Rural Heritage October/November 2025

I mention these things because the method I plan to describe in “Training Duke,” a two-part series, is intentionally the long way. It includes steps that the young teamster can use to build a relationship and their own confidence while also helping the young horse progress through logical steps towards being a work partner. Duke is an 18-month old Suffolk Belgian

should be able to accomplish most of these things without too much stress. One specific challenge one might find in buying a 6- or 12-month-old horse, (or any older horse for that matter) as compared to the one I had born on the farm: is how to get them to think and act like an

independent individual. I think this is one of the most important things a young horse can learn, but, with a horse you just bought and brought home, you don’t want to rush and cause too much stress. Hopefully it either has a barn buddy or is living in a herd of horses. Start by getting it tied up comfortably while other horses are tied or in stalls

If you are relatively new to horses or training horses, it is important to be very clear in your own mind about the difference between making a horse unhappy and being mean or hurting it.

gelding that was born on our farm. We plan to keep him and use him here as part of our teams of work horses. He is about a year away from any meaningful work, but this is a good time to start if you want to go slow while training the horse.

First, let’s consider all the things Duke learned before any formal (not so formal!) training began. Duke was haltered before he was a month old. Last summer, Duke was haltered and led to and from pasture every day as part of a group of horses. This is usually done tied to his mother’s halter. At the same time, he was learning to wait while gates are opened or closed before we can go and before we can take the halters off. Last summer he was both tied in the barn and left loose in a barnyard paddock while his mother went to work and returned. He had his feet trimmed regularly. He also had a few experiences being ponied alongside his mother in harness. None of these things individually is mind blowing or super difficult, but collectively they are the foundation of all the “training” to follow as we prepare him to be a work animal. In buying a weanling or yearling horse to start your own worker, you should consider how many of these milestones have been completed. It is not the end of the world if they have not, but you will need to add the time necessary to go through these steps as well. Buying the horse younger can be an advantage in this way, and, in one good season, you

nearby. You should tie all horses from high to low, but it is especially important for a horse that is just learning to be left tied. That means your rope is anchored to the building (wall, stall, whatever) over their head and just hangs down to the horse's knees. When clipped, this rope should be hard for a horse to get a leg over but just long enough that the horse would be OK if it fell or tried to lie down and wanted to get back up. The first time a horse is tied I make sure I am keeping an eye on it. Often folks will feed a horse tied this way, but you can leave them first for a few minutes after feeding and then gradually lengthen the time they can spend standing there. As the horse relaxes in this new type of confinement, you can begin to practice this “skill” with fewer and fewer barn buddies nearby, until the horse will patiently wait for you to come back while no one else is around. If you are relatively new to horses or training horses, it is important to be very clear in your own mind about the difference between making a horse unhappy and being mean or hurting it. In working with draft horses, we will ask them to do things they might not have wanted to, but their amazing attribute is that they are willing. This training can

October/November 2025

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