Noob question about training horses

[Don't kill me]

I searched these forums and the wiki and I can't seem to make sense of it all.
I'm not using any mods.

I've tamed three horses and they are in a pen. I understand that I cannot train animals if they are in a pen.
Apparently I am able to train horses to guard, carry, etc, but I am unable to allow the horses to roam out of the pen, because they wonder off. I also can't seem to create an animal zone for them to wonder around.

What am I doing wrong? How do I train horses and allow them to freely wonder around the colony?

[Hoki]

there's a misunderstanding at play here.

pen animals cant be trained at all. thats pretty much the reason why you keep them in a pen.

the important bit here is hidden in the info menu of the animals: the "trainability" stat.

that stat defines what sort of training you can do with the animal

[Païtiti]

You cannot. You could in earlier versions of the game but since the introduction of animal pens horse are considered pen animals. That means you cannot assign an area for them to live in but need to use the pen. Trainable animals, such as dogs, can be put into zones.

[Don't kill me]

thanks guys. That was bugging the hell out of me, but at least now I know

[Solarius Scorch]

That makes using Giddy Up! a bit awkward, no?
You can't ride horses, of all things...

[Veylox]

Pen animals, like horses, are either used for resource production or for caravans. Horse are used for caravans.

If you want a hauling/guarding animal, you need something else, like dogs