A Day in the Life of a Horse Trainer

Are you interested in knowing what the life of a horse trainer is like? Every year a lot of people opt for professional careers in horse training in various parts of the world. If you are an enthusiast then you can also go for such a career to get a taste of what the job of a horse trainer really is.

A job of a trainer is particularly challenging. It requires immense dedication, passion and patience. Training animals, especially horses, is not a cakewalk and it takes years to master the art of horse training.
So, before you take the leap and choose to be a horse trainer, have a look at what it entails. Indeed it is one of the most interesting horse jobs but only if you know what you are getting into.

Types of horse trainers?

As well as the 3 Olympic Equestrian sports which are dressage, three-day eventing and show jumping. There are several other horse sports including horse racing, horse harness racing, horse showing, Vaulting, Endurance, reining, polo, polo cross, cutting, barrel racing, team penning and endurance. So you could specialise in training horses in any of these areas. There are also hundreds of horse breads including thoroughbreds, warmbloods, irish sport horses, ponies, draught horses to name a few that you can also specialize in as a horse trainer. Did you know that our talented Job placement officer Liz is a show pony trainer?

What a Typical Day as a life of a horse trainer include?

A typical day in the life of a horse trainer usually begins early morning. Most trainers begin their day at about 3 to 4 am in the morning and work a split shif while others start at 6 or 7am. The beginning and ending of the day depends from trainers to trainers across the globe.

A life of a horse trainer is not for all.

Apart from training horses, which is a major part of their jobs, trainers have to do a lot more then that. They have to feed the animals, take care of them and their needs, understand them, handle them, and schedule their workout and so on. So there is a lot more to training horses than you thought.

Timings

Timing is very important in the life of horse trainers. They have to set a time table for maintaining the horses, feeding them, grooming them and training them for their events. All these activities are planned out through the day with additional time given to cleaning the stalls.

Organising

An organised way of dealing with various types of horses is important. So, an expert trainer would know the difference between indoor and outdoor horses. All of them are segregated on the basis of their age and sex.

Training Depends on Event

The training that is given to the horses depends a lot on what you are training them for. For instance, training race horses would be different from show or dressage horses. So, various trainers are equipped to train horses on the basis of what the event is.

a) Racing: The horses are first fed hay for their morning meal. They are then brought out for a warm up in turns or batches. Once that is done, they are ridden them with a routine in mind. Some trainers ride or others advise track riders what to do.
b) Show: For a show versatility is the key. So a horse is trained in various fields from jumping to lunging to showmanship to halter to even equitation. Since this requires a lot of training, riding the horses and preparing them with such moves is needed with a strict routine.

So, if you want a life of a horse trainer you need to learn all aspects of horse care and management as well as know what type of horses you want to train and for what sport, however it is a rewarding role.

If your interested in a life of a horse trainer then starting your career as a stud or stablehand is ideal. View our horse jobs today and register for a free account.

Equine Staff Employment Services. We provide an effective ‘personal’ recruitment service which meets with individual client needs as well as a Job board Advertising Service for the Horse Industry.

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