Jeanette Arnaout Training

I bought the Groupon deal for my two daughters since there birthdays land in the same month. We were definitely not disappointed. Jeanette was patient, and even when my younger daughter was afraid, she was very accommodating. This was their first time riding larger horses and it they loved it. The older of the two that rode wants to come back, which I am strongly considering. She learned a lot in just one session.
It was an excellent experience and I would recommend Jeanette to anyone who is interested in horse riding lessons.

I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this person as a trainer for safety and for knowledge. I have known Jeannette for many years. She used to be a trainer in a large lesson/​boarding/​training facility that I owned in Southern CA many years ago. She has a natural talent that I have seen in very few people, and is continually studying new skills from the masters. She takes her responsibilities very seriously. Even though I grew up showing and training horses myself, I felt lucky to have her training my own kids. They gained disciplines from her that benefited my kids for years after. She is great with kids, great with horses, and I have seen her work miracles with both to bring out the best. She knows how to combine your child with the horse that is the best fit for them. She is a no-​nonsense kind of person, but she loves kids and loves teaching them. If you want something that your child can actually benefit from and not just a «fun babysitting ride», she will help build their self-​esteem, keep them safe, and find the true love of riding. If she doesn’t answer the phone right away, try again, it is worth it :)

This place is so much fun. I am a city boy and I am not really too familiar with horses. Jeannette has taught me all the basics of how to deal with horses. I am still currently learning more and more each day but I feel like I am home when I come to this place. I highly recommend this place mainly because safety is always put first here and I highly value safety. best place ever!!!

I purchased the LOVE of my life horse, RUGBY in September of 2014. I had inquired about Rugby after seeing his ad posted on
. Jeanette knew I was extremely new to riding, and her and her all-​star staff took very good care of me. Rugby was exactly as advertised, better in fact, aside from being a bit out of shape. Jeanette would not let me look at horses outside my level (which was almost all of them). She cares about both the fit for both the rider and the horse. She was flexible to let me have him on trial and was completely fair, albeit firm, in her negotiations. I have not regretted one day that I have owned this horse. I would refer anyone who wants to buy or sell a horse to visit Jeanette Arnaout at Lightning Stables in Gilroy. If you live down that way, definitely inquire about lessons or summer camps!

I was driving back home from Disney Land with my 4 year old baby girl and I seen the ranch with a sign that said Riding Lessons. I turned around and got the number on the sign.
I call right on the spot and Jeanette answered RIGHT AWAY even though she was at a Horse Show!
I had been looking to buy a horse for my daughter and thought I would just ask to see if they had horses for sale as well.
Jeanette informed me that she had a few that I could look at. So I asked her when was a good time for me to come by and see what she had for sale. We set a date for the following weekend. (I had called on a Sunday)
1. SHE ANSWERED RIGHT AWAY.
2. SET A DATE ON THE SPOT.
I went online to check out what she had to offer and seen a Palomino that I liked. When I came out to see her with my little girl and my Dad. She brought out the horse that I was interested in, but she then started asking questions.
— What did I want the horse for?
— Who was the horse for?
— What My experience with horses was?
— What was my price range?
She then was really HONEST with me and let me know that the horse I was looking at may not be a good match for my daughter.
*SHE WAS HONEST AND TO THE POINT* If you can’t handle that well I really don’t know why you are in the horses world. This is how it outta be!
She then was showing me horses in my price range and my Dad had seen a horse (that she did not show us) And I asked about that one. She was honest once again and let me know that she was re-​homing this horse for the owner and she only gave me the information that she was give by the owner. She was honest and let me know that they had not really rode the horse since he arrived at her ranch.
** ONCE AGAIN SHE WAS HONEST! SHE WASN’T JUST TRYING TO SALE THE HORSE OFF !
I asked to ride the horse. I rode him and I liked him a lot. I thought about the purchase for a while (2 weeks) as I was also trying to get a stall ready for him. in that time I was able to keep frequent contact with Jeanette. I came across some minor setbacks, but she was so great! she worked with me the whole way through the process and made sure that we got the horse.
I see a lot of negative comments on here and all I have to say is this. You cannot Judge just by what others have to say. You need to take your time and look for the right match … you have to go and see and meet the person you are about to do business with!
It’s been 2 weeks since we have brought home our new member of our family and Jeanette and I still kept in contact. I just sent her a picture of my daughter and her boy Pegasus. To reassure her that he came home to the right people.
Once again you can’t just go off what you read! some people are just plain old mean!
Jeanette was so sweet, and honest and her staff I just loved. One of the girls (I will hold off on her name), but she was the sweetest thing!
All in all I’m very happy that I came across Jeanette and the girls that work with her!
In my book she is …
Honest
Down to Earth
Straight Forward
Kindhearted
Professional

