Holistic Horsemanship

I invite the horses to join me for a playtime in the woods… let’s see who wants to come and what happens! Rather than ‘training’ my horses to come when I ask, or do things on command, what really thrillsRead more

We occasionally get questions from readers who love learning about this more intimate, spiritual way of being with horses, but they find it very challenging to try and have a similar experience – or even exploration – because they don’tRead more

Trailer play with the 3 adventure lads together! Jax (white Arab/Belgian), Montaro (Lineback dun) and Juno escaped a couple weeks ago when my barn help left a gate ajar for a few minutes. This video is part of the trailerRead more

Three of my horses escaped last week, after my barn help left a gate unlatched. They galloped down a city road, then onto a highway and then ran up someone’s driveway, into their field and got stuck in a bogRead more

If you’ve ever wondered where I get some of the crazy ideas I write about here on Listen To Your Horse… Or perhaps you’ve watched my non-training videos and wondered what made me approach things that way…? Then this podcastRead more

Tracy Malone Interviews Horse Listener Jini Patel Thompson Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

I talk a lot on here about listening to my horses – and pretty much doing what they say, because they usually have better ideas, or greater wisdom than I do. But just as we have both spiritual and physicalRead more

Cobra is one of our wild mustangs who doesn’t like to be touched by humans. However, if you respect him and understand how to position your body and contain your energy, then he likes to explore YOU. My friend CarlottaRead more

Well, since my last video showing herd dynamics and negotiation (in slow motion) had such an enthusiastic response, I was encouraged to do another one for y’all! This one focuses on Makah-Mahpee (Earth-Sky in Sioux) before his castration, interacting withRead more

Posa’s mother is Siyone – one of the wild mustangs culled from the herd north of Vernon, BC. A month after her capture, Siyone birthed Posa in captivity at the rescue ranch. So although Posa has grown up in captivityRead more

My lovely friend Ken Berentzen is visiting and brought his cameras to the barn – where he caught this amazing sequence in slow motion. I give you the chance to watch the clip first, on your own, to form yourRead more

So I have a confession: my horses work for a living. Or I make them work for a living. Or they choose to work for me so that I can continue to buy them hay. Or we co-create experiences forRead more

I scrambled for my phone, realizing I had left it in my car. I didn’t want to miss this precious moment I was quietly witnessing between Jini Patel Thompson and her giant horse Aude. She was sitting on the earth,Read more

In a reciprocal relationship, there is no need for leadership. – from Equus Lost I believe the biggest, brightest truths are already within us, born in the folds of our brains and the flesh of our hearts and left thereRead more

What can you do to gain the precious trust of a previously abused horse – without using manipulation, pressure/release, or other forms of coercion? I recently received this question from one of our fellow Horse Listeners: “Hello. First thing IRead more

We talk a lot about ‘listening to your horse’ but what does that actually look/feel like, in real life? How do you know you’re actually hearing your horse, and not just making stuff up? And what happens to our horsesRead more

Join us out in the field for the next installment of trailer play (not training!) where we have no agenda and we simply let the horses be in charge of everything! In fact, my real agenda is to help theRead more

If you follow us on Facebook, then you’ll already know I FINALLY got my horse trailer! And actually, this is the first horse trailer I’ve ever owned. I’ve bought and sold cars every few years, for decades. But this purchaseRead more

Note: If you missed Part 1, you can read it here. So after finally getting all four of my horses into a trailer and moved 10 minutes down the road to our new place, we spent the winter settling inRead more

Let me start by saying that I am fully aware that the hands-down EASIEST way to get a horse to happily go into a trailer is to park the trailer in their pasture and put the horse’s hay, or evenRead more

I shot this video on Juno’s 1st birthday, doing what we all love to do best – hanging out and having adventures! Of course while viewing the footage I realized how much interesting stuff was going on at the sameRead more

We know that relationship-based teaching works really well; resulting in an empowered horse, a truly intimate, loving, soul-based relationship, and lots of fun! But can this play-based method stand up to the pressure of a deadline – a vet visitRead more

