If “natural horsemanship” is the philosophy of working with horses by appealing to instincts and herd mentality, then every trainer I’ve ever known is a “natural horseman.”
“Natural horsemanship” certainly isn’t new, and it definitely isn’t what today’s “self-labelers” would like you to believe; today’s spin is that natural horsemanship is all love, tenderness and bonding. Get real!!! It is absolutely not that!
A horse’s instincts are based in fear, not love, tenderness and bonding; so horsemanship is not “appealing” to instincts and herd mentality, but the manipulation of those instincts to produce the responses the horseman wants.
You can drop the word “natural” since nothing we do with horses is “natural” for the horse.
The most vocal would have you believe “natural horsemanship” started just a few years ago with Buck and Tom. Get Real! Horsemanship using the horse’s instincts was recorded by the Hittites (an ancient people of Asia Minor) in hieroglyphic inscriptions between 1700 and 700 BC.
If you are going to work with horses, then “get real”, quit “romanticizing" and let’s do the things that benefit horses instead of pandering to your ego by calling yourself a “natural horsemanship trainer.” I’d like to see some credentials instead of some “made up” title.
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100% agree with this. FInally someone said what has been on my mind for so many years! Thank You!
ReplyDeleteThank you...horse training should be about what is best for the horse, not a label for the trainer...let the training speak for itself...keep letting us know what you think..don b
ReplyDeleteRight On!! Tell me, what the H- is "natural" about a preditor riding the prey? How do you train a horse: No gimicks, No tricks, No plastic bags tied to Sticks!
ReplyDeleteIt's about time someone said what I've been trying to say for years. It annoys me when I see these well to do women coming into the barn thinking that they can fix everything with a twirly rope. It is the most assinine idea ever to think that you can do every thing with love. Horses don't respect love. A cowboy that I know told me very honestly that you cannot be nice to your horse. You can love him, treat him well and provide for him but you have to command their respect and bully them around for lack of a better term. He who moves the shoulders is in control. Kudos to you.
ReplyDeleteWow, I think you are very brave to voice this oppinion. Not that I don't agree. I absolutely love that you are correct in saying "horsemanship" without the "natural" You are awesome!
ReplyDeleteLynn U
student of Horse Courses On-line
thank you!!! im in the UAE and "natural" horsemanship people are coming from all over the world and ripping people off here with this crap. its so pathedic too, all the exercises they do just make the horses go from bad to worse.
ReplyDeleteRight on Don! I used to think, “What can Don teach me?” Well, plenty. I am a dressage rider in the state of Alaska and anyone can hang out his or her shingle and claim to be a great trainer. There is not one certified trainer here. I plan on pursuing your trainer and instructor certification. Horsecoursesonline.com rocks! Keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteHi Don,
ReplyDeleteI want you to know I agree with a lot of what you said, but let's look at another side. I've had horses in my life for 30+ years with a lot of training and experience under my belt, but am not a professional.I agree that training based on instict has been around for 1000's of years. I have heard from many of the top horsemasters, however that they do not claim having invented this concept. They admit it's not new, just being presented in a way that people can understand it. Pat Parelli coined the term "Natural Horsemanship". Yes, the term is new. Perhaps it was to draw in more people.Natural seems to be the way to go with a lot of things these days. But, if we examine the term, can we not say that "Natural Horsemanship" teaches you how horses react "naturally" with each other? In fact, most of what "Natural Horsemanship" is is not about training horses at all. Really what it is, is about training people. It trains people how to deal with their emotions, response, reactions, to be patient, persistent and consistent. It teaches one to be aware of how they are portraying themselves to the horse. Many of us are not aware of the negative energy we exert on a horse and wonder why it gets nervous or upset. We need to learn to pay attention to our body language at all times when around horses. That is how they communicate, so it is reasonable to say they will respond to our posture or body position. A lot of this ties over to relationships with people as well.Yes, some people do this naturally, but others just never seem to get it. I've seen horse people at both ends of the spectrum. Some beat on their horses all the time. Others, let their horses run over them. There definitely needs to be a happy medium. I think Pat uses the term "love" because that is an emotion that people understand and can express. I don't think horses love us, but when my horse is responding well, I definitely show him love. This of course, can be in the form of a rub or scratch. I know when I started studying the concepts of so called, "Natural Horsemanship", I completely changed the way I did things. I no longer lost my temper, got angry or frustrated. I asked instead, "what am I doing wrong to make my horse act this way?" Perhaps, I wasn't a good leader. When horses are spooky, it usually means that they don't trust the leadership of the person they're with. That's where all the ground work comes in. Earning trust and showing leadership. Yes, I said it plain and simple, but some people need it spelled out for them. The games that are played, like shaking the lead rope as was mentioned here, is just one way of getting that leadship. It's just steps to a common goal that we all have. I think we can agree, that the relationship is incredibly important to get your horse to really give you "heart" in what he is doing whether it be Dressage or Western Pleasure. The relationship is not necessarily love, but a true respect. Yes, being the herd leader. Someone has to lead, why not you? I agree a lot of these "Natural Horsemanship" gurus are making big money at what they are marketing, but if they are getting the message across, that is what is important. After all, it is about the horse that counts. I know it changed my way of thinking and I've gotten incredible results. So, if it's teaching people to think before they react, is it really as bad as you think? Just look beyond the term and please don't knock it until you've really seen how it has had a positive affect on people in the horse industry, therefore saving many horses from stupitiy.
Sincerely,
Laurey Hoyt
Hear Hear Laurey
ReplyDeletewant to focus on the first criticism mentioned above, that the games are a gimmick that keeps people from riding their horses. I think this is far from the truth. The first benefit of the "games" which might not be obvious to old experienced horse people is that the natural horsemanship games provide a safe, systematic framework for newbies.
ReplyDeleteI have Recently written a book called Real Horsemanship Promoting Ultimate Teamwork Between Horse and Rider It is based on Respect Equal Partners Affection and Loyalty It's not another natural horsemanship book as I to don't see anything natural about it It's about looking at your horse as an indvidual know his personality because all horses are different just like people and some horses don't get along with certain people you can check out my web site
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