What approach do you use with your horse when leading with a halter and rope?
Feb 16th, 2012 by Carolyn Resnick
What approach do you use with your horse when leading with a halter and rope?
Have you ever thought about how the influence of tack affects your relationship with your horse? When using tack, many times a person will catch their horse as quickly as possible with no thought to rekindling the friendship and the horse’s desire to stick to you and follow your lead. A reason that this can happen is from thinking that the halter and rope will create the connection you need with your horse.
Tack can create sloppy connections with your horse. Think about it: If you took off the halter would you still be able to lead your horse and keep him at your side? If you can, it came from your attention to the relationship and the bond minutes before you put it on. What would your horse do if you took off his halter? Most likely you would no longer be able to lead your horse anywhere. But, if you have worked your horse at Liberty first without tack to gain the Magnetic Connection in Companion Walking, using tack would be a benefit rather than a device that enslaves the horse.
Tack can hurt the relationship with a horse because a person doesn’t put enough attention on courting the horse to want to be with them and follow their lead. If you have no concern about maintaining the connection in the moment, the response of the horse to your aids will become dull. Starting with tack often moves a horse into a slave’s attitude from the confinement of the tack.
When working a horse at liberty in a free open environment you can take nothing for granted, like you can when you have tack on a horse. It is so important for a horseman to learn how to handle a horse without tack to develop horsemanship skills so that when tack is used it is used properly.
Working with a horse at Liberty with my Method, a person learns how to manage a horse without force and you learn to bring about the willingness of the horse so the horse wants to match your movements and follow your lead. When you work with a horse at liberty you must give all your attention to developing the connection and you can not depend upon forcing the horse to do your bidding. Forcing a horse as a practice, makes for bad horsemanship. Giving up the use of force will cause a horse to give up his resistance, removing your need to force the horse to get what you want. Once a horse feels no pressure it is much easier to deal with him. The horse will then give up his resistance, which then opens the door to the possibility that he will begin to seek a connection with you.
So, what do you do when your horse leaves you when he is at Liberty if you can not use force or entrapment?
When your horse leaves you, go to the Hello Ritual and then move into the Leading from Behind Ritual in the most benign fashion, with lots of pausing to give your horse a chance to join you. Be sure that the Hello Ritual has been received well by your horse several times before you move into the Leading from Behind Ritual. It’s ok for your horse to walk away from you in the Hello Ritual as much as he needs to. From allowing this behavior you will help your horse to move into wanting a connection from you. It helps the “no” to turn into a “yes”.
Drilling is a form of force and is not allowed in my Liberty Training™ Method. The Hello Ritual is not a drill because it is done in a relaxed manner giving the horse the ability to leave you when he chooses even though you will be spending allot of time repeating this Ritual. Round Penning is a form of drilling because the horse is not able to escape the influence of his handler. The bonus of working with a horse by giving him freedom of choice gives some time for the evolution of the bond to take place and for the handler to think smarter rather than becoming antagonistic.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful not to have to use tack and still have your horse in control?
What you would gain from the experience would be magical. You would have a relationship with a horse that was like the boy’s relationship in the movie “The Black Stallion”. Having a friendship with a horse, I believe, is not to be missed. In that friendship is a partnership that you will never share with any other living being. Taking this path of working a horse at liberty before you would consider using tack will grow your understanding of life and open the door to seeing how the bond grows naturally with a horse and human without any effort from you. This is very important because seeing the dance bloom without effort helps one to see that force does not need to be used to train a horse.
At Liberty you learn that the bond is developed further from the training. From working a horse at Liberty first without tack you will understand how you are perceived by your horse by how he treats you. How your horse treats you lets you know that whatever happens between you is created by your influence. If you did not use tack on your horse until you could do everything with your horse without tack, you would have developed a better relationship with your horse and a better understanding of your ability to nurture, lead and direct. This, in turn, would help you make the connections you would like to have with others in your life as well. You would be able to influence at will and know how to bring well-being to them and a willingness in others to follow your lead. You will learn that giving up control and focusing on the relationship, much less training is needed to develop the performance of a horse. Sharing freedom with a horse in times of training and sharing company allows the bond to grow and evolves the training magically.
