After giving the horse back to where I bought him from, I had two options: Give up and consider the notion that I wasn't a horse person after all or, forget everything I thought I knew and start learning from scratch. To be honest, the first option seemed almost more attractive at the time. However, we still had my daughter's lovely old mare (in her early 30s by then) and there was no way I would have ever sold or re-homed her. I had promised her a forever home when we got her. So much for options. Thus began my journey into natural horsemanship.
Throughout my life, I have been incredibly lucky. Somehow, the right people showed up at the right time in the right place and offered me guidance and support. It happened again, once I arrived on the island. I became good friends with a phenomenal rider and trainer, who in turn, set me up to work with Chris Irwin. Funny thing... his tag line is 'Shift happens'. And, it did.
This 'shift' didn't come overnight. But, one 20-minute session/demonstration with Tika changed our lives. I hope to get deeper into horsemanship as this site develops. I believe that many people think of 'training' for the horse; it is the handler/rider/owner who needs the tools and confidence to deal with whatever behavior the horse displays.