Horses are naturally curious. They are curious as a foal, when they start to discover the new world where they are born in, and this continues for the rest of their lives. That is, if their trainers and handlers are..
Who doesn’t dream of being able to lie down by their horse? Or even better: that your horse would lie down with you? To clarify, I’m not talking about “training” horses to do so. Of course,..
Everybody knows somebody who always seems to have fun when training his horse, even if it’s not going that well. A trainer like this sees every difficulty as a possibility and sees opportunities where others..
Latte is the 13 year old mare of Diana, from the UK. Diane is a member of the Horsefulness Liberty Training Program. Diane posted the video and comment below in the Members Facebook Group. “I just wanted to..
This week I stumbled upon footage of me and my 3 ponies, walking in liberty, in the nature reserve where they used to spend the summer. This footage is 4 years old and I forgot all about it… 1 year later Bhor, one..
Imagine the following scenarios: the meadow has been fertilized and your horse is not allowed to use it for a while, and there is no paddock to let your horse loose in. Or the meadow is too wet, and the stable owner..
Recently I was interviewed by Tracy Malone, of the “Come along for the ride Podcast”. These are some of the things that I talk about with Tracy: How and when my passion for horses started How..
Your breathing is the most simple but also the most effective way to connect with yourself, and therefore also with your horse . Teaching yourself how to work with your breath is therefore invaluable. Tension..
Leading is a very important exercise in Horsefulness Training. Whoever can’t successfully lead their horse will also encounter problems with their horse in other areas. That’s why this is the most important basic..
What a wonderful 3 day clinic it was at New Barn Stables, Kent (UK) from the 11th till the 13th of November. I enjoyed to coach and teach all those wonderful horses and open minded participants who were really eager..
It’s wonderful how horses connect with humans who are connected with themselves. Horses do that from nature, it’s who they are. They feel if the human is aware and present and then they will naturally make..
As writer and answering to reader’s questions for Belgian horse magazine CAP for years, at one point I received the following question: “ How can I build a better bond between me and my horse , so that horse riding..
Even if you don’t want to, it could happen that you’re prompted by frustrations or strong emotions to punish the horse. With punishing I mean: you use violence to prevent that the horse does something you don’t want..
Two of my horses, Niki and Joy (both aged mares) are currently staying in a new meadow on the side of a nature reserve. It’s just wonderful there! I go to see them every day to spend some time with them. On..
In this video you see Karine and Napo playing at Liberty. Liberty horse training is the foundation of Horsefulness Training. It’s about creating a true connection with your horse that is based on clear..
The most importan t thing that you need to train a horse properly is… TRUST A horse that trusts “his/her human” will be much easier to train than a suspicious horse . A horse is a herd animal,..
Let me share with you nine tips that will help you train your horse better! I recommend applying them all so that training your horse is easier and more fun! Tip 1. Work on confidence first. Make sure that your..
Connection Exercise #7, Spontaneous Circling, requires a strong connection with your horse that you can obtain by doing the first 6 connection exercises. If it happens spontaneously, you'll notice that the horse walks or trots around you (or maybe even canters) while you walk in a small circle or maybe just rotate around your axis.
The eigth and last connection exercise is called “The Boomerang”. This is an active exercise, in which we invite the horse to run and play along with us. Thus the horse has to be in a playful and energetic mood for it. This can happen naturally, or you can try and spark this playful energy in your horse.
Liberty Leading is the sixth connection exercise. Liberty Leading can happen spontaneously, but you can also invite your horse to follow you into Liberty Leading.
During the fifth connection exercise, also known as “Easy Herding,” you create a deep herd feeling with your horse while working on body language and clear communication.
The fourth connection exercise is called “Your Spot, My Spot”. In this exercise we take the spot where the horse is standing. You basically tell the horse: “I want to stand in your spot, so I want you to go away and move to another spot”.
The third connection exercise is the exercise “Greet & Groom”. Horses who are best friends regularly scratch and rub each other with teeth and lips. Research has shown that calming substances are released and the heart rate of horses drops during such a grooming session.
When I bought my horse Ulysse, at first, it was very hard to approach her in the field. She usually ran away, as far away as possible from any human. If her previuos owner wanted to take her in, it could take 2 or..