In my last clinic we focused on that step where you go from Companion Walking without tack to leading with a halter.
It is amazing to see the change in how different the horse and human behave towards each other! The horse loses the Magnetic Connection with his human partner because the human partner stops maintaining his horse with the ‘invisible thread’ he had before the tack went on. All the good work at Liberty virtually goes out the window!
I ignored this response for a long time, thinking that my students, after the shift to tack, would regain the Magnetic Connection with practice. I found that, over time, it did not come back for them. I think this is the reason people believe that Liberty work does not translate to the saddle. The only reason it does not, is that people lose the approach they used from the ground. I believe that learning how to keep this Magnetic Connection when leading your horse will make the Liberty work translate to riding your horse. It does for me and it can for you. It takes as much skill in knowing how to lead a horse with tack as leading a horse without tack. Both need to be practiced to be fair to your relationship with your horse.
This is where the story comes in that I promised to share with you, about when my Dad taught me the method I use today in keeping a horse under control and focused on me when I am leading him with tack.
This method is what to do when leading your horse in order to bring back the connection when you lose it with an extreme horse or an out-of-control, resistant stallion. This method is important to practice with any horse because it will improve your horsemanship skills.
The Story: Both my parents worked and left me home with the horses without a baby sitter. Work was right next to our house and the horses. My father was a blacksmith who owned a blacksmith and machine shop and a wholesale steel business. My parents could not keep an eye on me when they were at work. My dad told me that I was not to take the work horses out of their stalls, because if I did they would take off, get loose from me and graze on lush grass; they would eat too much and get sick. This is when we still lived in town and we had to have the horses contained.
My dad’s concern was that the horse could also go to the feed room and gorge himself on rolled oats. Because of my size I would not be able to stop the horse I had taken from the stall. I was around 8 years old at the time. This was sad news to me because I loved leading a mammoth monster of a horse around when my parents were home.
Being a kid, of course, having one of those work horses on a line and leading one around was just too tempting. So, I knew that if I was going to take one out of the barn in no way could he get away from me because of what would happen to me if he did. So, it got me to thinking I would have to be very careful. My dad must never find out!
I made a plan that if it did happen, that my horse got into the feed room, I would scoop up the grain he was not eating and hide it; then, when I had it all hidden, I would regain control of my horse. Then a terrible thought occurred to me; that I would have solved that problem, but would not have solved the problem that he would then run outside to graze on the grass. So I came to the conclusion that I would have to be very, very careful. This care is what led me to the method I use to this very day on extreme horses and all horses that lose the willingness to stay in my charge when I am leading them with tack.
What I did was to go into the stall and close the door and hang out with the horse to get the horse immersed in my presence and interested in me. Then I put a halter on the horse and led him around his stall with practice of walk and halt. I also asked him to stand quietly in the corner of the stall for long periods of time (maybe 5 or 10 minutes) to get the horse used to this ritual. I kept a close eye on how the horse was behaving. When the horse’s head was low I knew that he did not plan on doing anything. And when his head went up I knew I was losing his willingness to stay in my charge. I opened the stall door and let him look out the crack to see how he felt about that. Then I shut the stall door and put him back into the corner until I felt he was very happy to be there. Then I opened the door a little wider and repeated the process until I had the door all the way open. I did not try to take him out until I could walk him around in his stall in walk and halt and back to the corner for a respite. When I felt a wave of softening come between us, no matter what I asked, I led him outside and around, and then back into the stall to stand in the corner. Bit by bit, the time I spent out of the stall leading him away from the stall became longer and longer. Anytime I felt his head coming up, back to the corner he went. I was finally able to take my great big wonder of a horse anywhere on our property, even to eat grass, and not lose his willingness to listen to me and do what I needed him to do. My dad was never the wiser. And this is how my dad taught me how to lead a horse. That is the surprise I promised you. 
