When I am in the presence of a horse, every challenge of the day melts away and I feel like the luckiest person on earth.  Horses live in the moment, and I believe they cause us to do the same.  For humans, this might be the greatest gift horses bestow.  It is in the examination of this concept where we find our balanced brain. When paying close attention to our WHOLE horse, neither the past nor the future matters.  As you peruse this website you will see how I develop strategies to build the well-rounded horseman at any age through the education of both brains and bodies.  Structural and cognitive soundness, as well as gut wellness, are the pillars I look to when all else fails and unwanted behavior begins. I have come to realize from spending a lifetime with horses that we do best — and can expect all that our horse can willingly give us — when we keep our horses, flight animals, in the thinking side of their brain.

I still marvel at horses’ grace, beauty, and ability to trust even when every synapse in their prey reptilian brain is saying “Runaway! Runaway!”  I have witnessed their generosity of spirit and sometimes think they give far greater to us than we do to them.  The lessons horses teach are unsuspecting and numerous.  It is for us to be willing to receive the information.  We need to acknowledge their lessons and see them as the partners they are.   A balanced relationship offers the greatest reward.

Horses are sentient beings:  they feel, they sense, they communicate.  Scientists at the Heart Math Institute have mapped the unique symbiotic relationship between humans and horse.  Harmony is found in the perfect balance point both in brain and body (heart) of both rider and horse.  Sitting on their backs is only the beginning and sadly where most people stop.  My hope is to awaken this awareness in my students so they can continue on and have the best possible experience.

My aim in coaching riders, whether young or older, with disabilities or without any visible disabilities, experienced or novice, is to empower and teach awareness through knowing our horses better.  To work well with them, we need to assess their present state of mind and to recognize they have legitimate thoughts and reasons for their actions.  As much as I value my students, I don’t seek dependency.  I want them to be smart, savvy, confident, independent thinkers, and problem solvers.  Great horsemanship requires creativity, generosity, patience, focus, humor, and trust. Hmmm, sounds like what every great human relationship relies upon.  I plant the seeds with my tenants of what I consider great horsemanship. My hope is my students can resource these in any situation.  If my rider can get off their horse after a challenging round and say, “What do I need to do better?,” then I have done my job because I know someday, even after a tough day, they will pause, breathe, and think forward, forward, forward.

 – Jennifer