9 horsemanship quotes to think about
Quotes by well-known (and less well-known) horse trainers can be very inspiring. That is why I want to share these 9 inspiring horsemanship quotes and lessons for you to think about and learn from!
“Whatever a horse is forced to do, it will do without understanding and beauty. Just like a dancer who gets abused would dance; without grace.” Xenophon
“Horsemanship, good horsemanship, is intuition combined with knowledge and wisdom. Having only one of these three is like a butterfly without wings. It can’t go anywhere, it can’t complete ‘normal’ tasks and when it wants to fly, it can’t get off the ground. It can’t do anything but hopping around on the ground for a while… Knowledge without wisdom is dangerous, very dangerous. Intuition without knowledge is a weak foundation, to say the least. And wisdom? That simply can’t exist without the other two!” Gwenyth Browning Jones Santagate
“The horse is always free to express itself! And if something goes wrong, it is always because the human does not communicate clearly enough.” Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling
“One can learn so much just by observing others (other trainers, other riders). It is sometimes even better to understand something that way and to recognize an intuition, rather than to just do what you’re told without understanding why you have to do it.” Norman Dello Joio
“Horsemanship is the art of mastering our own movements, thoughts, emotions and behavior. Not the horses.” Mark Rashid
“If you are only a student of technique, then the options become very limited. On the other hand, when you are a student of the horse, the options are unlimited.” Mark Rashid
“You can’t be yelling and screaming at a horse and then expect it to listen when you whisper.” Dagobert D. Runes
“Thinking ahead is the key to good horsemanship. If the horse wants to leave, and we don’t feel that until the first step has already been stepped, then we create resistance when we ask the horse to wait. Everything becomes so much softer when we already feel the movement before it even happens, and are able to respond to it early on.” Jan Leischuh
“Let all your actions always be guided by love and responsibility towards your horse.” Nuno Oliviera
What is your favorite quote? Share it below!
