I had a horse when I was a teenager who would learn tests fast as lightning. I leased her to a five year old kid when the horse retired, and she knew all the training level tests. Kiddo went to a horse show and froze after the first halt. The judge (schooling show) told her “turn left” thinking it would jog kiddo’s memory. It jogged the mares memory instead and she promptly did the whole test on a loopy rein with the kid not steering. The judge was on the floor laughing.
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Yes! We have to say 1, 2, or 3 to indicate the gait during our lessons. He was trained to respond very well to voice commands, which is super handy for me at times for my own physical reasons, but it definitely feeds his anticipatory nature.
@MsM I’m laughing at your “be good, no great, no best”. That is SO true. I feel like he’s always going “how bout now? Now? Now? Now?”. They are such characters!
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I LOVE Morgans! Hope you keep posting about your progress! I don’t have any experience to share regarding re-training one though I have had Morgan horses. Only one 20 year old mare is left. I think a Morgan park harness horse is just about the most thrilling horse in the world to watch. I grew up riding in a Morgan/SH training barn. I’m grateful for having learned on such uppity horses. Mine have always exhibited such…pride. Personal pride in themselves.
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we found that Morgans adapt quickly to new adventures learning from observation rather than training
Shamrock Foxie Joy was our horse, she was a regional western pleasure champion who always placed well at nationals… a pretty horse who knew her job.
We noticed her becoming bored with going around and around in the show ring so thought she might like trail work.
The first NATRC competitive ride (fifty miles) she was on at the first P&R (pulse and respiration) vet check on the trail as the horses arrived they were put in a line and given a few minutes to recover. Saddles were removed. The other horses who were veterans of many rides dropped their heads to recover faster.
Every one looked at Foxie and asked what is he doing? She had squared up, head up , ears forward waiting to be judged… she thought this was the championship line up since saddles were off.
She learned quickly from either watching the others or listening to them laugh at her as by the end the of the season she was winning her division. The next year she was the regional division champion them went on to national champion in her division.
She easily went back to whatever she had been doing in other disciplines.
With a Morgan you can end up with a lot of tack
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I am reviving this thread because I just took on a little (little!) 6 yo Morgan mare who has been trained in the Morgan way of going.
She is at my (eventing) barn for dressage (!) training and getting her out of a rearing habit.
So far I find her very willing and cute and she hasn’t offered to rear. She has a nice soft mouth and is very responsive. Her (My!) biggest problem is how awfully herd bound she is. Right now it’s even hard to get a flat footed walk out of her. I only manage it riding her outside near the paddocks. There, she has a nice, reaching walk on a long rein. But - When we’re away from the other horses, she gets incredibly nervous and jigs and shuffles with her neck/head as high up as she can (on a long rein). It’s a challenge!
Years ago, another little Morgan mare fell into my lap because she wasn’t the right fit for Morgan shows. She didn’t have the desired high headed, high stepping demeanor. She ended up being my best horse, really. So versatile and kind. Then I evented another Morgan, a gelding, old-style and very willing to do whatever. Those 2 horses really made me love that breed.
I know this one’s problem is not a quick fix, so I will harness all the patience I have and wait her out. I plan on riding her at least 4 times a week and hope for the best!
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Good luck with her! If you’re going to share her story you must share a picture! 
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Hi Sophie! Thanks for reviving my thread. It has (obviously) been a while and we’ve made some good progress.
My horse took a long time to flat foot walk consistently for more than a few steps (2.5 years) and when he is feeling good we still get a lateral walk or super slow jig/jog. We got dinged at a show last year because he was excited and just wanted to get to the next gear, which he knew was coming eventually. It has been a good mental workout for me to always keep changing things up and keep him engaged without anticipating.
Good luck with your little mare!
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I took a young Morgan stallion, gelded him and made a solo-trail ride horse out of him. Wasn’t easy. There were times when i FINALLY got home, after circles, and turning around and walking back a hundred yards, or a half mile…whatever it took, and re-walking him back home, that i once actually kissed the ground once we were done! Taking him out and back…well it was like landing a sailfish in the ocean. He was quite the fellow. The thing that made it worthwhile was how incredibly beautiful he was, and what a fine, highstrung intelligent manner of horse he was. Once we were finally a team, riding him was like heaven. He was my lower half. I’ve had a few Morgans, and each one presented such personality and such intelligence that even as spirited as they are, it has been a joy. Good luck with your new girl…wishing you both an enlightening and joyful journey!!
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The Morgan mares that I’ve had have become nice solo trail horses over time, but started off like this. I have had much luck taking them for in-hand walks that I make into scavenger hunts by putting out small rubber food pans with a little handful of yummy treats in it for them to “find” during our walk. It’s a rare Morgan that isn’t thrilled about treats 
Their comfort zone may be very small at first, but in my experience, after a couple of times doing this, you can start to expand their horizon by spacing the treat buckets out farther apart and farther away from friends. Before you know it, you’re 1/2 mile down the road away from the barn. Then you start doing this handwalking away from the barn and mounting up to ride home. Once they know you are taking them on pleasing adventures, they look forward to it!
