Infinity Horsemanship

02/11/2025

Only a couple more weeks before this special clinic! Auditors welcome! We have a fun range of horses participating, from newly gentled Mustangs to accomplished riding horses. So regardless of what you're working on at home, you can find tools to bring back to your own horses.

01/31/2025

Just a few spots left in my upcoming North Carolina Clinic! And I've just launched my Clinic Companion Course that is FREE for clinic participants and 75% off for clinic auditors!

Sign up for the clinic on my website to get exclusive access to this course!

This course is for clinic participants to help prepare you for what to expect when attending an Infinity Horsemanship clinic. I want to give you some of the basic language and principles I'll be using as well as some exercises to play with so that when we meet in person, we'll all be on the same pag...

01/14/2025

There are a few spots left in my upcoming North Carolina clinic!

Join me March 1-2 in Lake Waccamaw, NC to learn how to build a relationship with your horse based on connection, attunement, and relaxation. Develop an understanding of how your horse thinks and why they do the things they do so that you can independently solve problems even beyond the clinic.

Participate for Saturday only, or both Saturday and Sunday for the fullest experience. Participants will receive online access to my Clinic Preparation course as well as free Post-Clinic Virtual Lessons.

Auditors welcome. Details and registration can be found here: https://www.infinityhorsemanship.com/ncclinic

11/21/2024

The inaugural Celebration of the Horse-Human Relationship (CHHR) this past weekend was such a beautiful experience that I’m honored to be a part of and to continue to see blossom in coming years.

It was a gift to be able to share the arena with other presenters who masterfully discussed diverse topics while a common thread weaved through all of our clinics – the foundation of putting the horse first…their bodies, their learning styles, their emotions. And it was so beautiful to be part of a representation that no matter where our individual paths have taken us, when we let our love for the horse lead the way, we are all much more similar than different.

This weekend meant a lot to me in so many ways. Since taking a break from teaching clinics, I’ve changed so much of my horsemanship priorities and ways to get there, that I had a nagging doubt about whether I’d be able to share this “new” stuff in an effective way. But once I got back in the arena in front of a horse, those messages flowed through me as easily as ever… reinvigorating my passion for teaching. I look forward to continuing to share my unique voice and perspective to those whom it brings value to.

I have so much gratitude to those who made this event happen.

Thank you to Mary MillerJordan AndFamily (I AM HERD Mustang Sanctuary) for letting this idea kindle from within you into the flame that was shared with everyone.

Thank you to Triple Crown Feed and EspanaSilk Grooming Products for sponsoring the event.

Thank you to all of the presenters for sharing horsemanship through your unique lens. My one regret is that I was unable to see more of everyone’s clinics.

Thank you to the support staff Hannah, Andrew, and Shayla for doing literally everything behind the scenes AND watching Alice while I taught. It was such a comfort knowing that Alice was safe and cared for so that I could focus on the horses.

Thank you to all who attended. It is an honor that you trusted us to be a part of your horsemanship journey.

I can’t wait to return next year and am already missing the special community that formed around the horse at CHHR.

I have already scheduled my return to Lake Waccamaw, NC to teach a two-day clinic on March 1-2. Mark your calendars if you’re interested and details will be out soon!

11/12/2024

Thanks for the feature Bold Journey Magazine! ♡

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stephanie Linsley a few weeks ago and

10/15/2024

One of my biggest "icks" is hearing or reading the words - "scientifically proven".

I read posts daily about horse behavior or care that someone asserts is scientifically proven. Or that research proves. And such statements automatically raise my hackles and make me distrust the rest of what they have to say.

The assertion that anything is scientifically proven is an affront to science as a whole. Science by nature is ever-changing, ebbing and flowing with new observations, new methods of measurement, new ideas. And that is the beauty of it. Science at its core should be built on skepticism and the enduring desire to seek new evidence.

I've written many posts about staying curious and thinking critically about everything you read.

So this is my take away message today:
If you read "scientifically proven", proceed with extreme caution. And when someone references "research", question that research. Was it truly research? Or was it a series of anecdotes from a limited sample? Who paid for the study? What were the potential limitations of that study?

As someone with a degree in psychology, I get extra bothered by assertions of proof in relation to behavioral sciences. Nearly all of our understanding of human behavioral science is based on extrapolations and inferrences. The actual research on equine behavior is even more significantly limited. That doesn't mean there isn't good information about equine behavior out there, but we must retain the caveat of uncertainty.

Absolutely nothing about equine behavior, learning theory, emotions, motivators, or cognitive ability is proven. Our understanding is built by centuries of anecdotal experiences passed through countless lenses of individual teachers and students, with a sprinkling of extrapolation from limited scientific literature.

Stay safe out there, the misinformation is everywhere.

10/14/2024

In my years of teaching horsemanship, my most common students have been either children or women over 50. For either population, picking up hind feet is difficult to impossible when done the traditional way of holding the foot way out because you are then responsible for holding the weight of that horse for balance.