I can help you get amazing results with Liberty Training. I hope you join us in our next online class.
When I had my training and breeding ranch I used the above method on all my horses. At one time I had 5 stallions and all were wonderfully behaved and easy to breed from this simple method my dad taught me. I hope you try it; you will get amazing results. It would help you, if you are not very skilled with horses yet, to first train your horse at liberty before you lead your horse with tack. You can take my online course that is coming up April 15, and I can help you with the Liberty Training. I know you will enjoy developing that magic you would like to experience with your horse, when friendship is the main focus of the dance you would like to share with your horse. It doesn’t matter how old your horse is or how much practice he has had being lead by tack, he can start with Liberty Training and you will see a big difference. If you would like to greatly advance your knowledge through experience please join me in March at the next advanced clinic in California: “Beyond the Waterhole Rituals”.
Remember to watch out for more new horse and human sightings and may the horse be with you.
Warmly,
Carolyn
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Hi Carolyn,
Just checking in. I can’t seem to find previous blogs to see if you or others have responded to my questions. I need some guidance here and have I missed out on any posts since Feb. 16th? Just want to be sure I’m still in the loop.
Thanks!
Kristin
I do so much with my horse at liberty. Any ideas on how I can convince my farrier to trim while the horse is at liberty? This was an extremely fearful horse that overcame his fears by having a say and being allowed to leave if he felt the need. He’s good for the farrier but not relaxed.
Dear Joan,
Before your farrier comes you spend 30 minuets with your horse focusing on relaxation and connection and working with his feet so the horse is in a better start of mind. Your farrier will like that alot and your horse will be treated better as well. Spent some time creating a horse the farrier would love to own. From this work you will find a deeper bond with your horse and with your farrier. Then once you have that down you will have a horse that is relaxed with tack and with out.
Warmly,
Carolyn
Dear Carolyn,
you did it again!!
what a wonderful blog! I love the story and it helps me to feel what I should feel during the leading/halt excersise.
I want to thank you that you are guiding us with working with tack besides working at liberty.
I don’t know anyone who works with tack the way you do. It’s all so new and it feels so good. This is something I’ve been looking for since I work with horses, but couldn’t find and couldn’t discover myself.
I have a lot to learn, but this way learning is fun!
Can’t wait to start practising with this and I will speak to you soon!
With love,
Aline Mellema
Netherlands
Thank you for another good blog and for a wonderful time today!
All the best and see you in May
Kind regards Stina
Dear Carolyn,
Thanks for a wonderful blog and story! I have been practicing leading PB this way and it is going so, so well. He wants to drag me over to the grass and every time I feel him starting to look and disconnect from me, I stop him and back him up. I back him up not as a punishment, but as a way to regain the connection because it’s something he can do well for me. Then we stand still until he seems peaceful and connected. Then we move forward again, with the leadrope hanging in a big loop, so that he is totally released from it’s pressure and I am totally trusting him to follow my lead. Sometimes we repeat this over and over, but the more I practice, the more he just stays with me. And the most wonderful thing of all is how happy and peaceful he seems to be following my lead. He has historically been a “You can’t make me!” kind of guy, and proud of it, but know I see how much comfort he finds in me when I take on a true leadership role.
Thank you Carolyn, for this wonderful lesson. PB thanks you, as well, from the bottom of his great big heart!
Emily
Thank you Carolyn for the great story and insights regarding tack. I have to confess that I often forget to continue courting the horse when riding. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!
Dear Carolyn,
Thanks for a great post. I try to be as attentive to my horses with tack as without. But you are right in saying that the very presence of a rope can cause a change in the relationship because the mind can now wander to other things. When this happens, I can always count on Amigo to do something about it–he will simply stop in his tracks while I walk on for a few steps. Then I realize that I am no longer connected to him mentally, and I have to re-establish the connection before he will move forward with me. Smart little guy.