Bought a groupon for the horse camp and sent my daughter off. I stayed for the first couple hours each time, and saw Jeanette as a serious and firm instructor, which is a good thing. She taught the children early on that they are riding real horses, not overly tame pony rides like at the county fair. All the students were given helmets and the first lesson was about «squirrel» which is code for «get off the horse now» as a safety precaution. Before other lessons began, each child had to master and respond immediately and appropriately to the squirrel command.
After this, each child spent some time with each horse so Jeanette could evaluate them and see which horse matched best for each child. My daughter LOVED her lessons and absolutely loves Jeanette. I ended up paying for additional lessons and to this day my daughter goes to the ranch once a week.
Yes, Jeanette can be difficult to reach IMMEDIATELY, but realize that
1) the ranch is in nearly a «dead zone» of cell phone coverage, but she does respond within a normal time-​frame.
2) Jeantte is not just a «horse lesson» person. She is constantly having her students and horses shown at various events all over the area, and there are times that she cannot drop everything to answer a phone call, but once again, she does respond in a timely manner.
3) She has over 50 horses, many of which are rescued horses that she and her crew take care of.
The thing I like best about Jeanette is she does not simply teach the children to ride. She teaches respect for the animal, how to bond with it, and also teaches the children how to care for the animal. Lessons are not just «jump on the horse and ride.» She expects the students to bring out «their» horse, groom it, clean their hooves, and saddle them properly. All things that every rider should know how to do.
I HIGHLY recommend Jeantte as a trainer if you are looking for a trainer that will not only teach your child to ride and show, but also how to care for, love, and respect these animals.

If I could give 0 stars, then I would.
This is a repeat of a review that I gave a couple years ago, but the review has disappeared. I feel this strongly about this business, that I am re-​posting this review.
PARENTS WHO ARE CONCERNED FOR THEIR CHILDREN’S SAFETY, DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILDREN TO THIS BUSINESS.
We bought a living social deal for this and had a pretty tough time scheduling the lesson. I attributed it to it being a small business, so maybe she was under-​staffed and over-​worked. This was the least of my worries, it turned out.
She put my two kids on two different horses. My younger one was on a smaller horse, while my older one was on a much bigger, full-​size horse. As my younger child was nervous about getting on the horse, he asked whether it was safe. Jeanette immediately said in a very serious tone, «this horse is an animal, not a toy, and if you’re not careful, it could kill you.» Great way to start off the lesson — NOT…
But wait, it gets worse, MUCH MUCH worse.
The kids were slowly trotting on the horses, and everything seemed fine. My husband and I relaxed a bit as we saw the kids enjoying their lesson. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the bigger horse rolled onto the ground (as a dog would to scratch its own back) and my older child jumped off the horse and luckily landed on his feet. We were standing across the field and ran to the horse, shocked and worried. Jeanette was not even apologetic. She had my son get back on the horse (which we should have not allowed, but we were just in such shock). She then gripped the horse very tightly so he could not roll again. She proceeded to complain to us that this horse had a bad habit of such rolling behavior.
We were grateful that my son was okay (fast reflexes helped him jump off and not get hurt, which was the most important thing), but we were incensed that she allowed my son to get on a horse that she knew had this bad habit of rolling.
This story could have ended up very badly with a broken leg, or even worse, so we are extremely grateful that our son was not injured.
However, this woman needs to take some serious lessons in safety and good business practices.
Immediately after our lesson, I called living social to complain about this business to make sure that they would NOT ever promote her business. They barely took notice of my complaint (that’s another story here). I was disgusted to see that they promoted her business again about a year later with another «deal.»
PARENTS, IF YOU ARE AT ALL CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN’S SAFETY, THEN DO NOT LET THEM TAKE LESSONS HERE. THIS WOMAN DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THE SAFETY OF CHILDREN.

