Yes, he most definitely is. I am currently working with no fewer than five horses who are in their teens but still fairly inexperienced. I’ve always enjoyed working with such horses. I don’t find them any more difficult to train than youngsters. So many people assume that a horse should be well educated by age six or seven, and that the only reason he wouldn’t be is a difficult disposition or dangerous behavior. But that’s not necessarily the case.
Yes, some horses truly are unrideable, because they have lost trust in people, especially people on their backs. This isn’t their fault, but retraining a horse with lots of baggage can be extremely difficult or impossible, even for professionals. And other horses, sadly, are unrideable because of chronic soundness issues, caused by accidents because they were pushed too hard at an early age.
But most horses whose education is cut short have simply fallen through the cracks.
Some are discarded as not talented enough. They may be bred to perform in a particular discipline, but did not fit neatly into their trainer’s competition-oriented program. I’ve retrained and repurposed race horses who refused to race, reining horses who did not slide, and Western Pleasure horses who did not lope slowly enough. One person’s disappointing misfit can be another person’s dream ride. I’ve seen it happen, over and over.
Other horses end up on the back burner for a variety of reasons that have nothing to do with them and everything with their owners. Some people lose interest, or life gets in the way. Or they simply don’t have enough time, money, or horsemanship skills to invest in the horse they bought. Rather than sell the horse, they hang on, hoping to work with the horse when times are better. And eventually, years later, they do sell the horse.
The good news is, horses never stop learning. As long as we present it to them with tact and skill, they are always able to absorb new information, whether they’re three or thirteen. But education does not happen automatically if you wait long enough, either. Horses don’t become responsive, athletic riding partners just because they somehow, magically, grow up to be that way. Regardless of age, they need to learn about trust and balance, about communication and boundaries, about building the right muscles and understanding the language of our aids. They learn these things from us, and with us. If no one takes the time to teach them when they’re young, how should they know about them?
Building a partnership takes two, by definition: a horse, and a knowledgable, patient, experienced human. If both parties are ready and willing to learn, all it takes is lots of time, consistent work, and and endless patience. The horse’s exact age matters a lot less than you think. So, if you’re in the market for a new horse, don’t overlook that unbalanced ten year old with zero topline muscles who barely knows how to trot a straight line. Every horse deserves a chance, and some can really blossom into the equine version of a master athlete.
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