Last week, Andrea Datz gave us a thorough education in what “no” means in horse-talk and how to work with it. She spoke beautifully on the topic of letting go of expectations and trusting the process – that listening toRead more

By Andrea Datz It’s a lovely idea to give my horse his voice, to take his thoughts, emotions and opinions into consideration. I will never forget the first time I made a conscious choice to connect with my horses andRead more

How accurately can you, your vet, or your trainer, read your horse’s body language and facial expressions to determine whether your horse is experiencing pain – even if your pony is not limping or showing any outward signs of injury?Read more

What if you can’t ride your horse? Or your horse doesn’t want to be ridden? There is such a world of pleasure waiting to be experienced simply by BEING with these magnificent earthlings out in nature. There are few thingsRead more

I’m taking a break in this series from my poetic ramblings about adjusting to life on the land to get my junior scientist cap on and nerd out about horse herd dynamics. I hope you’ll bear with me; don’t worry,Read more

How is it that by doing very little with my horses; mostly meditating, doing chores, and avoiding the rain together… when I put us in scary or high pressure situations, they respond like an old cow horse? You know, oneRead more

What do you do when your horse asks you to go so far out of your comfort zone, that you start counting off a list of all the things that could go wrong…? Last week I told you how myRead more

Jini and I both signed up for Carolyn Resnick’s awesomely priced Chair Challenge (only $15!) and although we’re only on Day 3 of the 21-day program, it’s already stimulated some great discussion and questions. Here’s what we’ve been tossing about: We both reallyRead more

This video from Nicole Lampe in the Netherlands is a beautiful pictorial story of how one horse can teach each another useful skills, support him through facing his fears, and lovingly support his growth and expansion. Not surprisingly, horses don’tRead more

By Pat Rothchild I left the competitive horse world in my mid-twenties, once I figured out that the more successful horses and riders became, the crazier they got. The horses I loved and worked with did the impossible for meRead more

Last week I told you about the Horse As Muse workshop I attended with Linda Kohanov and Kim McElroy and showed you some of the art I created, as the inspiration from the horses informed my artistic expression. I alsoRead more

As many of you know, I was down in Amado, Arizona last week for Linda Kohanov and Kim McElroy’s workshop combining equine-assisted learning with art and creativity. Kim is a well-know equine artist; who collaborated with Linda on the WayRead more

One of our adored readers – Emily MacDonald – asked me to make this video showing the way I teach my semi-feral horses and foals how to lead on a halter. You’ll notice that my way is somewhat backwards toRead more

By Ainsley Beauchamp It seems a small thing, to lend a friend a book. We don’t necessarily recognize when life changes. Trumpets and fireworks don’t usually accompany the quietly profound moments, when we may hold a catalyst for change inRead more

For those of you who found my post about healing trauma stored in the horse’s body from previous riding experiences (using equine chiropractic, bodywork and Psych-K) weird… here’s another one to throw in the pot. Australian trainer, Jenny Pearce, tracksRead more

Last week I had the fine priviledge of visiting my friends on a ranch I used to work on in the beautiful Cariboo region of BC, and trimming the hooves of a couple lovely equids I’ve known for years. IRead more

Klaus F. Hempfling has made his new movie available for free – all 1.5 juicy hours of it! Have a look and then below I’ll get into my thoughts about the film… I have read a number of Klaus’ booksRead more

By Ainsley Beauchamp Three different people warned me this client’s mare would bite. The leasee, who’d arranged the appointment, said in her message that the mare was wonderful under saddle, but would bite at the least provocation. Having worked withRead more

I received this beautiful question from one of our readers in Europe. I say the question is “beautiful” because it shows this woman is in that precious space of opening, transition, and transformation. And yes, this space also feels veryRead more

By Ainsley Beauchamp I read an article on Facebook, the gist of which was, I am enough. Such a small statement, yet profound if you just sit with it for a few moments. At least it was profound for me.Read more

By Ainsley Beauchamp I feel so confused. This morning my horse and I went to war. Maybe I should explain what that looks like. Make the wrong thing difficult, right thing easy… you know, that whole horsemanship deal. So itRead more

