So just to get the ball rolling here is a collage made from photos taken a week back during a lesson.
I give regular 1on1 lessons to teach my liberty horsemanship to those who wish to improve their riding or just want to learn some new tricks.
The big bad cow (me) kept moving away & he had to knuckle down & do some moving to get infront of me to turn me back. Of course as far as Sonny is concerned that's just an excuse for more rearing which he loves doing! But when all is said & done there's nothing like a nice snack of carrot rings after a hard 'cutting' session! But you can see from his deadly stare that he truly means business.
I can't wait to be able to ride him again once his foundered feet are repaired. :)
In the youtube bar above you will find a very recent video I took of a student during last week's lesson. She's only been coming a few weeks & is already doing really well using my old mare Jude.
Jude knows a good bit of liberty riding but will wait for the student to get it' right before complying! lol Jude likes to keep her riders honest.
Here's another photo taken at the conclusion of that lesson with the horses doing their favourite activity of stepping up onto the blocks to get their treats.
Observation
These days as I learn more and more, it's funny that the first thing I notice now is not how well a horse is tracking up, or if he it's on the forehand, or even how pretty he looks. Now, the first thing I notice when I see horse and human working together, is whether they have a connection.
The horse is often dull and apathetic but is deemed a well behaved horse. A horse that powers across the arena (to the delights of the crowd who gush at the explosive power of it), is just trying to escape. It is not connected to it's rider nor the rider to it in any meaningful way.
People seem to have lost the realization, if they ever had it, that they are working with sentient beings. Horses are aware at a level we can't even begin to comprehend. Something we are just beginning to understand is just how intelligent they are.
Why own, ride or work with a horse if you don't care if it has feelings? Grab a motorbike instead.
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