Mixed feelings. Initially i gave this ranch a 5-​star rating for the summer camp my daughter attended last August, it was an awesome experience for her, she totally loved it (btw she said that Jeanette is kind and not rude at all, to answer some of the comments of other reviewers). After that we tried to schedule a private lesson to celebrate my kid’s birthday there — a very disappointing experience — Jeanette never answered my two e-​mails and 3 voice messages, and we had previously talked about setting it up. So that part of how the business is run is true.

After buying the groupon for the summer camp, my daughter absolutely loved riding with Jeanette. I have an incredibly sensitive daughter, who wouldn’t thrive under harsh or rude circumstances. It took only one phone call for us to set up her time, however it is true that Jeanette doesn’t always answer her phone. This is because she is the trainer and business contact. Running a ranch is busy busy work, and she does so exceptionally. She also gives students the opportunity to serve if they have experience with horses, which she offered my daughter. We’ve had previous riding lessons and our experience here was equal to or better than the experiences at other stables.
She has rescued many horses, and as such has some who have been previously neglected or abandoned.
Part of riding a horse is learning to care for them as well, which she also teaches and instills in her riders. If you’re looking for riding lessons where you just jump on the horse and ride, this probably isn’t the place for you.

Jeanette is a great trainer for first time riders. She puts you at ease and makes you feel comfortable about riding.

Our two kids just finished the camp this week at Jeanette’s stable and they said they had a great time. As parents, we are just looking for a fun, friendly, safe, and affordable place for our kids who do not have much ridding experience. We are very happy that our objectives are met. Because of the prior Unilocal reviews by others, I had set lower expectations for the administrative stuffs. We got the schedule we requested (I didn’t mind the efforts of doing a couple follow-​ups, considered the good deal from Groupons). All in all, we have a good experience. We will try this again in future.

I am a mother of two. I bought Groupon for my two kids. I felt so upset after I read all the reviews and I was not sure if I wanted to send my kids there.
But I talked to Jeanette over the phone and decided to take a chance, she was courteous and nice.
Today was the last day of camp. My two kids are so happy about the overall experience they had at this camp (5 and 7 years old). They wanted to go back :)
I had the opportunity to peek into two of the activities and all the kids were having so much fun.
I have to write this review since my experience and the other 11 kids at the camp are complete opposite than the reviews wrote down before.
The girls that worked with Jeanette are so sweet and nice. They are Great helping the kids on this camp!
:) We just love it!

I so wish I’d consulted Unilocal before buying a Groupon for lessons. I never even got to experience the rudeness detailed in some of the reviews, because over the course of more than 6 weeks, I could not get a single response from this business. I bought lessons via Groupon on March 8, 2013, and left a minimum of three voicemails between then and April 25, 2013. Groupon instructed me to reach out via email, and still no response. NOt sure if Groupon will provide a refund — that may end up being a separate battle — but in the meantime, I have a 10-​year-​old girl who was so very HAPPY to receive the riding lessons she’s been begging for, for several years… who is beside herself in tears, because I can’t get anyone that this place to call me back to schedule her lessons. Utterly ridiculous way to run a business!
Spend your money elsewhere!