I just returned from an Equinisity retreat up near Kamloops, BC, featuring trainer/filmmaker Elsa Sinclair. Elsa talked about the difference between using Extrinsic Motivation with your horse (pressure/release, whip, flag, etc.) and Intrinsic Motivation. Intrinsic motivations include things like matchingRead more

So in my continuing hunt for great horse books – and may I put in a plug here for anyone who is thinking about writing a horse-themed memoir or novel – please do so! Every month I comb Amazon lookingRead more

In my experience, the root of violence, bullying, aggression, etc. is often FEAR – because the being has been wounded and is super afraid and armored against being wounded or suffering again. We see this in the human world andRead more

By Ainsley Beauchamp I was thinking about horses and how sensitive they are to our thoughts and intent… As an equine therapist, I’ll be happily massaging away, some sweet horse melting into the strokes, and sometimes, just as I think,Read more

One of our favourites around here is Emily McDonald, a horse and dog behaviourist in the UK who rescued a family of feral horses dubbed the Meadow Family. Her videos are fascinating, enlightening and delightful – she demystifies the languageRead more

The driveway climbs sharp and slow, gravel crunching beneath the tires. For some reason my heart is pounding as the realtor says in his nasally drawl, I think you’ll like this one. It’s not for sale but we’re looking anyway.Read more

This article by Stormy May was originally published in Horses for Life magazine Oct. 2008, titled: The Truth in the Back. The information in this article is very similar to Chapter 3 of Stormy’s book, The Path of the Horse;Read more

In this film, trainer Elsa Sinclair asks the question: If a wild mustang were given the choice – without ropes, halters, whips, food rewards, etc. – of whether to be ridden, or not, would the horse let Elsa ride her?Read more

Emma Massingale is a British horse trainer who came up the traditional hunter/jumper route and then migrated over to liberty training and trick riding. She has 2 fabulous films out showing her journey with her wild Connemara herd. You mayRead more

I first became aware of the icky, shocking and viscerally repulsive parallels between sexual domination and the way we treat horses when I was reading the book, Saving Baby: How One Woman’s Love for a Racehorse Led to her Redemption.Read more

I introduced you to trainer Elsa Sinclair in my consensual riding post, but I wanted to give you a little bit more… Here’s the longer trailer for the Taming Wild documentary, where Elsa asks the question: If a wild horseRead more

Following on from my book review of Riding On The Power Of Others, Ren Hurst’s story threw me back (again) into the throes of my own tangled journey on this issue of consensual riding. As Ren so rightly pointed outRead more

Whilst I really loved Ren Hurst’s book Riding On The Power Of Others, in my last book review. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same about this book, Riding Home: The Power of Horses to Heal by Tim Hayes. And thatRead more

Mike Shannon has written one of the most heart-warming odes to his horse Bob I have ever read: This is Bob. As of March 17, he’s 28 years old and with me for over 26 of those years. I putRead more

I’m working my way through my recent Horse Book Haul from Amazon – talk about combining two of my favorite activities: reading and horses! And I found Ren Hurst’s book, Riding on the Power of Others: A Horsewoman’s Path toRead more

Kesia Nagata shows us, through video and photos, how she teaches my semi-feral mare to pick up her hooves and hold her feet up. And how this leads to the mare being willing to have her hooves trimmed – allRead more

When my semi-feral Belgian (Brabante) mare first came to me, she would bolt at the mere sight of a human holding a rope. Yet 6 months later, I put my full body weight onto her back, for the first timeRead more

At this point in the story, Firefly has learned to lead at liberty, and has been incrementally introduced to the halter and lead in short, spontaneous “training” games reinforced positively with praise and grooming. She can lead with no pressureRead more

When I rescued a herd of 3 siblings – they share the same father – from slaughter, the two young colts were not gelded. Montaro was 2 years old and had already bred a mare or two. His half-brother JaxRead more

After Firefly and I had established a close relationship, a few cues, and most importantly for our purposes in this article, how to come, follow, turn, back, and stop before she even saw a halter, it finally felt like timeRead more

