In the 1980s, the world of riding, training, and competing with horses took a major turn with the spread of natural horsemanship , which at its most basic foundation rejects the use of abusive techniques and relies on methods derived from understanding the dynamics of free-roaming horse herds. Since then, equestrians across disciplines have incorporated elements of natural horsemanship into their work. But despite what was certainly an advancement in human-equine interaction that has improved the lives of many horses, ...
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In the 1980s, the world of riding, training, and competing with horses took a major turn with the spread of natural horsemanship , which at its most basic foundation rejects the use of abusive techniques and relies on methods derived from understanding the dynamics of free-roaming horse herds. Since then, equestrians across disciplines have incorporated elements of natural horsemanship into their work. But despite what was certainly an advancement in human-equine interaction that has improved the lives of many horses, Italian animal behaviorists Francesco de Giorgio and Jos??? de Giorgio-Schoorl dare to now ask, What if much of what we think we know about horses is, in fact, wrong? What if the premise of herd hierarchy is a myth? What if "conditioning" the horse's behavior in the ways we've grown accustomed is undercutting his potential for development? What if there is another--better--level of partnership to which we can aspire? Their provocative book takes us into a dimension where we shed our assumptions of leadership, dominance, and control, convincingly showing a way forward that acknowledges that a horse, when allowed, is driven by his own inner motivation to explore and understand the world around him, including his relationship with humans.
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