Karin
Hi Karin,
Your question suggests to me a question for Carolyn.
The first thing a lot of trainers teach a horse is to “stand up” or stand still for a length of time, even when you walk away. Some say it is more important for a horse to willingly stand still than move.
I am wondering if this would be a moment – speaking of being in the moment – to take advantage of for that purpose?
What if, on halter, one took the horse’s initiative, and requested that they stand still for at least three minutes?
Or would that be a violation of liberty training?
All our five lead very easily, like a balloon on a string. Except once in awhile, the big boy of the herd will stop because he doesn’t want to go somewhere.
Please let me know if this would be a good or a bad idea.
Normally I solve a stop by just asking him to go in a slightly different direction, and he comes right along. Just a variance of angle. But I keep wanting to work on “stand up” with all of them.
Thanks, I hope this is a reasonable question in form of a reply to Karin.
Kerrie
Dear Kerrie,
Glad to see you are still with me. I do not know if I understand your questions.
You would work with your horse with a rope just like you would at liberty. The only difference is that you would bring your horse all the way to you once you horse got to the end of the rope. When your horse gets so far away from you and you have let out all the rope you have because he is moving way, you would then release the rope pressure and then pull on the rope to bring back the horse. When you decide to pull on the rope place your body at a 45 degree angle to your horse so your horse must turn around to come back to you. from this angle you get the back feet moving first. This way your horse can not plant his front feet.
Any time your horse performs better for you on the follow day what ever approach you used is the approach you need to take.
If someone filmed you leading your horse with tack it would look like you were at liberty from your body language and from the Magnetic Connection that your horse is working from.
The rope plays no part until you need to bring your horse back to you.
Does this make sense and have I answered your questions?
Carolyn
Hi Carolyn, I think our visions passed like ships in the night, but I love what you have written here. It is such a good image and I am eager to try this.
I was just wondering, like you said in your post:
” I also asked him to stand quietly in the corner of the stall for long periods of time (maybe 5 or 10 minutes) to get the horse used to this ritual.”
Is this something we want to do too, while working at liberty?
Any time you can get relaxation and connection through what you ask your horse to do is a good thing. Try it and let me know how it works for you.
Hi Carolyn,
some great advice there.
I have made progress with Peponita my young paint mare and she is now leading out to the paddock without all the stopping. Thanks so much for your advice.
This getting the connection before leaving the stall/stable; the making of the connection with your horse, I realise is the starting point before all requests. I will practise your Dad’s lesson with Peponita and see how we get on.
Though I cannot join the Spring programme, my daughter Felicity has signed up with her tricolour youngster Red Cloud and her very old pony Chezy … I will be working alongside her with Peponita and will be interested to watch her grow through your Rituals.
Much thanks for your wisdom and advice,
Warm Regards as always,
Claire
Checking in, Carolyn, thanks again for another fascinating story! this blog made me take stock of what I’ve been doing recently and I notice that I am doing pretty well everything without tack. We’ve had such a time of it with snow and ice, and seemed to be always asking the horses to go into their boxes or come out of them. or go into this field or that field, and all in strange circumstances – unheard of amounts of snow and ice – and all without tack! so much so that it now feels strange to put tack on, rather than vice versa. what fun and how plain simple good it feels!
When spring finally comes and we go out again on walks in nature and – who knows – maybe again rides in nature..then we’ll hopefully be using tack as if we had no tack…
best as ever
susan
(Italy)
Thank you Carolyn. I am hoping to work with a student of yours very soon, Julia Felton. She is coming to see how we are progressing with the WHR’s and help us move further forward, it’s great to have someone in the UK who has worked closely with you, thanks again!!
Checking in! Always read the blogs – so very helpful from all contributors
Great story! Very instructive. And helpful!
