Posted in Advice, Q&A on Feb 2nd, 2012
If this is your first time reading my blog about training horses at liberty, I want to give you a very warm welcome. I want to fill you in on what today’s blog post is about. This blog post is a continuation that started two weeks ago. If you start at the beginning, you will know what I am referring to in today’s entry.
It is that time of year again and I am delighted to offer our special Valentine’s Day Coaching Call, Tuesday February 14th, 2012 where the topics will be:
“How to Make a True Heart Connection with Your Horse: Which comes first Respect or Love?
Discussion: What 10 things are on your Horse’s Bucket List?”
The format for our call will be a short introductory piece and some coaching from me followed by an open question and answer session. Please bring your HORSE’S BUCKET LIST as we’ll be sharing our lists with each other on the call. A Bucket List is a list of things your horse would like to do or things your horse would like to have – like my horse
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Posted in Advice, Clinics, Stories on Jan 26th, 2012
This week’s post is from guest blogger Kai Mattern.
From riding waves to riding horses
Sports like white water kayaking, surfing and windsurfing took up the bulk of my life, sports that teach you to work together with nature rather than against it and the occasional encounters I had with horses and their riders didn’t match the pictures I had in my mind.
Leading at Liberty
Leading with tack
My background with horses
One day I went for a ride on a dude string which is another funny story I might tell in another occasion, either way it led to me taking riding lessons and some months later to my decision to get my own horse. I bought Oli when he was around 9, he was an extreme horse, a thoroughbred off the track with plenty of go but no whoa. Researching horse training on the internet, I found lots of information on natural horsemanship and for sure this was the path I wanted to be on. One method I tried, was round… Read more
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Posted in Advice on Jan 19th, 2012
Continued From Last Week: “After Liberty Training – The Importance of Leading Your Horse” After all your comments of anticipation for this lesson, I surely hope I do not let you down! These simple exercises that follow will teach you how to hold Ora’s horse. You can use them any time you are leading your horse.
Reminder of the upcoming clinic in March:
Developing Your Approach to Connection: In a Nutshell
Taking this approach will help your horse to follow your lead. Become the change you want in your horse and accept what you get back from your horse. Do not beat yourself up when you do not receive what you think you should get back, either.
Imagine your approach and the connection you are wanting to gain before you do this exercise. Before you begin, take a few moments or an afternoon to become relaxed and grounded. Feeling calmness will help your horse become centered when he feels scattered. Not being scattered yourself draws a horse to your leadership. Develop a habit of projecting calmness when your horse feels scattered. As you are practicing this exercise, take your horse to places… Read more
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Posted in Advice on Jan 12th, 2012
Here we are starting out on a new year. I am so looking forward to our next online course. If you have any questions regarding the course, let me know, so I can answer them for you and get you started on a great journey. I design the Waterhole Rituals Online course around you and your particular horse as you learn how to use my method. It is a journey that will take you to a deep cross-species bond from training your horse through The Waterhole Rituals. The Waterhole Rituals is a journey that will benefit all, horses and humans. You will be addressing your horse in the same manner you would, if you were to meet your horse on a desert island and a relationship took place there, that lasted you a life time. To learn more about the Spring 2012 program view this page: Waterhole Rituals Online Course – Insider Circle and Extended Circle Seats are available.
In other exciting news, we have added a new Beyond the Waterhole Ritual Clinic for Spring 2012. For more information please view the Beyond The Waterhole Rituals Clinic page. Remember this is… Read more
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Posted in Advice, Clinics on Dec 29th, 2011
Learning more about the magic of the co-creative process
Horses are flexible in their attitude and emotions from willing to unwilling, from trusting to fearful, from relaxed to hyper. Basically a horse’s nature is dynamic, cautious and willing. That makes sense, we are a lot like that ourselves. Horses have two changeable behaviors, fluctuating from trusting to not trusting, from social to antisocial… a bit like we are in our own society. They also seek friendship and live in communities and family groups…again a bit like us. When they feel secure and have enough space, food and water, they life in unity and harmony with one another.
Horses are very social, caring, outwardly affectionate and seek unity and harmony with one another most of the time. Once we have formed a deep bond with a horse it will be deeper than the one we can share with our own species. When we share a cross-species bond, the horse shows us how deep our feeling for friendship can be. If we choose to look for this connection with all things our well-being and appreciations for life is enhanced. Then, when we can extend this connection to the people in our life,… Read more
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Posted in Advice, Clinics on Dec 22nd, 2011
When working with the nature of horses you do not need to “get it done” to advance your horse’s training. Evolution will do it for you. Nature is always working for us if we can be in tune with it.
Removing the Focus on Force
The celebrated method of horse training in this country is based on making the thing you want the horse to do easy and the thing you do not want him to do hard. This method does not taking advantage of the evolution of a symbiotic bond and connection between horses and humans in the training of the horse.
In this method, a horse cannot get out of the “bind” the trainer creates until the desired result is obtained. This approach does not take the time to shape the horse’s behavior to have a desire to do something, that at first, he would not what to do. If the horse is allowed to stop his lesson and guide his human partner towards a fair and equitable relationship, the horse is shown more respect and this is the way we would all want to be treated.
To persist and force that a horse must do what he… Read more
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Posted in Advice, Clinics on Oct 20th, 2011
Creating a relationship with a horse by waiting for a horse to start the relationship makes a horse easy to train because you have his full attention.
Working a horse at liberty with my method, the horse has an ability to avoid you if he chooses. This causes a person to stop chasing or pushing a horse when a horse is resistant. Not being able to control a horse’s resistance with tack puts the emphasis on developing a bond with the horse first. Having to develop a bond in a free environment develops empathy. You can´t help but become the student of your horse when the horse is free to leave you when he chooses. The focus becomes creating a communication that would draw a horse to you. Training a horse in this manner, the approach must be done differently than with tack. It becomes a co-created process were development of leadership, morality and communication are enhanced. From the horses ability to accept or decline your leadership and from your ability to allow or not allow a horse to be in your present and when you would choose to share food with him you can train a horse naturally.
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