What Do You Present to Your Horse?

“Watch me carefully. Note the way I move, the way I present myself to the horse”.

I say this a lot.

My touch, movement, presence, intent and vibe is what is important to the horse. It is what determines whether I am important, make sense and how they feel about me.

Ultimately it determines whether I am a creature that communicates with them, that is trustworthy, or a creature that restrains them, forces, hurts, frustrates or scares them.

Next time you see a horse work beautifully, shift your eyes from the horse to the horsewoman or horseman and watch them.

Watch the way they move, how they present themselves, where they look, how they pick up the rein…because this is what the horse is mirroring back in their performance.