Every horse’s education begins long before the first canter, the first trail ride, or the first show-ring pattern. It begins with the foundation: the early lessons that teach a young horse how to understand, trust, and respond to the people around him.
That idea is at the heart of Starting Young Horses: Commonsense Skills and Sensible Steps to a Solid Training Foundation by Jason Irwin, a practical new guide from Trafalgar Square Books. The book lays out a straightforward, fair-minded system for helping young horses through their first years under saddle, from groundwork and roundpen work to first saddling, ground-driving, and knowing when a horse is truly ready for the first ride.
As Irwin writes:
“Putting a good start on a horse not only gives him the basic skills he’ll need for the rest of his life, but it also gives him confidence to learn new things.”
That confidence is the point. Starting a young horse is not simply about “getting through” the first rides so the “real” training can begin. It is the real training. A horse who learns to stand quietly, give softly, guide willingly, and think through what is being asked has something to fall back on when the work becomes more advanced.
Irwin compares asking a poorly started horse for advanced maneuvers to asking someone to solve a calculus problem before they have learned multiplication. Without the basics, frustration is almost inevitable. With them, the horse has a language, a set of expectations, and a growing ability to connect one lesson to the next.
What makes Starting Young Horses especially useful is its emphasis on the individual horse. Irwin reminds readers that techniques are guidelines, not rigid formulas. Some horses are naturally curious and confident; others may be nervous, reactive, or more challenging. The good horseman’s job is to notice the difference and adjust.
That commonsense flexibility runs throughout the book. Readers will find guidance on sensitizing and desensitizing, ground manners, groundwork before saddling, low-stress first bridling and saddling, “riding from the ground,” ground-driving exercises, and recognizing when a horse is ready for his first ride. Irwin also addresses how to handle “bad days” and when to quit without losing progress.
For anyone bringing along a young horse, the message is clear: slow, thoughtful preparation is not a delay in training. It is what makes better training possible.
A good start helps create a horse who is not only more capable, but also safer, more reliable, and more confident in whatever discipline or life he goes on to pursue. Whether that future includes ranch work, dressage, trail riding, barrel racing, or simply being a dependable partner, the foundation matters.
With Starting Young Horses, Jason Irwin offers readers a practical path toward building that foundation the right way: with patience, clarity, and respect for the horse as an individual.