So You Think You Bought the Wrong Horse?

Fear of what happened the last time you rode them or apprehension about certain things that might trigger past behaviors will persist. You have to be willing to take lessons and overcome this baggage.

If your horse comes home relaxed, and you get on him tense and nervous and then get off at the first sign of bad behavior, you are undoing the training you paid for.

So ask yourself: Will you be able to overcome your fear of this horse? There is no shame if you can't. My horse reared and flipped over on me. Despite having had her since she was two years old, broken her to ride, and competing with her for many years, I couldn't get over that. I tried, but it only led to more bad behavior from the horse and more broken bones for me, so be honest with yourself when you ask this question.

Remember that if you sent the horse to the trainer thinking that he wasn't appropriate for you because he acted dangerously and scared you, that you will have baggage you are carrying when you try to ride them again.

Fear of what happened the last time you rode them or apprehension about certain things that might trigger past behaviors. You have to be willing to take lessons and overcome this baggage.

If your horse comes home relaxed, and you get on him tense and nervous and then get off at the first sign of bad behavior, you are undoing the training you paid for.

Bring the Horse Home From the Trainer With a Plan

You should bring your horse home only after you have ridden the horse under the trainer's watchful eye and know how the horse was trained and how you need to respond to certain behaviors. Remember, as hard as it is for us to admit, a lot of the time it is a people problem, not a horse problem. If we want to succeed, we have to be dedicated to working hard on ourselves, too.