If you were never going to ride, would you still have a horse? Or would you feel guilty, or extravagant, or question the point of having such an expensive pet? Have you ever even considered the notion of owning aRead more

Before Firefly, my Mustang/QH filly friend, came into my life, I’d never halter-trained anyone from scratch before. Both my adult horses came into my life with negative associations with the halter (and with other tack), so teaching them that theRead more

What if there was a way to train a horse that involved flow, ease and FUN! What if it wasn’t “training” at all, but more of a “collaborative exploration”? After my last article exploring the natural horsemanship training method ofRead more

Many natural horsemanship trainers talk about how to get your horse to do what you want with the least amount of pressure necessary. And one of those methods is to make your idea the horse’s idea. Ray Hunt writes inRead more

I was riding Zorra bareback one day and she asked me to hold the reins in my left hand only. So I did. And instantly felt as though I was going to slide off the left side of her! IRead more

Lying down with my horses is something I’ve done since I got my first horse at age 8. Some foals especially love to snuggle (others, not so much) – here’s a photo of my friend Kesia with little Firefly: OfRead more

I saw a post in a horse classified ads page on Facebook a while back. The woman had been in a bad accident and said it would likely be 1-2 years before she could walk again – so riding wasRead more

It has recently come to my attention that I have not formally recognized the teachers in my life. Not here, not anywhere. I was recently reminded of my desire to chart my own path and recognize the rich lineages eachRead more

So I was reading a little Maureen… and got a swift kick in the buttless chaps when I realized I’d totally missed the “trim by” date on Firefly’s baby feet (must have missed the small print for all the dirt).Read more

This is how it goes most days. I arrive in the beat up black truck they know so well. As I climb out and get sorted (apples, check! tools for the day, check! water, check!), I hear the usual ear-piercingRead more

This is a heart-growing, inspiring, and smile-inducing (and occasionally fist-pump-inducing) interview by Paula Slater of Straight From the Horse’s Mouth Radio with Margrit Coates, world renowned animal communicator, healer, and educator. Her groundbreaking work aside (Healing For Horses was theRead more

A horse can bully another horse (or an entire herd) for a number of reasons. Equine ethologist, Victor Ros, calls this “learned dominance” and he points out that it is a learned behaviour – usually due to competition for resourcesRead more

Am I the only one who finds it heart-wrenching, ridiculous and WRONG that zoo animals are better housed, and legally have higher living standards than horses?? I did not grow up around stabled horses. I was not taken to ridingRead more

I stopped regularly riding my gelding, Spero, a couple years ago. I was using a bitless, treeless set-up with, I thought, pretty good results. We’d spent years riding trails together, and then spent some time in arenas trying to findRead more

It was clear from the beginning that there would be no nonsense endured throughout this pregnancy – no unnecessary precautionary procedures, no ultrasounds, no palpating, no internal exams, nothing. When Amalia puts her foot down, there’s no arguing. In fact,Read more

Montaro (2-year-old Belgian/Fjord stallion) works off his energy while Zorra (Andalusian mare) grazes in the yard. Canter, trot, poles, cornering, Montaro does it all! All at liberty, all of his own free will… JiniJini Patel Thompson is a natural healthRead more

Those of you who read this blog, know that we often talk about our conversations with our horses. If you’d like to experience more of this with your own horse, then world-renowned animal communicator, Anna Breytenbach is a great teacherRead more

Two days after arriving from the rescue farm, Montaro is settling in well and very connected and responsive. We have also been for a walk outside of the fences on the lead line, exploring the house, garden, woods, cars, kidsRead more

So I’m in the paddock with my Andalusian horse Zorra and it’s a beautiful sunny day. She’s all brushed and nicely clean, so I hop on. And she pretty much immediately asks me to get off I say, “Are youRead more

Many people talk about their horse going lame as being an unexpected gift; one that forced them to stop doing things to and with their horse, and experience just being with their horse instead. The interconnectedness of LIFE, the stateRead more