Many of you will know I have been away this weekend at the Warwick Schiller's Attuned Horsemanship journey on podcast summit.
Although it was horses that brought many of us there, there weren't any horses there, well not in physical form anyway.
This was not a weekend to learn how to train horses, more a weekend to learn how to horse.
Horses are very good at the things most of us struggle with.
They are present and connected to the world around them. They are empathetic, they are forgiving, they listen, they hear, they are still, they hold space, they communicate, they form connections, they're vulnerable, they love, they grieve, they teach us and they know how to be joyous and care free.
This weekend brought me back to all of that.
I've belly laughed, ive cried, I've held space, ive connected, I've communicated, I've learned. All in the presence of strangers. The energy and belonging in that room was indescribable. No judgement, no expectation, just like being in the presence of your horse.
I have a lot of licking and chewing to do after this weekend. But my main take home message is just be me. Once you start adding in all the other things life becomes quite exhausting. I've learnt this weekend that if you strip yourself down to your true authentic self, it will welcome in the people you need to surround you.
You may wonder why I have then chosen a video of me in a club. I'm not sure going out in to the clubs after day two was on everybody's agenda, and it wouldn't usually have being on mine. But this weekend made me want to dance. And dance we did. For 4 hours straight.
And what i found funny was that my inner teenager would have spent hours getting ready for that night out. Planning my outfit, doing my make up and being worried about how I was perceived. I was in comfy clothes, my hair down and no make up on as I'd cried it all off. But it did not matter. I literally danced like nobody was watching, care free and was absolutely euphoric. And the f
When the blood starts pumping and the endorphins start flowing 😴😴😴
From wild welshie to sleepy squishy 🥰
I could feel this lovely boy needed a big release today so we turned him loose and this was the result ❤️
🌿Is your horse able to forage? 🌿
I love that Elmo has an abundance of trees and bushes to forage. Yesterday i found him with his head in a hawthorn bush.
Hawthorn is described by some herbalists as 'food for the heart'. It opens blood vessels, increasing blood flow to the heart. This will in turn help remove toxins and replenish the tissue with nutrients. They can eat the leaves, bark, flowers and berries.
Not only do the plants they forage provide vitamins and nutrients they may be lacking, the browsing behaviour also challenges their posture.
You can see here he is extending and flexing his poll, neck and back. He is shifting his weight both between his front limbs and shifting his weight backwards and forwards. All working the body and testing his balance & posture.
The other great thing about browsing natural forage is it wears the teeth better. Horses were not designed as grazers, they shouldn't permanently be eating from ground level. A variety of different heights enable them to wear their teeth move evenly.
If your horse is unable to access hedgerows in the field, why not consider taking some cuttings or taking them for a foraging walk so they can do some browsing?
You can also vary the feeding positions within their stable, dot hay nets around at varying heights so they have to challenge their posture whilst being stabled.
You can let your horse do the work for you then!
Hard work this treatment life 💤
Allowing the horse to process is just as important as the hands on work i do. It allows the body to unwind and the brain to process the changes. I love to just stand back and hold space for the horse 🥰 here's a young horse who, like most young horses, found it far too boring to stand and process. Regular sessions guiding him in the right direction and showing him where his quiet space is and now he's more than happy to utilise this tool and safe space to really process the changes 🥰
Does anybody have any idea which part of the horse this is? 🤔 (The teeth may give it away 😜)
