JUST GAIT

Every next level of your horsemanship journey will require a different you.

You buy a new horse. You bring him home, and before long, you start running into problems.

Maybe his gait isn’t what you expected. Maybe he’s resistant, tense, or just not moving the way you think he should.

So what do you do?

It’s easy to jump on Facebook and ask, “What should I do?” And you’ll probably get hundreds of different answers.

But how do you know which answer is right for YOUR horse?

Before you try to fix what you’re seeing today, you need to ask yourself:

What happened before this happened?

Your horse didn’t become the horse standing in front of you overnight.

His history, previous training, previous expectations, physical development, and the things he may have learned to compensate for all helped shape what you’re seeing now not to mention a change of environment.

If you don’t understand the cause, you can spend a lot of time trying to fix the symptom.

And sometimes, in our hurry to get the result we want, we ask the horse to give something up to get there.

Maybe balance. Maybe relaxation. Maybe correct movement. Maybe even comfort.

But what good is getting what you want if the horse has to sacrifice something in the process?

The goal shouldn’t simply be to make the horse do something.

The goal should be to understand the horse well enough to help him become better.

Before you change the horse in front of you, take the time to understand the horse that came before him. 🤠

What a wonderful three days in Mora, Missouri at Von Holten Ranch❤️

A huge thank you to FOSH (Friends of Sound Horses) for sponsoring our clinic and to the 15 riders who joined us—with a waiting list of riders hoping to participate!

Every horse and rider has a different story, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to help them better understand one another.

Thank you for the new friendships, the familiar faces, and the horses that continue to teach us so much.

Knowing where the horse's feet are and understanding how they move will make you a better rider.

But developing the ability to actually feel those feet and feel the movement beneath you-that's what begins to make you a better horseman.

Knowledge tells you what is happening.

Feel allows you to recognize it as it happens.

If you'd like to learn more, contact us for information about a clinic near you🤠

Today, and every day, we are thankful.

Thankful for the journey we are on, for the new people we’ve met along the way, for the horses we have the privilege of working with who continue to teach and inspire us, and for the growing number of friendships we’ve made along the way.

There is something pretty special about a life that keeps bringing good people, good horses, and meaningful experiences into it.

We are grateful for every lesson, every connection, every horse, and every mile that has brought us here.

And we’re thankful for what’s still ahead.

Happy Sunday everyone ❤️🤠

What is leadership?

Leadership is an ability—the ability to guide, influence, communicate, make decisions, and take responsibility.

So why do we so often hear in the horse world:

“You’ve gotta be his leader.”
“You need to tell him what you want and make him do it.”

But is that really leadership?

Is leadership simply making the horse do what you want?

Or is leadership the ability to understand the horse in front of you, communicate in a way he can understand, recognize what he needs, and have the knowledge and wisdom to help him succeed?

Because there is a difference between controlling a horse and leading one.

Maybe the better question isn’t, “Have I shown my horse that I’m the leader?”

Maybe it’s:

“Have I developed the ability to actually lead?”

Clinic time🤠

Why are horses so good for us?

Horses possess so many amazing qualities and characteristics that, if we could learn to be a little more like them, I believe they could make us better human beings.

• Horses don’t care what anyone or anything looks like. They don’t live in a world of mirrors and microscopes, constantly measuring themselves or others against some mental picture of how we think we should look or be.

• Horses don’t judge. They don’t care what color you are, whether you’re short or tall, big or small. They care about how you make them feel and whether they feel safe with you.

• Horses don’t chase the clock. They aren’t imprisoned by time. They live in the moment and respond to what is happening right now.

• Horses are tuned into the energy around them. They gather information before demanding answers. They observe, listen, and feel.

• Horses set boundaries, but they also respect the boundaries of those around them.

• Horses understand that they are part of a herd. They recognize themselves as part of something bigger rather than believing they are the center of the entire world.

The list could go on and on.

But maybe that’s the point.

Maybe, just maybe, we should spend a little more time learning from the horses we love and a little less time trying to make them learn to be like us.

I believe they would thank us for it.

And I believe a whole lot of people around us would, too. 🤠

When working with horses, which is more important: skill or wisdom?

Skill matters. You need to know how to communicate with a horse, how to influence his body, and how to handle different situations.

But skill without wisdom can become a problem. You can be very skilled and still not know when to use that skill.

You can know exactly how to make a horse do something, but not recognize that this isn’t the moment to ask for it.

You can have the ability to apply more pressure, but not the wisdom to know when less would accomplish more.

You can know how to get a result without understanding whether that result is actually what the horse needs.

Wisdom comes with learning to read the horse, reading the moment, and understanding that the answer isn’t always to do more.

Sometimes wisdom is knowing when to wait.

Sometimes it’s knowing when to change your approach.

Sometimes it’s recognizing that the horse isn’t ready for what you’re asking and that your job is to prepare him rather than push him through it.

Skill can make you impressive.

Wisdom can make you effective.

And I think the best horsemen/horsewomen spend a lifetime developing both—but never stop learning that knowing when and how to use your skill is just as important as having the skill itself.
Carl Bledsoe Horsemanship