Welcome Horse People!

If you are addicted to clinicians this is the place to discuss and philosophize about horsemanship! All opinions are welcome here, but I would like to keep the posts upbeat and hopefully thoughtful.

First topic: Opinions are like.......

The thing about opinions is everyone has got one and I have never seen too many that are the same. I was developing opinions, and still do. I would rather not though. It seems to me, that once a person gets caught up having an opinion, it gets hard to change their mind. Even if all the facts seem to point out, that the opinion they have become so attached to, is wrong. This is a strange phenomenon that occurs with everyone I know. So I try not to (but I can’t always help it) develop opinions. If a person could have a theory instead, maybe they would be more apt to adjust it as necessary.

I think it is very interesting how when you come across someone who gives you a breakthrough in your learning, that suddenly you close your mind to all others, at least until you come to a point of frustration and their ideas or techniques don’t seem to be working. It is at that point when you stop and think that there might be someone else out there that could help you. This has occurred over and over in my quest. The first time I really experienced this first hand is when I ran across my first “natural horsemanship” trainer. I was in Las Vegas for the first time ever, to see the National Rodeo Finals, when we happened on a show at Excalibur, I sat down, not knowing what to expect. All I knew was it was a show called “Day of the Horse.” I was always ready to watch anything to do with horses.


It turned out to be this horse trainer. What a strange venue, I thought, for a horse training clinic/show. This trainer named Dennis Reis, talked for a while, then did a few neat three ring circus type acts, then at the end all the lights went low, and the song “All the Pretty Little Horses” started playing, and one by one all the riders gently laid their horses on their sides. By the time the last horse laid down, I was full out bawling. I had never seen anything like it! The rest was like a blur; I just was intent on finding more out about this guy and his training techniques. He sold his videos and special tools at the end of the show, so with the help of my date, I ended up with a “starter kit.” From that point on I was a living breathing commercial for this guy. I would not hear any information contradictory to what Dennis Reis was saying. When someone asked me a question about training my answer would always begin “Dennis does this technique..” I was committed to his methods after all they worked for him and his students. I wanted what they had accomplished with their horses. It didn’t take too long for me to come to a point where his methods couldn’t get me through a problem I was having. So.. I started to search for another mentor. I found Clinton Anderson, and I was a walking, breathing commercial for him too, then I found Ray Hunt, Buckranaman, Mark Rashid, etc.. I have come to the conclusion that no one person will have all the answers I am looking for.. I will continue to learn all I can from anyone I can, even if it is what NOT to do.
Posted by Horse Gal at 1:21 PM 1 comments
Labels: clinic, horse, horsemanship, opinion, training
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