# How long does it take to train a horse??



## Mulefeather (Feb 22, 2014)

I would first ask how much training experience you have, and what your goal is - just to get her green broke and then sell her? That doesn't take long if you've got the time and experience with breaking young horses.

But honestly, a horse that's not even two needs more time to grow up before you can put some serious training on them. If you want a horse to break, it'd be easier to get a horse that was 3 or 4 with some handling on it.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

How long is a piece of string? 

Your filly needs leaving until she is at least two before she is ridden and it should be checked that the growth plates on her knees are closed.

Really if you are asking such a question it seems you are not experienced enough to train a young horse.


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

vanillaice said:


> I'm looking into buying a 1.5yr filly that I can use to train my first horse. Considering boarding costs and that I want to sell her when she's fully trained, how long does it usually take to fully train a young horse up to recognizing and using the bit and getting comfortable with a saddle.


I'm sorry but --------------- if you have to ask that question, you shouldn't be training a horse to flip it -------------there are at least a dozen things wrong and nothing right with this picture--------------------


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

Like others, I'm wondering about your experience, not only for the welfare of the filly (many horses have been ruined by a non-trainer with good intentions), but also because that can effect the training timeline greatly.


Then you must consider the temperament of the filly. If mellow and relaxed, training generally goes faster. If flighty and reactive, training goes much slower. If she's smart, that will either shorten or lengthen the time needed to train her....depending on whether she can outsmart you or not.


To me, she would need to be a bare minimum of 3 years old before getting any kind of real saddle training (before that is mostly desensitizing and instilling voice commands or ground driving), then likely another 2-12 months for her to be somewhat steady under saddle. Best case scenario, you'll have her for 2 years. Worst case, you might have her for 3 years or more.


With the horse market like it is, buying a yearling and attempting to flip it and make any sort of profit is a pipe dream, especially if you are boarding. If your board is $100 a month (which is rather low based on some of the boarding costs I've seen), then you are already going to be out $1200 before you can even put a saddle on her, then another $600-$2400, depending how long it takes to get her broke enough to sell.....and nobody is going to buy a green broke horse for more than $1000-$1500 unless they are something that can be bred and have truly spectacular bloodlines.


People who flip horses and actually make a _tiny_ bit of money at it are people who can buy the 3-4 year old unhandled stuff at auction for $300 or less and get them riding pretty nice in 30-60 days with no boarding costs.


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## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

You can't exactly put a time limit on training a horse. That's where steps are missed, cheats are taken, and mistakes are made.

There are "professionals" that will promise you a finished horse after 30 days. The more honest trainers will tell you six months to a year for a finished product and that's not a guarantee.

A first time trainer is going to make a lot of mistakes even with the best of attentions and if you are planning to turn a profit then you are going to want to do things right.

I had a trainer once tell me that a great trainer ruins the first two or three horses they train. (When I say ruin, I don't mean make an unrideable beast or permanently damage them, I just mean... make a lot of mistakes).


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## Smilie (Oct 4, 2010)

The only way you could possibly make money, buying a horse not yet two, was if it was an exceptional prospect, you did not have to board it, and you yourself have the ability to train that horse. If that were so, you would not be asking the questions that you are asking!

As smrobs said, those that make money flipping horses, buy young un started horses cheap, often for sale for that very reason, with the owner coming to the realization that (a), they can't start the hrose themselves, and (b), the horse will sell for less then the training fees, very often, so that owner cuts their loss, and sells that horse un started
Flippers also make money, buying problem horses, and putting a quick fix on them.


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## boots (Jan 16, 2012)

Training a horse takes less than a minute and a whole lifetime. Serious.

You've gotten good advice.


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## Shilohthewildhorse (Oct 21, 2016)

I agree with the others. Training a horse is not like baking a cake. You can't just follow an instruction manual, and end up with the perfect horse. No two horses are trained EXACTLY the same way. You can use the same methods, but you have to make adjustments for each horse. Also, the length of training will vary as well. There are soooo many factors - consistency, training method, frequency, personality of the horse - just to name a few. Unless you are planning on and are capable of breaking this filly by yourself, you will probably end up putting more money into her training, care, feed, and board than you will make off of selling her.