Your Dad was very smaart…
Hello Caroyn, I love stories and yours are some of the best because they help us to grow the bond with our horses. Even at age 8 you amaze me. Your insight and knowledge that you had. Wow! Thanks for sharing with us. Magnum and I are working on are head up, head down with a nice bowl of his favorite beet pulp. Now we are at the point where I can ask him to come with me and leave the bowl and go a few steps away and come back to the bowl and wait till I say head down. I must say it took a lot of practice to get to this point. Next week a hope to work on going farther away and come back. My Magnum can be a tuff cookie sometimes, but because of your teachings you give me tools to work with to bring our bond closer. Thank you. Blessings~Lisa & Magnum
I never get tired of hearing your creative stories about how you work with horses!
Hi Carolyn, it is so wonderful to read your story just at this time. Me having been back at the stables yesterday (Feb 16) for a visit after not having seen my horse Marcello for about 2 months. A strange feeling prevailed “what am I doing there?”
Seeing Marcello again was really good. He looked fine.
What was not good was the barnowner telling me that he thinks Marcello is being/getting terribly spoiled. In my view and belief Marcello behaves annoyed rather than spoiled.
Margaret and I try and connect with him following the WHR. The barnowner prefers Marcello to follow him like a slave.
A chain around his nose has been used.
Talking about, explaining and suggesting to adopt a different attitude is a waste of time. At the same time I find myself in a situation where I do not want accidents to happen between Marcello and people because they do not care to ‘look, listen and feel’ horse.
I do confess that I started using a bridle with a very loose line (and the intention of not having any tack on as you so clearly indicated) as I broke my right collar bone combined with a shoulder luxation last year and can’t risk a pull of any sort as the collar bone still hasn’t healed properly. Now the barnowner is of the opinion that because using a bridle to lead Marcello he has become spoiled. That is just another human way of translating Marcello’s annoyance with humans that do not wish to connect at all.
So yes – QUOTE…..Tack can hurt the relationship with a horse because a person doesn’t put enough attention on courting the horse to want to be with them and follow their lead. If you have no concern about maintaining the connection in the moment, the response of the horse to your aids will become dull. Starting with tack often moves a horse into a slave’s attitude from the confinement of the tack……UNQUOTE
So yesterday I had a short beautiful moment with Marcello. Although the surgeon has told me very clearly not to interact with horses for another 6 weeks until the end of March I could not resist the temptation.
I said hello and Marcello immediately got into a CW.
A few minutes later Margaret joined us. She was going to take him back to his stable. Marcello got a bit cheeky. I took action by telling him to move his feet and he took off.
He halted at the other end of the arena.
I approached him and he eyed me with expectation. I stopped and dropped my energy. I was completely without any ‘wanting’. Breathing deep down into my feet and into the earth. Marcello lowered his head and started approaching me. I approached him and asked him to halt at a distance. I approached him further and we said hello.
I then turned around without any neediness and ‘delivered’ Marcello to where Margaret was standing so she could take him with her back to his stable.
I have made arrangements to move to another barn..
I keep hearing you saying, Carolyn, that I do not need to educate anyone if they do not want to be educated. The stable owner and I are on completely different tracks as far as connecting with horses is concerned. Marcello’s wellbeing is very important for me and as his leader it is my responsibility to make sure that wellbeing is being taken very good care of.
And I can visualise you in the stable making sure the horse understands your intention. Marvellous. It is so beautiful in its simplicity. It made me sigh deeply and wanting to spend time with Marcello in the stable just like you did and be that little girl. Thank you.
Warmly, Geerteke
Thanks for sharing that awesome story! And also the tips on what to do when your horse leaves you, that is something that I have been struggling with. I usually just wait until my horse comes back to me, but I felt like I was not giving him enough direction that way. I guess I’ll try the hello ritual next time and see where we end up.
