Really? A guaranteed connection with my horse, is there such a thing? Isn’t this what every horse trainer worth the title is selling? You may not have the horse of your dreams but the dream of your horse connecting with you, is this not a dream that can come true? What if I was to tell you that it is, that it can and that it absolutely does not require any training of the horse, would you be interested in finding out how?
The dream
There was a time when dreams were confined to sleep. Now you can access them in high-resolution video accompanied by multi-channel audio on any electronic device anywhere there is an internet connection and you can frequently do so free of charge. So too the dream of the horse-human connection. Every horse trainer of any repute offers one, don’t they?
You too can watch your horse gallop up to meet you when you arrive in the field. You too can have your horse back their dangerous parts away from you in ‘respect’. You too can have your horse walk and trot at liberty by your side. You too can lead your horse with a ‘smile’ in the lead even though you may have to drive them from behind with a rope to keep that lead lightly curved. You too can ride your horse in collection on a loose rein. You too can do the same with just a neck rope or no tack at all. In fact, you can even do all of this with lightness and softness. And at the end of each session, you can have your horse fare you well until the next one with profound appreciation and gratitude.
Perhaps the most viewed depiction of the horse-human dream ever!
So just what do we have to do to live the dream? Why, simply watch the video, gasp in awe, sign up for the course, invest in the method and train your horse. A true connection with your horse, guaranteed!
The nightmare
So when you got back home from the course during which you learned so much about how to train your horse, did you have any supporting materials to help you replicate what you managed to do while you were there? And if there were any available, did they help? No? So did you go in search of a similar trainer and did they help?
And how many trainers, gadgets, gizmos, books and videos later did you finally manage to make even part of the horse-human connection dream come true? But let us not be cynical. Let us assume that you have been so successful that you are now able to post pictures and videos of you and your horse doing most, if not all, of the things together which make up the horse-human connection dream. Well done!
Books: been there and done it too!
But now ask yourself, while your horse is doing all that you have trained them to do, are they behaving like a sentient being, just as a creature capable of feeling, curiosity and spontaneity at liberty does? Is your horse spontaneously communicating with you while at absolute freedom to leave when they want? In short, has the horse-human connection of your dreams come true or are you just fooling yourself?
The guarantee
By its very nature, life does not come with guarantees. And neither does the horse. Yet if there is anything that we can do to secure the closest thing to a guarantee of living the dream, it has to start with the human and not the horse. We need to change, not them. At the risk of being corrected, I would like to suggest the following initial steps.
Step 1 is to abandon all expectations of the horse. It is not about what the horse should do for us but what we can do for the horse. Only once we abandon our expectations of the horse, will it be possible to achieve a connection with them as a fellow sentient being.
Step 2 is intent. We need to commit to helping the horse to live and be the best horse that they are capable of being. This means that we need to learn what a horse is and what they require in order to do this. In this respect our intent must be clear and inform all that we do with our horse.
Step 3 is integrity. Without being honest and authentic in relation to our intent with the horse, all that we do will be a sham.
The latter two of these three steps coincide with the guiding principles of a form of self-development which humans can learn in order to help their horse, while the first, although not explicitly mentioned as such, is implied in the entire approach adopted by those who have opted for it. I am of course referring to the form of equine bodywork known as The Equine Touch.
The Equine Touch connection
The motto of The Equine Touch Foundation reflects what this equine bodywork modality really is: helping horses by educating humans. It is about the development of the human and not the horse. And the practice of this modality can very quickly help a human establish a very close, genuine connection with their horse in the absence of any training of the latter.
Here are some examples of The Equine Touch connection. All of the horses mentioned here are or were rescued from human abuse and/or neglect. As such, many if not most or all, were severely traumatised and had very little trust in humans. The Equine Touch enabled Vicki and myself to gain their confidence and usually by the end of the first session we had achieved a connection of trust with them.
Rihanna
Andrew sharing The Equine Touch with Rihanna. No need for tack.
Although severely neglected to the point of abuse, Rihanna still exhibited an extraordinary commitment to living. Her requirements though were well beyond what a rescue centre relying on volunteer assistants and donations could muster in the way of aids and resources. Within weeks of this photo being taken, she had to be euthanised. We were devastated.
Indio
Indio with Vicki after an Equine Touch session
Only 21 years old, Indio gave us the impression of being much older. Suffering conditions which necessitate rescue can age a horse. He really appreciated his Equine Touch sessions and had the makings of a junkie. A number of our students also benefited from learning The Equine Touch together with Indio. Alas, he died a short time later.
Dakota
Dakota with Andrew during her first Equine Touch session
The victim of abuse, Dakota did not readily trust humans initially, especially men. Because Equine Touch is a gift to the horse and we do not catch horses, preferring them to choose whether or not to approach us of their own volition instead, Vicki waited close by until Dakota came to her (about five minutes). It was only then that Dakota allowed Andrew in and then only to perform the TMJ procedure. When we next visited the rescue centre, Dakota came up to greet Andrew of her own accord. She has since been rehomed.
Golondrina (a.k.a. Swallow)
The magic starting between Swallow and Vicki
We knew this mare as Swallow when we first met her. Her carer, with whom the horse had been rehomed from the rescue centre, had just died and she had just returned to the centre. Upset and distressed to the point of becoming a safety risk, Andrew managed to draw her attention long enough for a relaxing TMJ procedure at liberty. This opened the door for Vicki to share a full session of The Equine Touch with Swallow and magic happened between horse and human. The mare is still waiting for someone to offer her a home.
Danubio
Danubio chilling after an Equine Touch session with Andrew
This was another Equine Touch junkie in the making and a horse who played an important role in helping humans learn this equine bodywork modality. More noticeable than anything else though was the deep bond that formed between Danubio and Andrew. If we had not already had so many animals to care for, horse and human would have made their way home to ours together. The connection was profound. Danubio has since been rehomed with some other human. So it goes.
Go ye and do likewise?
Yes, The Equine Touch can help lay a firm foundation for a true connection between a horse and a human and also help with psychological and emotional issues as hinted at. But have we mentioned the other health benefits, which are equally if not more important?
For more information about The Equine Touch, please see my posts entitled Feeling The Equine Touch and The Equine Touch: Jock’s Vision.
The girls bonding after Vicki’s Equine Touch session with Swallow
If you would also like to learn The Equine Touch to share this gentle but effective equine bodywork modality with your horse, why not consider doing a course with us. The next Introductory course will be held in Dutch and English at the Andalusian Rescue Centre for Horses (ARCH) in sunny Southern Spain on Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 June 2019. Here you will be able to help horses in need while learning how to help your own.
Details of the course may be found in English here and in Dutch here. Any questions? Please contact us. This is what we do: helping horses by educating humans!
Equine Touch
Our Equine Touch business is called Humans for Horses, you can find our website at:
http://www.humansforhorses.com/
and our Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/Humans.for.Horse
Horses and Humans on Facebook
May I remind you that we now have a Horses and Humans group on Facebook. If you would like to leave a comment, you can do so on this blog or on the the Horses and Humans Facebook group page. All new posts will feature on that page along with additional content posted by any of our members. Please feel free to join us at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/horsesandhumans/
There is also a Horses and Humans publications page, which contains information concerning the publications released under the Horses and Humans imprint. Some of those publications will be free of charge. You will find it here:
https://www.facebook.com/horsesandhumans
I also have a Facebook page through which you may contact me. You will find it at:
https://www.facebook.com/andrewglynsmail
