Carolyn Resnick Horsemanship: Liberty Horse Training

Horses and humans are both social by nature, the difference is that horses are looking for well being through sharing the moment in companionship more than humans these days. It is a true magnetic draw that horses have for certain people, but it appears that the human is not wanting to connect with the horse as much as they want the horse to perform some act that they think is desirable. Maybe the horse does not want to be ridden or competed on.

An example of dysfunctional expectations would be if someone expected to train a rock to jump over a fence. Rocks can be trained, and I happen to have an exceptionally well trained rock. My secret to well trained rocks is that I don’t ask them to do something that is out of their ability. A rock can’t jump – but if I play my cards right, it can become a great paperweight!

Some people are so performance oriented that they measure the depth of a horse’s love for them by how well their horse performs. Few people get a horse just to enjoy its friendship. Often the person will only bond to a horse that they can… Read more

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For people who are just coming to the site, this is a sample of a lesson that you will experience when you join the Insiders Circle and In-the-Box programs. I am sure you will see, from the comments that my students leave, the kinds of benefits you can enjoy through my programs. If you would like to ask any questions about the courses, please feel free to leave them in the comments section found at the bottom of this post.

There are two separate abilities that help you with horses: one is how to train a horse to do something and another is getting a horse to perform what he has been trained to do. Many people are good at one and not so good at the other. If a horse is trained well in the beginning, it is easier to get him to do what he has been trained to do than having to train the horse from the start. Becoming a horse trainer takes years of practice working around horses and getting guidance from others. I find that the greatest skill to have working with horses in regards to performance is keeping a horse at his best once… Read more

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The other day I was telling you about how I started to use music to train my horses and so I wanted to tell you a little more about my experiences.

When I trained to music, I found that the horses responded more quickly to my spontaneous direction. We became united as a team beyond anything I had experienced before. It caused me to be more careful not to ask anything of the horse that would cause the loss of rhythm or negatively impact the horse’s ability to perform. Music made me a more tactful rider. My spontaneous cues caused the horses to focus on performing at a moment’s notice, which created a brilliance in their steps. It was a miraculous discovery. After that, I developed a training program in four stages.

In the beginning, when I first started a horse to music, I chose classical or any music without a beat so the horse could focus on even cadence and develop an evenness and smoothness of the gait. This way, he could easily attach to the flow of the music. After the horse responded naturally to what he was listening to, the next step was to pick music with… Read more

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My family instilled in me that dogs learn fast, horses can too, and most animals seem to learn faster than humans. It was this idea that caused me when I was a child to understand that I needed to develop my ability to learn from the horse so I could be on par with them.

Both sides of my family were horse lovers. The big joke in my family is that they were bound and determined to raise me to have an interest in horses, as if they could have stopped me. It is hard to say if my parents’ intentions were to support my interest or that they purposely shaped me to love them as I do today.

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Today’s blog post is for those people who enjoy increasing their connection, performance and horsemanship from the direct experiences they share with their horses. If you don’t have a good relationship with your horse, all you need to do is change your viewpoint, step back and start at the beginning.

1. Do what you can do.
2. Stay away from what you cannot do.
3. Build on what you can do in each moment.
4. If you hit resistance, change to a program that builds back the connection.

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Last Friday I told the story of how my long-time friend and Certified Trainer, Robin Gates, overcame resistance with a horse she was training. I asked for your thoughts on the matter and thank you to those of you who offered your opinions in response.

This kind of feedback is so valuable for everyone who reads the blog as we all get a different perspective on the subject in hand, which maybe causes us to rethink our own conclusions. So thank you again.

For what it’s worth then, here is my opinion on how Robin viewed and dealt with the situation.

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Hello again. Earlier in the year, I was on the online radio show Animal Talk Naturally, which is broadcast on Blog Talk Radio. The show is hosted by veterinary naturopaths, Dr. Kim Bloomer and Dr. Jeannie Thomason and I was fortunate also to appear alongside my good friend Liz Mitten Ryan. It was a very interesting show and the conversation was far-ranging as you will hear from the clip below. I spoke about such topics as leadership, getting a volunteered performance from your horse, having fun, treats, relationships and gaining a horse´s desire and intellectual understanding when performing.

It was highly enjoyable and the show is doing a lot to promote not only the natural treatment of horses but other animals too, so please support them and take a listen sometime.

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