Also remember how you told me I should try some eye contact and get his energy up? I am happy to report that both things have helped tremendously
He has a much nicer expression now and he often checks in with me on his own even when I’m not trying to get him to. Our companion walking is going a lot better too, we have even trotted together!
Thank you for all of the support,
Grace.
Dear Carolyn,
Once again you have moved me deeply with this story and the explanation of why it is so important to develop a bond. We go through this life in such a hurry most of us have completely forgotten how important it is to truly connect with the people and animals that are part of our closest relationships. I have had horses in my life off and on since I was a child and as a middle aged woman I now live with a mare and a gelding at my home. I have had dressage training and worked with a Natural Horsemanship trainer and have still not been able to find a “connection” that makes me feel secure and centered while working with my rather large gelding. Since bringing the two horses home they have become understandably herd bound to one another which has presented challenges on its own but my gelding who is a 16 hand 1200# quarter horse can be intimidating at times. I was working with him a few weeks ago walking him from the barn to the back pasture and back because he gets excited when he thinks he is going on to a new pasture and he got so agitated on one of the last trips back to the barn that he reared up and his hoof caught me on the arm and bruised it badly. My reaction was to turn and lash out at him and we had a brief correction moment but even though in the days that followed I could see him give me what most people would view as “respect” I still felt like I was walking on thin ice. It is like putting a lid on a pot of boiling water – at some point the water is going to bubble over and push the lid up. I had a close friend talk to me about using a stud chain and how as a human I deserve respect just like I think the horse has a perspective and deserves respect. I thought for a moment that makes a lot sense – I DO deserve respect but now after days have passed I just can’t shake the feeling that respect built on the foundation of control is an illusion and can be lost in a moment. I love this horse and understand that he is extremely sensitive – I know he can be bossy but I don’t want to keep “pushing” him because I feel like every time I do it is damaging to the relationship. Even after spending 8 months of doing ground work and round penning the issues that I had before never went away they were just “under the lid” so to speak. I read your book several years ago and have followed your blog on and off ever since. I just felt so moved by your experiences and really feel like out of everyone that I have ever studied their methods you are the only one who really truly “gets it.” I can’t thank you enough for the wisdom, knowledge, desire and passion that you share with us through your website and blog you touch more people than you probably will ever know.
Hello Carolyn!
I’m a big fan of your method and have been searching for a “horse-friendly” approach since I’ve first sat on a horse. I dream of that bond you describe and I dream of finding a friend in the horse that I ride at the moment.
Nevertheless I have some difficulties. We did the waterhole rituals 1-5 with amazing improvements in our relationship BUT the companion walking is just not working.
When I enter the way to the paddock the mare I’m training with comes up to the fence and says hello to me. She’s always waiting and seems happy to see me. When they’re on the field she even trots or canters to the fence to greet me. We practiced leading with tack so whenever I stop she stops immediately too. I’m even able to go backwards without using any pressure on the rope but as soon as the tack is gone the magnetic bonds seems to “run” out of the window. When we’re in the riding hall she seems to lose all interest in me. I can lead her from behind and she would stop if I asked her to but she wouldn’t let me walk by her side. She would either stop and not move an inch or run off.
I try not to get frustrated but I really wish to know what I’m doing wrong.
Has anyone else had similar experiences and might be able to help me out?
It’s such a difference when I use halter and rope but I do feel like she’s doing what I ask of her because she feels like she has no other choice. I don’t want her to think that! I want her to happily follow me and trust me …
I would be very grateful for any help.
May the horse be with you!
Dear Tirana,
With my method you work at liberty first. What you are doing is using the rope to gain liberty results. If you do not have companion walking you need to spend more time on each ritual for as long as it takes. I think you need alot more guidance in the theory in why the practicing of my rituals works. You could take my course or do a coaching call. Quickly. There are 5 attitudes that must be present for a horse to companion walk with you. They all must be present in the moment. You will need to be able to read your horses moods.
