Shetlands That Excel

Understanding Your Horse

 

Foundation and Specialization.  

Foundation is understood as the essential basics of quality communication.  When humans realize we are predatory in nature and horses are instinctively prey, it opens up a huge gap in the way, traditionally, horses have perceived the human being and why they react to us or what we are asking them to do, sometimes dangerously out of fear, as they do.  When we can cross their threshold of trust and confidence, we can create amazing possibilities.  

 

Specialization would be  driving or riding.  Within each of these "specialization" categories are even more events, such as  pleasure, formal, dressage, combined driving,  (which includes carriage) and work.   For riding, common uses are cutting, reining, western and english pleasure, trail, dressage, jumping, etc.  

 

All of the foundation skilled and gifted trainers use very similar methods that have grown in popularity because of the much more natural way of recognizing the importance of communication between humans and horses.  History would affirm that many horses and people have been injured tragically when the communication goes sideways.  Without foundation or fundamental skills in place, your progress will not be as rewarding and you will find yourself somewhere along the way as if you have a chain with weak links, fragile and ready to break unexpectedly.

 

Nate Bowers says, particularly comparing it to driving, " driving is like flying....there is nothing worse when you take off in a jet to suddenly realize something is wrong and wish you were on the ground".   Once you have committed to hitch the horse and get in the cart is not a good time to wonder if you have built a good foundation.   Nate has taken the foundation steps to a new high where driving is concerned and is passionate about teaching people a step by step approach to driving and how to recognize when you and your horse are or are not ready to move ahead to "specialization".