Learn the responsibilities of a horse trainer and how much their salary is. Find out the most famous trainers in the world.

Behind every horse’s speed, agility, and command of the game is someone who trained them. While it may be easy to think these are the jockeys that help them in the race, it is not. This is because it is not part of their job description to train horses.

Horse trainers are the ones who tend to the horses and coach them for contests, events, and behavior. Because of the discipline they teach, various horses have made a name for themselves. These horses became successful due to these trainers.

There are various methods Japan horse trainers use in order to coach the horses. Training depends on where the horse will be presented. This can be for show jumping, rodeo, or races. However the basic stages of training for the horses are the same no matter the breed or where they are going to be placed.

Here are the normal stages trainers go through to properly coach the horses:

1. Training young horses → Older horses who were not trained when they were young are often harder to be taught. This is why training starts when the horses are young because they can adapt easily.
2. Ground training → Before the horses can be ridden, they are taught ground work. They can be taught to get used to a saddle and more. Sometimes horses are trained to move in circles at the end of a long rope called longeing and a few other techniques. Horses need to go through this because it teaches them the important basics for riding in the future.
3. Backing the horse → Horse trainers need to back the horse. This means riding them for the first time. Most horses are not afraid of humans riding them because they consider it another part of their training. However some horses get nervous when they are ridden for the first time. This is why sometimes a more thorough ground work is needed..
4. Training for a specific discipline → This is when the horses are taught for a specific discipline like dressage, racing, and riding.

However, these are not all of the responsibilities of a trainer. They are also the agents handling the horses of the owners. This means they can represent the horse owners in certain transactions like events or when it concerns a horses’ health.

How to be a Horse Trainer

Becoming a horse trainer is easy because no formal degree is needed. However, some horse racing organizations and companies only accept trainers who has a second degree. This does not need to be related to horses like animal science and biology. This means you can be a horse trainer no matter what course you took. Although there are a few horse trainers who had an animal science education.

You can also start out by becoming an apprentice of a professional horse trainer. This can make it easier to learn more about the profession. 

Recognition of Horse Trainers

Teaching horses discipline and various tricks take incredible skill and patience. However, there are trainers that excel more in their profession. They are often recognized for their skill and dedication by the governing body of horse racing in their country.

Some of the awards given to outstanding horse trainers are: JRA Award for Best Trainer, Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer, and Sovereign Award for Outstanding Trainer.

JRA Award for Best Trainer

The Japan Racing Association (JRA) gives awards to the most remarkable horse trainer in the country. They take into consideration the following:

1. Number of races the trainer’s horse won
2. Average wins
3. Money earned.

Additionally, they consider if the Japan horse trainer has the best training technique out of the others. This award is given every year.

Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer

The Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer is a trophy given to excellent Thoroughbred horse trainers. This is part of the Eclipse Awards.

There has only been one person who received this award the most. This is Todd Fletcher who had been awarded seven times. This award is given annually.

Sovereign Award for Outstanding Trainer

The Sovereign Award for Outstanding Trainer is an annual Canadian trophy given to the most remarkable trainer of the year. This has been presented by the Jockey Club of Canada.

Salary of Horse Trainers

Salaries that horse trainers earn depend on the country they are in and where they are employed. However, the estimated annual wage for horse trainers in 2019 is ¥4,830,991. Additionally, their estimated average hourly rate is ¥2,323.

For senior level horse trainers with more than eight years of experience, their estimated annual wage is ¥5,741,630.

Horse trainers also receive additional payout when the horse they trained won in a competition. Their cut for this depends on the prize winnings offered in the tournament.

Famous Horse Trainers

There are numerous trainers in the course of history that made significant contributions in their field. Some of the famous trainers are: Kazuo Fujisawa, Bill Shoemaker, and Sam Hildreth.

Kazuo Fujisawa

Kazuo Fujisawa is a Thoroughbred horse trainer in Japan. He won the training title eleven times. He has trained three horses that were voted to be the Japanese Horse of the Year. These horses were Taiki Shuttle, Symboli Kris S, and Zenno Rob Roy.

Fujisawa is currently training Casino Drive, the 2008 Peter Pan Stakes winner.

Bill Shoemaker

Bill Shoemaker was a professional jockey before he retired and became a horse trainer. He had 90 wins as a trainer from 714 races and earned over $3.7 million. He retired from being a trainer on November 2, 1997.

Sam Hildreth

Sam Hildreth was an American Thoroughbred horse trainer who won various outstanding trainer trophies. He won a number of United States Champion Trainer by wins and by earnings trophy. Additionally he was included in the United States’ Racing Hall of Fame in 1955.

READ MORE: Everything You Need to Know About Horse Racing