If you can not read what your horse is feeling you would be handicapped a great deal to get the results you want using my method on your own. But you can still get the job done by just practicing the rituals and not knowing all the details for their purpose. Do you have my dvd on the introduction of my method?
In the moment when the magnetic connection is working for you your horse wants your company, trust you, is focus on you, and chooses your leadership, and respects you. These attitude will not always be present but with practice of the Rituals you will gain more evenness in your horse’s behavior. Each one of these feelings is built from the practice of each Ritual.
The good new is as you go forward your relationship will grow. It takes time. How much time are you sending with your horse in a week? It is all about time and being happy with the things as they are. and in this approach you will come up with the right creativity that will help you to move your relationship further. I think you would enjoy my class. Be sure to ask me on my blog about my method than another reader.
Hope this is of help,
Carolyn
Dear Carolyn,
thank you so much for replying. I feel so … stupid
I am absolutely sure that I would enjoy your classes a lot and I’m more than convinced now that I’ll need them to fully understand your method. However, I’m a student at university and I sometimes don’t even know how to survive the month but I set the goal that as soon as I’m a doctor earning money, I’ll come to you to learn more about your wonderful work.
I spend 3-5days/week with my Aunt’s horse. She’s a standard-breed from the racing course and as stiff as a as a poker when it comes to gymnastics. I feel like she’s got a great potential and that she needs some training to earn more self-confidence, the ability to express herself and to be able to move smoothly without any pain. I’m also convinced that putting side-reins on, lunging her in rollkur and forcing her with a riding crop to go sideways and what-ever-else-they-told-me is not the right way. I want her to join me in the training on her own will and with no pressure. I don’t want to force her, I don’t want to push her. I just want her to be happy and content.
I admire your work and I admit that I got all excited when I heard from it and wanted to try it out myself. I wish to understand my horse and to be able to bond with it in a deep friendship.
You’re very inspiring!
Before I will even consider buying my own horse I’ll better take your class
I’ll try to get your DVD and to gain better understanding. It’s just that I was looking for a method like yours since I started riding. And now that I found it I was so eager to try it out. Sorry! I feel like an idiot now
Thank you for taking the time to reply!
All the best from rainy Germany!
Dear Tirana,
One of the rules that will help you with your horse is to spend as much time Sharing Territory with your horse as much as you do with your interactions with her. Your skill in my method will grow from Sharing Territory. Your skills with my method will grow with out any effort from you or trying to figure out why it should.
Thank you for getting back to me.
I think you are doing well with your horse and every day will get better. When you feel frustrated just change the subject to something that you know you can do with your horse.
You can get most all of the information you need about my method from reading thought my archives.
If you have any more questions please do not hesitate to ask. We do have a payment plan if you did not know it.
Warmly,
Carolyn
Thank you Carolyn for great story, I really loved it!!!
Checking in!
Thank you Carolyn for your great insights on leading horses with or without tack, and for that wonderful story, as always brilliant in simplicity
!
Carolyn, thank you sharing all of your insights. Your generosity is rare and wonderful. I have recently adopted an older mare that has braved quite a lot of physical and emotional trauma in her life. The Waterhole Rituals have been the perfect framework by which we have gotten to know each other and she has gone from fearful and resistant to contact to a greater sense of calm and well being in just a few short months. She is even learning to sheepishly ask for affection and touch…I believe a first time thing for her! It brings tears to my eyes when she does that. I see a little sparkle in her eyes coming though. Your blog on the use of tack made me want to share with you her reaction to the first time she followed me with no tack. It was after I had spent a couple hours Sharing Territory one day, and she approached me as I was sitting in the grass. She touched her nose to my forehead and then walked a few steps away, turned and looked at me, like she was asking me to join her. I stood and walked with her and she stayed right at my side like we were attached. After a few minutes, she stopped, perked her ears up and looked at me intently, and I think she realized we were not actually “attached” like she was used to with a lead rope. I thought she would walk away, as that has been her first inclination up until then, but I waved my hand in an invitation to stay with me, and she chose to. I have never been so happy as in that moment, and I think the same was true for her. Thanks to your guidance and help, I have the courage and knowledge to treat her the way I know all horses should be treated. Thank you Carolyn!
