So What is Your Training Philosophy? Glad you asked......

When I decided to go into the 'horse biz' 16 years ago, my only caveat was that I would only allow myself to do this IF I could follow one principle: Do no harm.  I stood in front of a mirror and stared into my eyes and thought long and hard about this step I was about to take.  I was young, but I had seen enough to know that the horse world was a scary sometimes dangerous place.  Thanks to a youth spent working off lessons and board in a number of barns I had seen behind the curtain, and knew the truth of the horse world.  Could I do this, could I make a living in this industry without becoming everything I didn't want to become?  That was the heavy question I needed to answer.

My belief has always been that I don't own my horses.  I have a strong belief in God, and I believed He created this world.  I believe everything He created is His.  I have these horses on loan, for a short time, but they aren't mine to do with as I please.  The Creator who designed them is their owner, and because of that I must treat them (and every other animal I 'own') with great care and respect.  I have been entrusted with someone else's property.  Because of this strong belief I have studied hard to find a path that allows me to respectfully train my horses.  I wanted the training to be a partnership, one that both want to be a part of.  Not a boss/employee situation, and definitely not a master/slave relationship either.   

It meant I had to study their anatomy, to know how different methods affect the horses body and well being.  Because make no mistake, every moment you are in the saddle has an affect on the horse.  A horse heavy on the forehand, or off balance and crooked is slowly wearing out its body, overburdening parts of it.  This inevitably leads to lameness or at the very least damage to joints and also stresses the horse mentally.  Think of a person lifting weights with poor form.  It takes a huge toll.  Instead, allowing the horse to reach into the contact using gentle bending and lateral work, keeping the horses shoulders up and body very straight promotes good posture and healthy joints.

I choose Classical Dressage because I liked the ideas behind it.  The idea of respect for the horse, the knowledge to ride in a way that works with their anatomy, the idea that the training goes beyond just riding but into your whole life.  The people who inspire me have never won a ribbon in a show ring, and don't care to either!  The idea that the training can improve the horse physically and mentally really appeals to me.  And I have seen it work over the years.  One of the biggest mistakes riders make is focusing on the head and neck and not the balance of the horse.  Presently you see horses made very round in the neck (either by strong planted hands while riding or draw reins) and driven strongly into the contact.  These horses tend to be very expressive in front but if you watch the hind legs they often drag or take awkward uneven steps.  The amount of tension in the horses body is amazing, and the riders have to ride with that same tension to hold the horse up.  Trust me, I have ridden it! But thats a story for another day. By contrast training a horse classically has allowed me to ride many horses with very light contact, enjoying a soft connection and a relaxed swinging gate.  The lightness of the movement, the amazing feeling of ease of movement thanks to the balance is something I work for everyday.  I have been criticized by many for not making my horses rounder, for not driving them harder.  My only response to that is based on my research and my experience this is the way I want my horses to go.  I enjoy how willing they are, how excited they are to work everyday.  My horses go forward lightly and freely, which makes me feel like they must be happy.  And I can sit in the saddle softly with a deep but never pushing seat and enjoy the ride without feeling exhausted at the end.  

Lunging/play time!

There is also a playfulness that comes with that.  Looking at my horse as a partner means I spend time with them on the ground, both lunging and playing with them, which allows them to express themselves.  They get to show me how they feel that day, or maybe show off to me.  I have found that they are extremely generous, often offering very difficult movements on their own without me asking.  Those are the moments I truly enjoy.  Quiet, gentle, patient work that progresses over time keeps their minds calm and happy.  I have had my share of difficult horses, and this method is the one I have found works the best to improve the horses outlook.

Well, there you have it.  Maybe after reading this you are wondering more about specifics, wondering exactly how my horses really go.  Maybe you think I'm full of crap!  Thats cool,  its a free country and you can ignore me if that makes you happy.  However if you are curious stick around.  I'm going to go back and show you my journey to this point, and give you some specifics based on the horses I have ridden and horses I currently ride.