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## its lbs not miles (Sep 1, 2011)

Since you really need to look at the development of this young horse and what training should be done at the different stages of their physical development, let's ask how long does it take to teach a 6 month old child to ride a bike without training wheels?

We'll just say that this filly will be around 15.2 hands at maturity. If it was a colt/stallion add about 6 months to these development times. Her leg joints (foot to scapula) will finish developing at around 3 years. Her back joints will finish fusing at around 60 months. Base of the neck within 6 months after that which is last portion of the skeletal system. Now you'll have no shortage of people saying you can ride them at an earlier age. Yes, you can. People race horses that are not yet 24 months old. That doesn't make it right or mean that it's ok for the horse. Look at the number of OTTB's who have joint issues. Being able to do it, doesn't mean it should be done. Wait until the animal's physical development is where it should be for activities you do.

We don't know how far along this filly is so if you have to do halter and lead training and if she's not a slow learner or fast learner, that will take couple days, perhaps 3, for her get the routine down. Since you'll be using the halter and lead for the training that follows she'll be able to get good at it. Then there's loads of ground work you can do for the next few years. By he time she's 3 she should be use to having a saddle blanket on her back and even a saddle if you like, but not ridden. At about 54 months if she's ready you can start doing short (e.g. 10 minutes) sessions of work under saddle. By the time she turns 60 months she should be use to being mounted and you should have her responding to some basic leg cues, neck reigning and other simple tasks so that she's ready for the more extensive under saddle training that will require more time on her back.

So, if you're experienced and know what you're doing (but you wouldn't be asking this if you did)  that 18 month old filly should be green broke about 3.5 years from now when she's 5. Now if you start out with a grown, fully developed horse, it can take a matter of weeks/months depending on the horse and the trainer. Summer 2015 I trained someone's 6 year old mare who was already lead/halter trained and partial trained for giving her feet, had one undesirable habit, and was very smart. In 3 days she was standing to be saddled and being ridden around the pasture. Within 24 days she was being ridden down roads and under the interstate. Another horse might take 2 months to reach that same point. A lot depends on the horse and the trainer. I have the advantage of having started training new horses at 14 (I turn 60 this month) and there's not set answer on how long it takes.

Now as easy I make all this seem with simple time table you need to keep something in mind. It's easier for the inexperienced to mess up and turn a potentially good horse into a nightmare than it is to turn out a good riding horse. You'll also find that a horse that needs corrective training is usually difficult to give away let alone sell.


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## DanisMom (Jan 26, 2014)

As a trainer once told me....It takes as long as it takes.


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## jgnmoose (May 27, 2015)

I've liked everything on the first page because I agree.

Okay, here is where it gets kinda esoteric...

Train a horse for what and how finished do you want them to be?

A Dressage horse could take the ridable life of the horse to reach a certain level, depending on the horse, rider and training.

Most of the really really good Team Roping horses that do their job right every time are eight years old or older.

I think the meat of your question is, when can I sell this horse as "trained"? 

I'd say two years in training in a specific discipline and preferably with some miles/trailering/showing in the process. That is based purely on the anecdote that the good "starter" horses in anything from Team Penning to Dressage that I've seen had roughly about that much experience behind them.


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## beverleyy (Oct 26, 2011)

If you have to ask, you have no business training a horse.


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## Bright Stride Equine (Oct 20, 2016)

*That is a loaded question.*

First off I am going to assume you have a lot of experience with horses an training. If not, this is probably not the way to do things.

Secondly, you have to consider the age of a horse...I wouldn't really start riding (canter, lots of trotting etc.) until they are 3. So if you are counting on having her well into the third year anyway, she could be green w/t/c by them. Every horse is different, every trainer is different, every situation is different. There is no set schedule or time frame.


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