Thank you so much Carolyn. How I love your stories. This is a particularly
fascinating topic because leading was something which bothered me, how
was it that I could have a dance and be able to move Andre willingly around at liberty and yet when I put on the halter all was lost. It seemed such a contradiction. But I see now I was investing tack with some sort of
authority. I regressed lost my sensibility and just assumed all would be easy.
Now I understand my mistake and wrong attitude, the tack must be like a
cotton thread – everything must be done rightly there has to be preparation.
there has to be magnetic connection. I have been working a lot with the
ground tying exercise with Grusha and I found even that made a difference,
because when I opened the gate and asked him to wait wait then he was quite different and I so enjoyed leading with him to the wash bay. So I am certainly
going to explore all the details of your exercise. Andre was also much easier after lots of walk halt, walk halt head down walk halt. Joy joy joy.
What an extraordinary child you were Carolyn.
I so regret that I cannot come in March to your clinic. But hopefully there
will be another time.
with love
Crissea
Wow! What a smart, determined little girl you were! thank you for another wonderful blog and for sharing this story. Very inspiring.
humbly,
Laurinda and horses
Hi Carolyn, just to say that we are seeing great things resulting from reading on this blog. Like watching Rosie – a horse that no one could halter two years ago – pick up a halter dropped on the ground in front of her with her teeth, and tuck her head to put her face into it. She and the rest are so soft to lead on halter, I think, precisely because we practiced without tack first.
Another informative and well written piece. Thank you Carolyn for sharing.
Warmly, Skeetz
Carolyn,
What an amazing story and it further illustrates where True and I still need to be spending more time in each other’s company.
Last week we had visitors with little children over to see the baby lambs and the horses, John and I both admired how True visited with the children, she was positive, well mannered and extremely gentle. A big thank you to ypu Carolyn for what we have gained from your programs. The interaction reminded us about some of the tremendous gains in our lives from the journey. In fact True, Raisin and the children were so beautiful together that John captured it on his phone’s video camera. In my heart I always knew what was there, but I did not know how reach that place.
I hope you received the email I sent with the gratitude contest in it.
We look forward to the upcomming course.
Smiles and best to all,
Leanna
It’s amazing how your stories illustrate your teachings in a way that evokes imagination in how what you are teaching can be accomplished! So many methods tell the student exactly what and when to do something, they require the student to “stand just so, move your hand or foot or stick in a particular way”. Your liberty methods give us great guidance along with knowledge of the horses mind, that frees our imaginations to work with our horses in ways that develop the relationship in the moment, not based on some hypothetical classroom situation. More importantly, you’ve shown us that it is because the horses are at liberty or are not being forced with tack, that we have to use our imaginations to develop the relationship and work with the horses nature, or the horse is just going to leave and find something more interesting to do with his friends. Thank You!
Great story Carolyn!!!!
Thanks for sharing your beginnings with us, Carolyn (I can see it all unfolding in front of my eyes). And as we know, the greatest journey begins with the smallest step – steps that seem insignificant at the time but prove to be transcending.
And what a truly great teacher you are, revealing your vulnerability as you ‘pieced the world together’. Alone and insecure but with an incredible will to learn, you have progressed to become our guiding light. You are an amazing example and beautiful human being.
My horses love you, of course….
Ian
Hi Carolyn and thank you for another wonderful story that makes it all come together for us and our horses.
Hope you are well and I so wish I were able to join you in March. Have fun.
Love – Carolyn B xx
Thanks for this very instructional and inspiring blog, Carolyn. My horses appreciate not being dragged around, and they thank you for teaching me to lead them as if they had no halter.