Carolyn Resnick Horsemanship Blog: Horse Training from the ground up

Carey Sweet rescued “Pony” from the race track. He was to be euthanized. She had rescued other track horses before and welcomed him into her life. In spite of her best efforts, his head shyness and jumpy reactions to movements or being touched escalated over the 7 years she owned him. She left a breakaway halter on because she couldn’t take it off without him exploding. Even unclipping the lead rope would throw him into a panic. Whenever he was loose he was nearly impossible to catch unless he was ready to come in for dinner. The situation became increasingly worse, as she didn’t have enough information about how to help him past his fears. After he panicked and crushed her mother into the wall of the stall, breaking her leg, Carey felt desperate. A respected source referred her to Robin Gates who’s work is based on my Method.

After 2 hours of trying to connect with him, Robin advised Carey to have an experienced body worker visit Pony because of the injuries he had inflicted on himself in his outbursts and then bring him to her ranch.

The first days at the ranch were spent simply being with him… Read more

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Hello. Work is progressing well with my book and we are aiming to have it finished by the beginning of December. I’m very excited about it. We have been taking some wonderful photos for it so it will be more like a coffee table book. I will also be discussing horse and herd behavior and how it relates to our lives and society, so I’m sure you’re going to love it.

OK, on to today’s blog post and I’d like to share with you a little more from the Insider Circle. So one of my students asked:

I am working with a horse who really isn’t a perfect candidate for this. She is complicated and I knew that from the get-go….she is a Marilynne. She is the only horse accessible to me and I wanted to learn what you had to teach so that I would grow and be able to work with her as she heals. We are in the beginning stages of sharing territory and saying hello. She is learning to love both of these rituals.

I am still pondering how to help her overcome her fear of the reed. The look in her eyes when she sees

… Read more

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I am so pleased to have all of you in my classrooms and on the blog. I want to thank you for being here with me. Your interest in my programs gives me an opportunity to be able to share with you what is closest to my heart. We have a large enrollment for the ‘In a Box’ Program. I kept the ‘Insider Circle’ Program to a small number so I can coach to offer personalized coaching. For everyone in those Programs, my blogs will help you in the courses so don’t stop reading them. I will use the blog for added lesson material. The blogs going forward will also help the those of you who are not currently in these Programs on the Waterhole Rituals. I will focus on philosophy, how to go about training and the kind of atmosphere that will bring a horse well being. I have always felt that to follow your truth in what is fair, just and moral and effective, will give you the ability to have a way with horses. But the jury is out in how to approach what is fair just and moral. One thing I do know is that we… Read more

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It was so nice to be able to offer the free conference call on the U.E. Exercises and my free winter program. The U.E. exercises are a perfect thing to focus on for the winter month’s because it requires minimum activity and can be so easily adapted to doing several of the exercises from a stall or paddock.

It is so exciting to reach people from around the world and discover at last, people who are interested in bringing out the true nature of the horse and connecting with them through a personal bond, giving their horse freedom of choice, and a more than equal say in the partnership we share with them. It is also most important that the programs we offer to our horses and students are flexible enough to suit the conditions of the moment and the personalities and abilities of both the horse and their human. I feel I am doing something truly worth while and on the cutting edge for man’s humanitarian evolution.

These exercises were developed from my struggles to find a new way to bring clarity and understanding to the horse about the driving and rein aids given to them by children when they… Read more

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Hi again. Yes, I’m very excited and I have to admit also very flattered that we now have a full class for the new Insider Circle Program, thank you for your trust in me and my Method. I know you are really going to have a great time and learn so much.

The same goes for the large number of you who have joined the ‘In a Box’ Program too and I’m going to make sure I support you just as much as I can.

Now, we have had a number of questions from those wishing still to join and some from those who already have, so I thought it would be worth just covering those today for everyone’s benefit.

“Now that the Insider Circle is full, what’s the difference between that and the ‘In a Box’ Program?”

Good question and everything’s exactly the same except for 2 items:
- Only the Insider Circle participants get to participate live on the calls
- I will only be doing video reviews for the Insider Circle folks
Other than that, you get all the videos and CDs, all the same call recordings and most importantly you get to ask… Read more

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When I look back on my experience with the wild horses, what it meant to me then and what it means to me now, I realize I have never lost sight of the importance of horses and the natural environment.

Horses have impacted our lives throughout history, and nature promotes their well-being through the harmony of diversity. I appreciate life and wait to be in harmony with my environment before I act. To know horses as deeply as I know them comes from my understanding of harmony. Harmony is not made, it is found. Harmony in nature is the most trusted element in life and is the basis of the success I share with horses.

Humans honor intelligence. We spend time thinking. Horses honor instinct. They spend time being in the moment.

Working with horses is one way people can learn to be here now and get in touch with their instincts. We normally think of instincts as base but I think of instinct as being plugged into the universal connection… and when you are, you do not make mistakes!

Instinct is just as deep and rich as intelligence. Animals know what time it is. They do… Read more

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Hello. Today I have a story for you about the power of patience, persistence and also respect, which I hope you will find very revealing.

I was once asked to work with a well-bred warm blood mare who was extremely dangerous to be around. She would charge open-mouthed, intending to bite hard, at whoever came into her space.

She was in her stall-sized pipe corral when I arrived. I spent some time nearby and then approached her to say hello. The mare charged at me, fully intending to bite. I jumped back out of her reach and personal space and waited for her to process what had just happened.

After she settled down, I approached her again. Again the mare charged at me, prepared to bite. Again I retreated, and waited for her to settle.

We repeated this sequence what felt like 50 or 60 times … so many that I lost count. Again I began my approach, and this time the mare let me come right up to her. She breathed on my outstretched hand and allowed me to gently stroke her face. After that, she never again attempted to charge and bite anyone.

This story illustrates the… Read more

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