When done the way Zak demonstrates here, almost anyone can lift and hold a hind hoof.

Additionally, most horses don't actually have problems lifting/holding their feet up. Usually the horses with "problem behaviors" like refusing to lift feet or pulling feet away are responding to how they are having their humans are handling their feet.

I don't usually share others' work on my page, but Zak does a great job of explaining and demonstrating the how and why of lifting hind feet with tact and respect for the horse.

10/04/2024

Hi All,
It's been a minute.

In the last couple years, I've taken a break from teaching and training. Some lessons here and there, some consulting for a nonprofit, but mostly I've been spending time with my own horses and my family.

During my hiatus, I've spent a lot of time soul-searching and figuring out what my place is in the equine industry anymore.

Like my pre-baby jeans, many old roles and titles don't seem to fit like they used to.

On top of that, there are so many voices out there now. So many teachers. Many of whom are genuinely contributing to a positive path forward for horses.

This is a good thing. But it left me questioning if there is room, or need, for my voice anymore. So I held off.

But even as I stepped away, I couldn't stop the words flowing around in my head. And I can't silence the little "yes, but..." voice when reading colleagues posts. This isn't reading in criticism. It's just the consequence of everyone's knowledge being filtered through personal and unique experiences. None of us are inventing anything truly new in the horse world (not even if you give it a new name and add a ™). We're just rediscovering through new eyes.

So like Moana constantly being called back to the water, I'm constantly being called back to sharing and teaching with my unique voice. (Mom-life means sometimes inspirations come from Disney movies now...)

I'm still discovering ways of sharing that feel most authentic to me. I'm not great at working the algorithms of social media and chasing "likes" feels icky.

So I'm going to share what and when I feel inspired. I have had a unique path with horses, and through life, and I will continue to speak genuinely about what I've learned and how it has filtered through me. And if my voice resonates with you, I'm grateful for your audience. ♡

10/04/2024

Every horse is better off in the hands of a horseman... but none of us started as such.

We all began clumsy, with poor timing, and experimenting our way through developing relationships with horses. There's no way around the beginning stages of anything.

My wish for all humans (and horses) is for proper selection of "beginner horses". I've seen many horsemanship journeys ended before they began because the humans ended up with horses who were far outside of their skill level. And I've seen sensitive horses frustrated to violence because they were tasked with teaching beginner humans.

Of course all horses will rise and lower to the skill level of their dance partner, but some are simply more forgiving of the learning process than others by nature.

Our Mustang, Tashka, is so patient and kind. I'm so grateful to her for taking care of Alice while she learns to be more mindful and effective.

What was your first horse like?

10/02/2024

I listened to a podcast the other day from a big positive reinforcement colleague that inspired this… I want to be clear that I am not against positive reinforcement. I use it and find it highly valuable. But I want to address this because I’ve heard it in several arenas.

The statement was, “Positive reinforcement is great in riding disciplines because it makes it so there’s something in it for the horse. With R+, they too can enjoy the things that you enjoy.”

This idea to me is pretty appalling, to be honest. It implies that the only thing we have to offer the horse is food. If this is the case, then we need to seriously reassess our relationships with horses.

So I took this idea down the rabbit hole and realized that the whole question I endeavor to answer with my horsemanship teaching these days is:

“Can we engage with horses in a way that improves their lives as well as our own?”

So what can we give horses that would improve their lives?

1. Species-Appropriate Habitat and Care
We can provide a living environment that supports the horse’s natural needs and we can provide health care that is even better than what nature can provide.

2. Understand and Respect the Natural Predisposition of the Horse
Many “training” issues arise from people simply not understanding how nature has designed a horse to behave. When we respect these predispositions, we can better shape our interactions with them.

3. Help them find Mental and Emotional Balance (in a human world)
One of the biggest issues I’ve encountered as a trainer (especially in the Mustang world), has been to slow or delay training to the detriment of the horse. Horses who live in a constant state of fear and arousal are at a disadvantage living in our world. This can lead to physical health consequences such as ulcers, higher predispositions to illness, and greater likelihood of injury.

4. Help them find Physical Balance and Fitness
Again, nature does not always know best when it comes to posture and physicality. Horses in the wild develop muscularly to prevent injury from predators. Wild horses typically display overdeveloped muscles on the underside of their neck (brachiocephalicus) that provides greater protection from teeth and claws… but is at the expense of longevity of spine health, etc. Just as a personal trainer at the gym can teach us how to lift in a way that reduces injury, we can help our horses develop healthy musculature that supports longevity.

5. Play, Engagement, and Connection
For me, at the root of every interaction with my horses – whether I’m using R+ or R- - is play, engagement, and connection. Horses are social beings. They *need* social connections to survive. They seek out play and engagement. If we can provide these things, food becomes a secondary motivator. Because for horses, in the hierarchy of needs, before their need for food is their need for safety and social connection.

To me, horses have given humans so much throughout history. Our civilizations were literally built on horseback.

So today I ask myself what can we give our horses to improve their lives? There is so much more than food rewards.