Despite considering myself a fairly competent rider, I sometimes love nothing more than schooling and tuning up the solid and true lesson and beginner horses. These horses warm my soul in ways it is difficult to describe.

They are such solid citizens and are the reason us horse-crazy girls exist in this world. I have this saying, “All lesson horses have a special place in heaven.” Honestly though, don’t all horses have a special place in heaven? But those lesson horses are something extra magnificent in my opinion.

A great beginner horse is one that is forgiving and allows us to continuously make mistakes in our riding as we work on rewiring our brains for muscle memory.

They keep plodding on as we try to figure out how to feel foot fall sequences and ask for the canter at the right moment. They greet us in the pasture or stall with a kind demeanor despite them compensating for our shortcomings. The “step up” horses challenge our skill set and demand excellence from our riding when our foundation of basic riding has solidified. 

The best beginner horse is forgiving 

The best type of horse for a beginner horseman is one that is forgiving and is innately a teacher. They have been there and done that and are happy to teach us the ways as long as they receive love and cookies in exchange. A great beginner horse is typically in the later stages of their career- not super old but not super spunky either. They are capable of doing the job without being in physical pain from arthritis or poor body condition. They can get a pep in their step when asked correctly but don’t necessarily run away with a rider in an unsafe way.

A not-good-for-beginner-horse?

Anything without experience. A dangerous and unfair combination for all involved is a beginner horseman and an uneducated horse. I have seen so many OTTBs purchased from beginner riders who have high hopes of “learning together”, and it almost always ends with a horse that has bad and dangerous habits, and a rider who feels defeated and not confident in their abilities, sometimes giving up the lifestyle altogether. Don’t get me wrong, there are many stories of this combination working out amazing, and I applaud those individuals, but for the majority of us, we need a humble ego and a good horse to teach us before we can teach a less educated horse. 

we need a humble ego and a good horse to teach us before we can teach a less educated horse.

It's about acquiring skills, not specific breeds

My recommendation for everyone when starting off, is to take lessons from a reputable trainer. Those trainers know that a good lesson horse is worth more than its weight in gold and it is a great place to build a good foundation of horsemanship skills, both in and out of the saddle. Once riders are comfortable with basic riding and ground handling, leasing a good horse is the next step. I’ve seen many people start riding with stars in their eyes that slowly fade away when the rider realizes that good riding and horsemanship takes a lot of hard work and tenacity. So leasing a horse to “test the waters” of this crazy passion for horses is financially a safer option than going straight to buying or adopting a horse. Additionally, a leased horse is usually an educated horse to some extent. Once a rider knows for certain that they have the horse bug and the work ethic to keep the lifestyle, then purchasing or adoption can be considered.

Get a skill assessment

Working with an honest trainer to accurately assess the rider’s skill set and rate of progression in that skill set is essential for considering a horse to call their own. Some beginners have a God given natural ability to progress in their riding quickly, while other riders take time and consistency to become better. Either way, a horse that is appropriate for the foundational skills of the rider is needed, and that type of horse will vary. For us that need to work harder at our proprioception when in the saddle, a forgiving horse will propel us further than a horse that does not tolerate inconsistency in a rider’s seat. 

A note on older horses & some stories 

We commonly see beginner and lesson horses as older horses, but that is usually because the horse has experience in their career and is not as energetic as they were in their younger years, making it a safer combination for learning. However, age alone shouldn’t be the determining factor in whether or not a horse is appropriate for beginners. In my experience, the temperament of the horse is a bigger factor than age.

I sold a middle aged horse that is fairly advanced in her skill set to a teen aged rider who is working on progressing her abilities. The rider had enough of a skilled seat and knowledge of the concept of advanced riding that this horse would help her level up as the rider learns how to do more technical riding. This horse, however, would make a terrible partner for a rider who is just starting out and has inconsistency with their body. Her tolerance for dramatic shifts in the rider’s seat was low, so her temperament would not make for a super safe beginner horse.

I managed another horse who was fairly young but made an excellent lesson horse for beginner riders, mostly because the horse was not interested in advanced riding and preferred lower level energy work. This personality trait of the horse made him great for just plodding along while new riders figured out how to control their body at the faster gaits. Although he was young and had the ability to maintain sustained levels of energy, I would consider him a very safe and appropriate beginner horse. 

Riding different horses is instructive 

Want to know an easy way to test for whether or not you’ve mastered basic riding abilities? Ride lots of different horses. Usually beginner riders stick to riding one horse and this is great in order to keep things consistent as skills are progressed. Once a certain skill is mastered on one horse, a rider can ride a different horse of the same abilities to see if the skill set is transferable, because it will feel different from horse to horse. I would suggest that if a rider has the opportunity to ride different horses of the same level (beginner horse, step up horse, etc), then they absolutely should. Riding different horses can sometimes allow us to progress in our abilities quicker since it demands more from us. 

Matching energy 

The best beginner horse is one that can match the energy of the rider while maintaining safety for themselves and the rider. Us as individuals need different things from horses in order to grow our skill set. Working with a trainer or someone knowledgeable in which you can trust and respect to help you accurately assess your current skill set is the best tool you can have in finding a great horse that is best suited for you.