WHAT IS NATURAL HORSEMANSHIP?

 

Natural Horsemanship (NH), sometimes referred to as "Horse Whispering," really has nothing to do with literal whispering, though it's probably still a good representation of what NH is all about, because "whispering" connotes a "softness" approach, and that indeed is what NH is all about. But, it's also more than that.

 

Natural Horsemanship also involves the following:

• Communicating with the horse using body language, sometimes referred to as "Equus," a language all horses are born already knowing and that they use with each other. A mother horse reinforces this language with the foal from the moment it is born, and so does the rest of the herd. This language involves (for humans):
1. How to use your eyes.
2. How to place your body and parts of your body.
3. Your tone of voice or lack of voice.
4. How to use pressure and release of pressure to reap a desired response.
5. What to use as tools to enhance effective communication.
6. How to listen to what the horse is saying in body language.
• The art of working, training and riding with horses in a manner which works with the horse's behavior, instincts and personality, not against it, and in an easy and kind manner.
• Using gentle guidance rather than force or mechanical devices.
• Using pressure and release (of that pressure) to guide the horse to learn, and understanding that the horse learns from the release of that pressure, not the pressure itself.
• A refined sense of timing of the release of pressure along with a sense of "feel."
• Understanding that this training approach requires of the human:
1. Time – a "taking off your watch" mindset. Horses have no real concept of "time" as we humans do. It's important to resist our human tendency to "get things done NOW, all at once" and instead, follow a horse's natural, individual learning curve.
2. Patience – each horse is an individual, therefore, each learns at a different rate of speed, and each has unique issues to get past, so patience always, in order to flow with a horse's natural learning curve rhythm!
3. Compassion – to help nurture the horse through any fears they may have or that get flushed out as you go along.
4. A sense of playfulness – working or training a horse is more about "playing with" a horse positively, but in a productive manner.
5. A sense of humor – which helps one remain maintaining the previous requirements.

The above emotions are the ONLY emotions that should enter the training arena with you!

• A deep understanding of Prey Animal Psychology.
• Cultivating the inner of the horse first and understand that the outer will later follow.
• Helping the horse to trust us and to do what we want out of friendliness, not fear, and having them trust us without reservation as our ultimate goal.
• Being dependable to the horse, not dominating (there is a difference).
• Giving the horse time to think about what you are asking them to do, allowing them time to try to figure it out, helping them, instead of forcing, to get there, which helps them to learn to think rationally as opposed to react irrationally.
• Being quiet and consistent with the horse.
• Doing what is right for the horse at all times, in all situations, sticking up for them when needed (with vets, with farriers, with other riders of them, with anyone).

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