Talley’s Trail Tips

Working with kids and horses is not for the faint of heart! However, horses have so much to teach us about leadership, listening, communication, reflection, and I could name dozens of valuable things learned through working with horses. One of my favorite things to share with kids and horses is relationship/connection and liberty work. I always loved the story The Black Stallion and it was the idealized relationship I sought when seeking time with horses. It was elusive at first. Traditional horse training focuses on agenda, results, pressure and competing. All things that can breakdown an unstable or underdeveloped connection. 

I first met Carolyn Resnick 15 years ago and her work is the best I have ever seen.  I worked with her for many years and have discovered how to create the relationship of mutual trust, respect and love that was in my mind as a little girl who loved horses. Now, I am going to bring her work into my summer camp program at The Shalom Institute and am developing the 4 Shetland ponies (Dreamer, Pixie, Quixote and Kit Kat) to do agility work. I am looking for local people who are interested in supporting this. Here is an example of what agility at liberty looks like. We are a ways off from having this ready but with the right group of people behind this it can easily be done.

When the relationship you have with your horse is connected and you can easily communicate leadership with direction speed and stopping on the ground, it automatically gets better once you are on the back of a horse. Trail riding your horse, whether alone or with others, takes focus, practice, and planning. I frequently ride with people who are new to horses and teaching leadership on horseback requires a developing concept of having ideas, influencing the horse to follow them, and making new plans after. If a rider thinks they are safe on a horse and rides like a passenger, what they don’t realize is they are getting lucky. I have seen many horses and riders get lucky but my preference is always to minimize the potential for risk and stay focused on being in charge and responsible for what happens next and taking care of myself and the horse. In nature there are more unexpected or unplanned events likey to occur then in an arena. I can be very difficult to negotiate around other trail users or wildlife etc. I always ride and think along the way…what would I do if this happened or what if my horse did this or that what would I do next? 

Strategies for success planned in advance lead to action. When we have never imagined something happening, we often will do nothing and that can be very risky on a horse that can run at 30+ mph. I look forward to seeing you out on the trails.  Keep safe, make plans, keep up a conversation with your horse so they know you are the leader!

I hope this helps you out on the trail. Please remember that horses are unpredictable and can be dangerous. Please use caution when trying anything new. Seek professional help when working with a challenging or difficult horse. Be honest about your abilities and make this a process. It takes time, patience and listening to be a leader of horses. Remember, it is about how capable you are to influence! 

Happy Trails!