Category Archives: riding

Reading your horse’s mind and thoughts

January 20, 2016alternative therapies, animal communication, bodywork, chakras, energy work, equines, exercise, fear, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, OrthoHorse, performance horses, riding, trail riding, Uncategorizedanimal communication, energetic connection, energy work, equine, Equine Body Balance, equine bodywork, equine healing, equine liberty training, equine training, equines, healing, health, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse trainers, horse training, horseback riding, horsemanship, horses, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, liberty horse training, liberty training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorsehorsesatliberty

My mare Zuzka comes to stand beside me at the gate, ready to have her halter slipped on. She is one who often will want to play games about being haltered, suggesting, no, I’m too busy today to go ride. Or maybe it’s just the game she likes. But this day she really wants to go out. I can often tell if she wants to go out on the trail, by how she stands looking off in the distance, when there is no activity on the horizon that can be seen with the naked eye. A sort of longing to be out there. (originally published December 14, 2016)

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Teeth and hooves: working with the aggressive horse

October 21, 2015abused horses, alternative therapies, animal communication, energy work, equines, exercise, fear, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, performance horses, riding, UncategorizedAlternative therapies, animal communication, bodywork, energetic connection, equines, healing, health, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse trainers, horse training, horseback riding, horsemanship, horses, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, leadership, liberty horse training, liberty training, OrthoHorse, ridinghorsesatliberty

One of the hardest things for people to grapple with is the fact that their horse is not always nice. I talk about good behavior and model that for the horse, but sometimes the horse does not exhibit good behavior in spite of all the modeling. Sometimes we get a dose of teeth and hooves.

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Spirit horses, rituals and sacred ground

September 18, 2015animal communication, energy work, fear, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, OrthoHorse, performance horses, rescue horses, riding, trail ridinganimal communication, bodywork, endurance riding, energetic connection, energy work, equine, Equine Body Balance, equine bodywork, equine healing, equine training, grief, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamicshorsesatliberty

I stood there at the side of the grave, then knelt there and heard hoof falls behind me. Zuzka, my dear black mare and lifelong companion of our departed Khami, came up behind me. She left a respectful distance and looked at me as though to say, if you want some time alone that’s okay. I said and motioned to her, let’s be here together.

Khami_before_death1

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Conversation between horse and rider

September 12, 2015alternative therapies, bodywork, equines, exercise, fear, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, horses, Ortho-Bionomy, performance horses, riding, trail riding, Uncategorizedbareback riding, bodywork, energetic connection, energy work, equine, equine healing, equine liberty training, horse training, horseback riding, horsemanship, horses, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, leadership, liberty horse training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, ridinghorsesatliberty

What is the conversation between horse and rider?

Recently I’ve been working with a horse and rider team who are deeply bonded. After an accident the owner is building up her riding time. Her concern was that he would not sustain a trot for a length of time and that her body was not seated in the saddle evenly. Each side of her felt different, and one side felt unwieldy and unable to really connect.

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8 ways to catch a horse

August 26, 2015alternative therapies, animal communication, bitless bridles, bodywork, endurance, energy work, equines, exercise, fear, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, OrthoHorse, performance horses, riding, trail riding, Uncategorizedbareback riding, endurance riding, energetic connection, equine training, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse trainers, horse training, horseback riding, horsemanship, horses, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, leadership, liberty horse training, liberty training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, ridinghorsesatliberty

In the book No Life for a Lady, the biography of Agnes Moreland Cleaveland, the children were put in charge of catching a horse and riding into town in order to get supplies. This was New Mexico in the early 1900s. The author said that they didn’t have corrals so catching a horse could take half a day. The horses would know you wanted to catch them and would hide behind trees.

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In loving memory: A horse in a million

August 17, 2015animal communication, bodywork, endurance, energy work, EPR, equines, exercise, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, performance horses, riding, trail riding, UncategorizedAlternative therapies, animal communication, animals, bareback riding, bodywork, energetic connection, equine training, equines, healing, herd behavior, horse trainers, horse training, horseback riding, horsemanship, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, liberty horse training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, ridinghorsesatliberty

In Loving Memory – April 12. 1989-August 15. 2015 Khami, my bay Arabian gelding of 26 years, passed away quickly today of what appeared to be a heart attack. He was doing what he loved to do, running with his beloved herd, when he collapsed and died shortly after.

Khami, minutes before his death

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Be a herd extension

July 25, 2015abused horses, alternative therapies, animal communication, bodywork, energy work, equines, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, mustangs, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, performance horses, rescue horses, riding, trail ridingAlternative therapies, animal communication, animals, bodywork, energetic connection, equine bodywork, healing, health, herd dynamics, horse trainers, horseback riding, horsemanship, horses, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, leadership, liberty horse training, liberty training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, rescue horseshorsesatliberty

Like most things in life, when I learn about them, chances are somebody has already thought of it, researched, packaged and marketed it and knows way more about it than I do.

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The art of becoming horse-like

July 14, 2015abused horses, alternative therapies, animal communication, chakras, energy work, equines, exercise, fear, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, liberty rein, Liberty training, mustangs, OrthoHorse, rescue horses, riding, trail riding, UncategorizedAlternative therapies, animal communication, animals, bareback riding, bodywork, chakras, energetic connection, energy work, equine, equine healing, Equine Ortho-Bionomy, equine positional release, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse trainers, horseback riding, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, leadership, liberty training, OrthoHorsehorsesatliberty

Liberty work takes on a life of its own. Even when I know the horses involved, they do not always do what I expect.

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Moving into a new herd

June 14, 2015animal communication, energy work, equines, exercise, fear, geriatric horses, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, Liberty training, Ortho-Bionomy, OrthoHorse, rescue horses, riding, Uncategorizedanimal communication, bodywork, equine, equine bodywork, equine healing, equine liberty training, Equine Ortho-Bionomy, equine rescue, equines, grazing, herd behavior, horse trainers, horse training, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, leadership, liberty horse training, liberty training, OrthoHorse, rescue horseshorsesatliberty

Jazzmine joined the herd of three on Sunday, first over the fence, making introductions. Then she was insistent the next day, on being with them. I must go through that gate to be with them. She has been without a real herd for a couple of years, but grew up with one from birth. The herd of three was already quite well established in their rhythms, so she would face some challenges as a newcomer.

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Stand by your horse

May 18, 2015animal communication, equines, exercise, fear, healing, herd behavior, herd dynamics, horse training, horsemanship, horses, Horses at Liberty Foundation Training, Liberty training, OrthoHorse, rescue horses, riding, trail riding, Uncategorizedenergetic connection, equine healing, equine liberty training, horse trainers, horse training, Horses at LIberty Foundation Training, liberty horse training, liberty training, OrthoHorsehorsesatliberty

The mare saw the setup – one horse was going to move another horse into another horse and on it would go, a domino effect of movement, right into the little girl standing there watching.

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