Many owners and breeders of the Rocky Mountain Horse consider them to be some of the easiest and most even dispositioned horses to work with a train. They are very affectionate towards humans and seem to naturally understand what the rider is asking, even with only minimal training. The traditional methods of training the Rocky Mountain Horse which includes lots of handling and attention when the foals are young and then halter training yearlings and working on desensitization training, then moving in to saddle breaking when the horse is about two are still considered to be the most effective methods. Rocky Mountain Horses, like most breeds of horses, thrive on positive, routine and consistent training methods that are designed with the horse's abilities and training progression in mind. Emphasis in all training programs with the Rocky Mountain Horse is to increase the horse's trust and affection towards the rider while also allowing the horse to understand how to use its own natural intelligence when on the trail or when being ridden.
The Rocky Mountain Horse if trained for trail riding is allowed to run free as much as possible. Especially in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky this is considered to be an important part of the foal and yearlings development. This allows the horse to learn how to navigate through natural obstacles as well as allows maximum natural development of the sure-footed nature of the horse as well as body muscling and growth. A very hardy horse the Rocky Mountain Horse is rarely if ever stabled when used as a trail riding or pleasure riding horse. Some of the Rocky Mountain Horses that are used in the show ring are more pampered, but even these horses are given ample time outside to just be a horse.
Most of the Rocky Mountain Horses in the United States are trained using the western riding method. This includes using western tack as the more substantial saddles are more commonly used for trail riding since they allow more room for packing supplies as well as more support for the rider. The Rocky Mountain Horse may not just be used for a riding horse however. Many of the breed are also trained as pack horses although they are not typically exclusively trained to pack. A pack horse has to be able to move with the packs as well as navigate with heavy, often rather bulky items on their back. Not all horses make good pack horses and this dual feature on a trail ride can be a great asset.
Some Rocky Mountain Horses may also be trained for driving. These horses with their natural gaits do make excellent driving horses in either one, two or four horse hitches. The smaller, lightweight buggies or surreys typically used with the breed historically usually have a single horse hitch. The Rocky Mountain Horse can also be used under English saddle where they can be taught dressage and used in English pleasure and equitation type classes.
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