My daughter had always wanted to go horseback riding, so I took advantage of it when I came across a groupon for Jeanette Arnaout Training. First off, she is hard to get a hold of to make an appointment. I’ve had to leave her several messages because I was not getting a return call back. It took a few days (almost a 2 weeks) before we were able to get in touch and make an appointment for the following month. For someone trying to get more traffic in her business, she was not friendly and somewhat rude. She didn’t make it an exciting experience for her customers and was impatient. Although my daughter enjoyed her first horseback ride, we will not be returning to Jeanette Arnaout.

I’m not sure why I didn’t write this review immediately following my daughter’s horseback riding lessons with Jeanette when I could’ve provided direct quotes. However, when I see the Living Social/​Groupon deals come around every so often for Jeanette, I think to myself that I really need to write a review about our poor experience with this woman. I honestly can’t believe she’s still in business. The idea of the coupons is to build her business, but a coupon is not going to make up for plain rudeness.
It took several attempts on my part to schedule the lessons as I was constantly leaving messages and would receive one return phone call to my 3 messages left. Phone tag went on for quite some time until I finally got the lessons on the books.
I’m not able to speak to Jeanette’s training methods because I am no expert in riding. But what I can tell you is that, like other reviewers have stated, she is understaffed. This may explain her extreme rudeness and snappy comments, but it certainly doesn’t excuse them. She directed one of her rude comments at me, and with my 10 year old daughter standing right next to me, I couldn’t respond like I would’ve liked.
We bought the Groupon that came with 3 lessons. My daughter almost decided to forgo the last two lessons because of Jeanette’s disposition, but because my daughter loves horses so much, she stuck it out. The 2^nd and 3^rd lessons were better, but my daughter said that Jeanette paid much more attention to the riders with ability. I’m guessing it’s because there was more of a chance of those riders becoming clients of Jeanette’s.
Overall, I would not recommend this facility. The better reviews spoke directly to Jeanette’s ability as a trainer, but getting passed all the abrasiveness is WAY more than I’m willing to tolerate. There have to be qualified trainers who are pleasant to work with out there. Hurry, find them!

do not go to this place the owner is the rudest person i have ever met save your self and all the 5 stars she has are fake she must have written them she is a mean spirited

I have been a happy student of Jeanette’s for 13 years. I currently hold a position as an assistant in her program. This has been a fantastic learning experience for me as a horse person. Jeanette offers lessons and camps to a variety of age groups, levels, and interests. No matter what you want to learn, Jeanette will match you with a horse that suits you and your individual needs as a rider. The program is very hands on. All students eventually learn to get their horses ready, ridden, and put away from start to finish. Responsibility and safety are both key factors in Jeanette’s program. As an instructor, Jeanette is very knowledgeable, and she challenges her students so that they can reach their full equestrian potential.
Jeanette also has a fantastic training program. She takes in horses from all different backgrounds– rehabs, thoroughbreds off the track, trade-​ins, problem horses, etc. She uses effective training methods and takes proper care of her horses.

I am pretty disappointed with Jeanette’s service.
I purchased the coupon from livingsocial but quickly realized it was a mistake.
It’s hard to schedule the time in the first place and Jeanette is very unfriendly and in some degree very rude. Especially when you take your kids with you, dealing with rude person is particularly hard. I can’t argue with someone in front of my kids and I refuse to lower myself to her level.
If you don’t like what you do and can’t be nice to your customers better stop promoting your service.
Avoid.

Dirty! Left very disappointed, I am an experienced horse person, I think she focuses on beginners. I would not leave my horse or child there.

I had a groupon for Golden Ridge, but they had a busy schedule and referred me to Jeanette. She was very responsive and quick to schedule me in. My daughter really enjoyed this. Jeanette is pretty solid. She has a group of girls that help out too, which I enjoyed because they were all so nice and well mannered. Alot of her crew is nice and makes you feel welcomed. The training went well, and I am pleased to know she has summer camp too! Can’t wait. Well be going back. Alot of horses, beautiful ranch, and very keen trainer.