Horses are my life. As a person who is deeply involved in all aspects of the horse on a daily basis, I strive for a connection with each of them and work at understanding and communicating in a way that is fair, humane and encourages trust and connection. This stuff doesn't happen overnight (necessarily) - it doesn't happen immediately in our human-to-human relationships either! It evolves.


About 20 years ago I started looking deeper into the horse and human connection - I discovered "natural horsemanship" and even though it appealed to me in many ways, I still knew it was "force full". Through endless research, study and hands-on trial and error, I started to re-think the entire process of forming a relatioship and connection with my horses. Several years ago, I began looking into liberty training because I knew in my soul this had to be a better way. I discovered the Carolyn Resnick Method (and a few others - one which uses the Native American Medicine Wheel teachings!) and I knew immediately this was what I wanted for the horses and my self. I began with the Waterhole Rituals and saw such an incredible change in the horses, I knew I was on the right track. I am not out to conquer, dominate or be the boss - I am looking for a partnership, a relationship even a friendship with the horses - and before anyone thinks it's all sappy and sweet - I also establish "mutual respect".

Below is a copy of Carolyn Resnick's most current blog post - she has put into words that which I have struggled to explain to others for some time - you can also view it at

http://www.carolynresnickblog.com/training-horses-through-evolution...


Training Horses through Evolution and Freedom of Choice

Dec 22nd, 2011 by Carolyn Resnick

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 is told, in the initial stages of training, the horse is being treated like a slave no matter how gentle the approach. This kind of approach continues the practice of over powering anything that is weaker to get what you want.

Child Rearing and Horse Training

It is so natural for us to approach a horse in this aggressive manner because in our culture, and all over the world, it is how many children are raised. For example, a parent may force a child clean their room no matter how much the child did not want to. Rather than making the task more inviting to the child by coming up with an idea that would cause the child to want to clean his room like, “Lets clean your room together so you can invite your best friend for a sleep over.” Maybe initially the child would do hardly any cleaning and you would do most of it. However when the child grows up they would have a positive feeling about jobs and their personal power would still be in tact. The lesson to the child is: “You have the power to make the things you do more enjoyable by how you approach your task”. As the child grows up, he or she will accept more responsibility and from this approach you will have created the foundation for a positive and creative adult. Again this boils down to allowing evolution to happen and approaching life with a focus on creative and responsible leadership.

What causes people to be too strong with horses is that the human believes if the horse realized he was stronger, he would no longer respect or listen to you. This is surely not the case. When I was a kid, horses were very aware that they were stronger than me and had a say when I asked them to perform. Yet I could train them for a willing and dependable performance through their daily relationship with me under saddle and on the ground.

A Different Approach

What disturbs me about the equine world of “Words” is how the equestrian world spins the idea that pressuring a horse is a gentle approach. It sounds good, but in no way is it a pleasing experience for the horse. I can tell you that training can be a pleasant and equitable approach through the horse having a freedom of choice. In that freedom we offer a time to pause and allow evolution to do its part. Horses also need an ability to influence the trainer’s understanding in how to better approach the lesson or to drop the lesson all together as a way to further develop the training of the horse.

More trust in the evolution of the learning process needs to be practiced in our relationships with our horses. Working with your horse over a short time without trying to get everything done in one session works. Training the horse on the things he does not want to accept needs to be avoided. You do not need to finish a lesson if you run into resistance you can move on. Trust that if you allow evolution to help you train, it will be more successful. But you’ve got to trust and try it to find out that it is truly so.
Timing and Focus

When educating a horse, the trainer should court the horse like you would court a potential marriage partner. The ultimate success comes from understanding the social nature of horses and then you can make the right decisions on how to go about training and communicating with them.

Understanding the Social Nature of Horses

 ...a new way to go about developing a magnetic connection that opens the door to understanding the nature of horses. Learn how to let the evolution of the bond guide you in your horse training decisions and how to shape a horse to fit in harmony with you, without force, in way that is easy, enjoyable and safe for everyone.

My method requires you to understand that you will be shaping a horse’s behavior and not allowing your horse to do exactly as he pleases. If the horse doesn’t want to work on the lesson he can go off and leave his lesson. Horses have a pecking order in nature and from this point of view we need to be clear in teaching him how to behave in our company just as you are learning how to behave in his company.  using a method of Liberty Training™ through the Waterhole Rituals™ gives freedom to the horse by allowing him to choose to connect with their human partner and for you to learn to lead in a respectful manner.

It is my hope to touch as many people as I can so you can see that working with evolution and by leading only in the moments of harmony, you can bring the magic to training your horse. We all have a natural ability to communicate leadership in harmony with horses when we allow evolution to take a part in the training of horses. When you stay in the moment, work with trial and error, and understand the nature of the horse, everything becomes a dance. It is my intention to grow your love of nature and your appreciation of a horse’s need for a deeper bond with us in a freedom that is natural to horses. This love of nature will help you develop your ability to train and dance with your horse. From this dance you will learn how to better approach all living things so you are able to bring a deeper understanding, trust, loyalty and a natural willingness in others to work with you in harmony. In short you will be develop a philosophy that will guide your decisions in how to connect will all living things.