faq | balancedequestrian

What sort of horsemanship do you teach?

People define horsemanship in all sorts of different ways. The kind of work I do used to be most referred to as ‘natural horsemanship’ as it was easier I think to pigeonhole it somehow. For me now, the word horsemanship suffices without any prefixes, whether that be natural, performance, unnatural, mystical, insert word here or otherwise. It’s just horsemanship. It goes beyond riding, beyond horse ownership and is a principle we hold ourselves to.

Horsemanship is the cornerstone of any pursuit with your horse, without it the road to success can be a little rockier. It’s also perfectly ok for horsemanship on its own to be your pursuit! Competition or specific disciplines aren’t necessary to do amazing things with your horses and improve your skills with the sky being the limit. This is how I chose to spend the last 25 years with horses and I don’t regret it one bit.

Do you start on the ground?

Yes, most definitely. Most good programs do, just with different techniques and systems. Groundwork is as little or as much as you want it to be and can look different on any given day, depending on where you are at with your horse, your goals and experience.

What groundwork is NOT:

Something people do when they are too scared to ride
Boring, if you’re doing it right
Sending a horse in dozens of circles
Something to only do when you’re having a problem with your horse

What groundwork IS:

A way of teaching a horse to respond to your energy and cues
Teaching him how to move his body correctly and be influenced by you
A way of accessing his mind and emotions to help him regulate and prepare for the world
How you keep safe, making sure your horse is ready for you to get on
A great way of helping a horse learn to carry himself correctly and learn new things without having to balance a rider

Do you do any ridden lessons?

Absolutely, preferably after a few ground lessons. A good foundation is my passion, so I like the riding part of the program to be started at the beginning, ensuring that the relationship stays intact as you progress toward the discipline of your choice and further enhancing your horse’s training. The foundation is about the mind and body of the horse working together, to form a partnership with you. It’s also about the rider learning how to trust the horse and travel with them. How long it takes to develop your foundation is influenced by factors such as how far along your horse is in it’s ridden life, your time limits, how often you attend lessons or clinics etc. It’s a case of how long is a piece of string?

Do you teach more advanced skills?

Yes, both on the ground and under saddle. Groundwork is limited only by your imagination and beginning to explore liberty and obstacles once you have a solid foundation is heaps of fun! Under saddle, I have over 20 years of horsemanship experience to share to help you shape your horse up and improve your riding and effectiveness in the saddle and learn more advanced manoeuvres. I do not profess to be an expert in any specific discipline, so if your foundation is good and you’re serious about a pursuit, there are lots of great specialist teachers around for that. I will often refer you on to learn the ins and outs of your specific sport and encourage people to gain access to like minded clinicians.

Can you help with difficult horses?

Yes. I have worked with many challenging horses over the years, with everything from catching, picking up feet, float loading to bolting, bucking and rearing. As assessment and honest summary is always required when you have a horse presenting challenges, as I need to keep myself (and you!) safe. When anyone is experiencing challenges, no matter how small, I like to take the time to create a holistic picture with everything from the ground up (feed, feet, agistment etc) being considered when we create a plan.

I get nervous and a bit scared of my horse at times, is this ok?

Hey me too! Yes, absolutely it’s ok, we all have our moments. Sometimes we don’t even realise it can be nothing to do with the horse. I love working with people to achieve their goals no matter how big or small and assisting you to navigate the roadblocks we all come across at times on our horsemanship journey.

Do you travel?

The short answer is yes, however this does depend on numbers for your area. The type of work I do means that sometimes longer sessions are better and can be spaced further apart in regularity, leaving you things to work on. This can be even more beneficial and fun if you can get a group in your area together and have a lesson day or group workshop together. Lessons are on at my location in Burra most weekends, so if you’re mobile it’s a lot easier to get booked in regularly. You can do this through my online booking system to suit your availability.