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From my own experience, the first time we took a formal park horse to a dressage show, the horse knew his job - and he turned it on! The lovely, first level, obedient, quiet, child safe horse was still at home and the animated park horse of the past showed up. 
It only took a couple of dressage shows for him to realize his new job at home was his new job at shows - I think it helped that he loved his kid and felt she was his responsibility. We kept the program consistent from home to show so he quickly understood his new job but it was interesting to see his memory kick in the way it did. Have Fun! Morgan are a blast!
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Thanks, everyone.
@BayWithABlaze18 I am glad you and your horse are making progress! I know this little mare will need lots of time and patience, and I am willing to work with her but I know her owners are very eager and impatient to make her “kid-safe”. Not that she is unsafe, but she can definitely intimidate a novice rider.
What she needs is consistency and I will try to give her that. We’ll see!
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a photo or two would be nice 
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I am getting a 6 yr old Morgan mare started on her dressage journey.
I’m new to this breed and purchased her last fall. She was part of a feral herd and not really handled until the fall of her 4 yr old year when a local Morgan breeder took her (and 6 others) from the rescue.
They started under saddle a year ago when she was 5. They worked slowly and carefully but did have her quite cranked in and BTV trying to market her as a ‘dressage horse’.
I am a competent 70 year old rider and wanted a new project that was small and quiet. A friend told me about her and a couple others at the same place. I went and tried her out 4 times over the summer and absolutely fell in love with her. She is friendly, super smart, not at all spooky and willing to try whatever I ask.
She has a huge walk but the trot was very up and down with zero tracking up when I got her. We have taken things very slow over the winter, just getting to know each other and doing lots of short, quiet under saddle trot work.
My main focus has been to encourage the stretch over her back and she now tracks up and really stretches when on the longe. She loves the pole work and has increased that trot step by at least 6". She’s starting to reach for the contact and it becomes more even every day.
I have just started her cantering and it is just lovely. We actually cantered an entire circle and over a pole yesterday. So proud!
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last year we got a five year old Morgan mare who never had any training as she never grew beyond 14h… got her last May then started working her. Her first time out at Dressage event was in the following August where she won four Blues (daughter is a fairly good rider)… she was at this show to get her qualified for Morgan Nationals where she did well placing fourth (I am pretty sure) against others who had many, many years of training…but this horse had only been in work for a few months
first day here
her glamour photo for Nationals
also at that show we got her officially measured at 14h
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This passage made me teary-eyed, because this is how I felt about my fancy ex-stud, Wally. He was a Paint, not a Morgan, but the sentiment is the same. We’re both so fortunate to have had such awesome creatures in our lives.
(Apologies for the thread detour)
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This is the only one I have right now but I’ll try to have someone take some when I ride her - a video would be better to see how high-strung she can be. She’s such a fancy pony with a kind, inquisitive eye.
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She’s lovely! Sometimes you just have to teach the hot ones how to stand and just breath while life happens around them before the riding part.
I love your post!!
It’s funny - when I first came to the US I wanted to ride American horses (after being raised on Selle Français and Anglo-Arabs) and discovered the Morgan through my little “Morgan show reject” mare. After she passed I rode another Morgan for a while, then a friend got me into Ottbs. And now that my last Ottb mare has passed, I am again on a little Morgan. Right now I don’t think I will even own another horse, the way my life is going, but if I do, it might well be another Morgan!
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OH!!! HOW PRETTY!!! What a pretty little sprite! Morgans have the best heads in all of horsedom!!!
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I have a coming 6 (in June) year old Morgan gelding. I’m fortunate because I purchased him as a just gelded but unbacked 3 year old; so, he was pretty much a blank slate. He is your typical Morgan, loves his people, smart, level-headed, is willing to be chill as long as he’s being scratched or with his people, but does have go so you have to know how to use it. My previous Morgans were much the same. I have had experience transitioning a ‘show’ Arab or two to the dressage scene. I found that it’s not just patience that’s needed and the ability to remain cool (as the rider) in all situations but exposure to the leisurely life. Trail riding, 100s of miles with others and alone probably helped the most; but, also taking them to dressage schooling shows in tow with the others and just letting them hang out helped a ton too. They would stand tied to the trailer along with the others and get walked around the show grounds during breaks, sometimes ridden but all with a very low key mellow yellow attitude. Miracles did not happen at first; but, gradually they let down much like OTTBs do. Their background did come in handy eventually. I was at a large well-known venue at a recognized dressage show with one of them. There were other shows going on as well as the dressage, Friesian-breed show and a cutting competition. While the big time imported dressage bred stars were doing airs above the ground when feathers and carts went flying by or cows were moved too close, my retired ‘show Arab’ turned dressage mount was cool as a cucumber, completely unphased. We ended up doing really well at that show
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