t get me wrong; there are hundreds of tiny accomplishments that a horse must make in the course of his training, but there are also lots of big accomplishments that you don’t need a microscope to see. I’ve had the privilege of working with several very fine trainers, and although the cues they use are subtle, the results are very obvious. You don’t have to ask what that cue just accomplished; you can see it without it being explained to you. I guess the bottom line here is “a little less talk and a lot more action”.

So now you’ve decided that yes, this trainer knows what he’s doing. Now what? Before sending your horse to this trainer’s facility, inspect it for safety and care of horses. Is the facility clean? Are the fences safe? Are the stalls safe and cleaned on a daily basis? Is there debris of any kind laying around the pastures or turnout areas? The facility does not need to be fancy, but it should not pose a hazard to either horses or people. How about feed quality? What do they feed the horses, and how often? Is the hay good quality and free of weeds or dust? Will the horses get daily turnout, and for how long? Will the horse be groomed regularly? Will health maintenance such as worming, vaccinations, and farrier care be attended to while your horse is in the trainer’s care? What veterinarian and farrier will be used? Make sure your trainer agrees to obtain your consent before any procedures are scheduled.

All right, the facility is adequate. Are there any other considerations? You bet there are. What is the trainer’s schedule? How often will she be working your horse? You should expect your horse to be worked at least five days a week. Initially, the training sessions may be short, but as training progresses, your horse should be worked for an hour a day. Does the trainer vary the activities he does with your horse? He should. Some days round pen work, some days arena work, some days trail work. It keeps the horse fresh and exposes them to different things. I have seen some horses that have been sent to trainers, trained, and sent home, without ever once being worked outside of the indoor arena. This is not the kind of training you want. Many years ago I had the opportunity to ride a Saddlebred mare that was an ex-show horse. As long as we were in an arena, indoors or out, the mare was fine. But as soon as I tried to ride her out in the open spaces, she fell apart. This horse could not function without the security of a fence or a wall by her side. It’s not a lot of fun to ride in circles forever! So you want a regular training schedule, but varied activities for your horse.

What about visiting and working with your horse while it’s at the trainers? If a trainer discourages visits, immediately find another trainer. Do realize of course that visits at all hours of the day and night are generally not encouraged. Most barns close at a certain time, and unless arrangements have been made ahead of time, it is poor etiquette to show up very late at night. A reputable trainer will encourage you to visit your horse and check on his progress. You should be able to schedule a visit to watch your horse worked at least once a week. All horses progress at a different rate, but any horse (unless, of course, he’s recovering from abuse) should be well started in a month. At this point, the trainer should encourage you to come and ride or drive your horse. He should begin working with you and your horse as a team. If the trainer won’t go along with this, or has excuses as to why that just won’t be convenient, go elsewhere. The goal of any good trainer is to help you form a partnership with your horse as soon as possible. If they are reluctant to do this, what’s the point of keeping the horse with them? You want to be able to ride your horse; that was the purpose of getting him trained, after all. The only exception to this would be if you have the horse with the trainer for the purpose of being campaigned on the show circuit, and you have no desire to ride the horse yourself.

Also beware of the trainer who keeps your horse for a very long time with the excuse that the horse is a “nut case” or something similar. Generally, this is not a problem with the horse, but instead a problem with the trainer. A good trainer can train horses with a variety of temperaments. A bad trainer can’t, no matter how much time they are given. I know of one horse who was with a trainer for eight months without the trainer ever getting on his back. The excuse was that he was crazy. The owner finally wised up and sent that horse to someone else. Within a month, that horse was being ridden by different people in different situations and life was grand. If the trainer is afraid of horses, don’t waste your time or money with them.

Make it clear to the trainer what you expect to do with the horse. If you are interested in trail riding, make that clear to the trainer so that after the horse has the basics, they can concentrate on exposing the horse to the trail and the environment to be found there. If you expect a finished show horse, you can also expect the horse to be in training for several months. Don’t expect a finished horse in 30 days! If there are particular hazards near where you ride, you might mention them to the trainer so that she can expose the horse to these. These could include moderate traffic, streams, bridges or cows or other livestock.

Remember, when looking for a trainer, keep your horse in mind. You don’t want to put him into a situation that is dangerous or damaging. Check things out. Just because someone says she is an expert, it ain’t necessarily so.