training dogs or training horses: which is easier? :)

[Tobiano]

So... we recently bought a puppy. Last puppy in my family was 43 years ago.

in the last 8 years or so I've been trying to train my various horses. They are prey animals so you have to work with their instincts, they are not as intelligent as dogs so I didnt expect to be able to train them as well.

BUT ... having had Pip (the dog) for 6 months I find her far harder to train than the horses! They know how to go backwards, turn to either side, stand still, not bite (ahem!), and will pass scary objects pretty reliably. Ask nicely and they will do it! Pip on the other hand, will run a mile if she sees something new and scary (eg a tent on her normal walk), has no idea about direction, though she does a very fetching 'play dead' on command and is very selective about whether she will obey a given instruction.

So those of you with horses and dogs, what's your experience been of training them?

 

[JJS]

All of my horses have had fantastic manners and always behaved faultlessly on the ground (and most of the time when ridden). All of my dogs have had lovely natures, but I could hardly say that all of them were well-behaved. My horses would win by a mile! I find them much easier to train.

 

[LittleBlackMule]

I find them very much the same; I use the same principles for both - set up situations so that doing the right thing is easy for them, try to pre-empt any 'bad' behaviour and divert it before it occurs, and if they do something wrong I view it as my mistake rather than theirs and I am effusive in my praise for anything good they offer, however slight.
Both my dog, cats, horses, mules and donkey are paragons of virtue. No, seriously they are!

 

[BWa]

Depends on the breed, I have a collie who learns everything in 5 minutes and I have a terrier who will never be trained and I have a pony who is very much a creature of habit, she knows what to do.

 

[JillA]

I think we take more care over boundaries with horses - after all, a horse without boundaries is a force to be reckoned with, whereas a puppy is generally just entertaining. And we make time to train horses, whilst dogs are just around our feet the whole time, we kind of expect them to know without being trained. I find making time to train them is great fun and very rewarding, as also is having boundaries (which I am allowed to transgress if I feel like it lol)

 

[Goldenstar]

Well you need no extra physical skills to train a dog riding well means you need balance coordination and strength .

 

[Tobiano]

Interesting that some others see horses as similar / easier - quite a surprise to me.

I think we take more care over boundaries with horses - after all, a horse without boundaries is a force to be reckoned with, whereas a puppy is generally just entertaining. And we make time to train horses, whilst dogs are just around our feet the whole time, we kind of expect them to know without being trained. I find making time to train them is great fun and very rewarding, as also is having boundaries (which I am allowed to transgress if I feel like it lol)

yes I do think that's a good point - I am so conscious of every minute I am with the horses I am training them, whereas that is also true of the dog but I probably don't approach it with quite the same focus. Hmmm... need to think about that!