“Natural horsemanship” is often referred to as “horse whispering” but it has nothing to do with magic; it is a combination of horse behaviourism, applied equine psychology and non-violent training through ground work.

 

This type of horsemanship is called “natural” because it naturally makes sense to horses since it takes into account their psychology and behaviour. In contrast, traditional horsemanship often takes the human point of view, which can be confusing for horses who evolved to think in very different ways than we do. 

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Horses are social animals who, in their natural habitat, live in herds. They communicate mainly through silent body language because, otherwise, in the wild they would be found and eaten by predators. 
 
Humans are predators and therefore think in a very different way than horses do. In Natural Horsemanship, we learn to communicate with the horse using his own language system to form a relationship in which the horse respects the human and is respected in return.
 
Because horses want to be part of a herd, and in most domestic environments humans become the horse’s herd, Natural Horsemanship is a remarkably efficient and powerful tool to create that long lasting relationship between humans and horses. 
 
We work using pressure and release as well as advance-and-retreat at the heart of our concepts. By using the right timing, horses learn from the release of pressure as well as from instant positive or negative consequences. 
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​By excluding pain and fear from the training, the horse feels safe and remains calm and trusting. A horse in the right state of mind will be safe for handlers and riders and will perform better.
 
With these non-violent methods, the rider and his horse develop a healthy, well balanced and long lasting relationship.