Professional schooling for young dressage horses: real costs explained

Training board is one of the most common investments a horse owner makes during the training phase — and at the same time one of the most opaque. Anyone asking for a quote usually gets a number, but rarely a clear breakdown of what actually happens per day. That is exactly what we change in this piece.

Full training board for a young dressage horse in Berlin and Brandenburg typically runs 1,400 to 1,800 euros per month including stalled boarding. Part training board with two to three riding days costs around 800 to 1,200 euros per month plus boarding. At the Eichhof Akademie in Schenkenhorst (Potsdam-Mittelmark) we transparently separate boarding (from 900 euros per month for an outdoor stall) and the schooling work — you see what you are paying for.

Below we explain what sits behind the prices, how full and part training board differ, and how to recognise serious schooling in everyday work.

What „training board” actually is

„Training board” (in German Beritt) is not a protected term, and that makes comparison between yards difficult. What one yard calls „training board” is another’s „training programme” and a third’s hybrid of starting, lessons and corrective work.

In the classical sense, training board includes:

• Daily riding by a qualified rider — typically four to six days per week.
• Groundwork and lunging — as a complement to the ridden work, for looseness and muscle development.
• Trainer lessons with a riding instructor of higher qualification, who corrects the schooling riders themselves.
• Health-maintaining phases — walking sessions, hacks, breaks; the plan must not consist of nothing but ridden lessons.

What training board is not: three weeks of riding and a „finished” horse. Anyone promising that risks the horse. Solid training in the classical riding tradition works in months — sometimes years — not weeks.

Price components, transparent

A training-board price always combines several components in practice. Understanding them lets you compare quotes meaningfully.

• Boarding. Stall, oats, mucking, turnout, facility access. At Eichhof Akademie that starts at 900 euros per month for an outdoor stall.
• Schooling work. The actual ridden work. In full training board typically 500-900 euros per month additional, depending on rider qualification.
• Trainer lessons. When a professional trainer corrects the schooling riders themselves, that is a decisive quality step — not every yard offers it.
• Add-on services. Equine physiotherapy, farrier corrections, pre-purchase exams — these are typically extras.

The most common owner frustration arises when this separation was unclear in the pre-call. We strongly recommend agreeing a clear weekly plan when you book training board: who rides, when, for how long, with what aim — and what does it cost per month.

Full vs. part training board

Which form makes sense depends on two factors: the horse’s training stage and the owner’s riding volume.

Full training board is usually appropriate for:

• Horses immediately after starting, who need lots of repetition in the first 6-12 months.
• Horses in corrective phases after tension or training errors.
• Owners with under two riding sessions per week, who can’t keep the horse in training flow.
• Before a competition phase, when intensive build-up training is required.

Part training board is usually appropriate for:

• Horses with established basics, who need regular trainer impulses.
• Owners who themselves ride three to four times per week and use schooling days as correction and targeted training.
• In the phase after full training board, as a transition to taking primary responsibility yourself.

A rule of thumb from twenty years of practice: three months of full training board are better than twelve months of part for a horse that needs a lot of building — and conversely, twelve months of part training board are better than three months of full for an established horse that needs routine and consistency.

The Eichhof approach to training board — what we offer

At Eichhof Akademie we see training board as an integrated part of our training logic. In concrete terms:

• Ridden work by qualified personnel. Master Equine Manager Pia Anina Gerullis and dressage trainer Kim Jesse lead the schooling — both work in the classical riding tradition with fine aids.
• Trainer correction lessons. The schooling riders are themselves regularly corrected. That is the point where many training-board yards fall short — without further-educating the rider you get worse schooling outcomes.
• Groundwork and seat lessons for the owner. If you wish, your own further education is included. A well-ridden horse re-tenses quickly when the owner rides stiffly.
• Transparency in the training plan. Each week you know what was ridden, what worked, what didn’t. We don’t operate in a black box.

For ridden work the facility offers two dressage arenas (20 × 60 m and 20 × 55 m, ebb-and-flow), an indoor arena (20 × 40 m, also ebb-and-flow), two lunge rings and a one-hectare jumping field — usable also in winter and heavy rain.

What to look for when choosing

Three points we keep telling buyers in pre-calls:

1. Meet the rider in person. Watch them ride — not just on video. Riders working with fine aids look relaxed; the horse does too. Riders working with pressure show it on the horse immediately.
2. Ask for a clear weekly plan. Who rides when, for how long, with what objective. If the yard can’t produce that, it’s a warning.
3. Agree on regular visits. You should be able to visit your horse anytime, including unannounced. A yard that doesn’t permit that has something to hide.

If you are considering placing your horse in training board at Eichhof Akademie, contact us for a personal pre-call. We discuss your specific case, look at the horse and give you a transparent quote.

Full vs. part training board compared