To 'hang' or not to 'hang' ??

 I bet you're wondering, "what in the heck is she up to now?" 
( and why are some words in a different font here? Hmmmm)

 Yep, that is the question... Should a "horse trainer" hang out a 'shingle' advertising that they can and will train your horse for you, or not......  There seem to be no regulations or licensing to become a so-called "trainer''- anywhere.  Not that I have noticed. Sure there are some horsey schools that turn out people who think they can train, just because they can ride and some are really very very good. Then, there are the others.

Anyways, I have always been impressed with many horse trainers. Those who actually know what they are doing, and understand the equine mind.This is a wonderful thing to me, and when I see someone who understands, I'm in heaven. Now- there's a person I could talk to and know they'd understand. Without that understanding, the door for mental and physical abuse opens wide.

 I never advertised myself AS a horse trainer, but as time went by, plenty of people saw the results of how I taught my own horses. Slowly, but surely, I developed a waiting list of sorts. ( this was LONG before the internet, facebook, twitter and blogs!!!) This list was good for my ego but often folks found another person to deal with their troubled horse.

Horses really do want to have life easy.They want food, ( IE: grasses if they are wild), quiet times, good pals to scratch backs with and enough water to stay happy. When a human is introduced onto that scene, things can go terribly wrong and fast.

Treat them with the understanding that they will need to become fluent in a language completely different. Different body languages, different verbal sounds, just different everything. Imagine being an English speaking person, and then have another person tell you things in a language you have never heard before... That's when trouble starts.

Horses are pretty darned intelligent ( just ask the pony who unlocks his stall door and unlocks only his best pal's stall door) and use it alot more than many folks know. They've survived for millions of years and have gotten so much more intelligent. BUT- they are still horses. Horses that get confused and then frightened because they are trying to understand so hard that they sometimes shut down into a hysterical panic.  When a horse goes there, you may as well re- think your 'training' procedures.

So- all of that written, do you think there should be requirements and/ or licensing for horse trainers ? I think if there were, it would save a lot of pain and confusion in the equine.