Neil Davies HORSEMANSHIP Horsemanship is for every horse owner. Whether you’re a horsewoman or a horseman, horsemanship means that you: Always rise early to check your horses and feed them before you eat breakfast. Don’t sleep in until 10 o’clock just because you had a big night. Always make sure your horses have the best and safest … Read more
The Neil Davies story: By Colin Dangaard Neil Davies is quietly but surely revolutionizing the horse world. Neil was rejected by every major publishing house in the world, after writing a book capturing a life working with horses in rural Australia. Too unusual, they said. Not what people want. The knowledge is unrecognizable, they said. … Read more
By Neil Davies When you cannot catch a horse It’s hard to keep your cool You get so close, he walks away And makes you feel a fool Some say each horse must come to you “Chase him, make him move Be the boss, don’t give up You’ve got a point to prove” Forget the … Read more
Hi NeilThanks so much for sharing your knowledge. I have your book and both the foal handling and starting under saddle videos which I followed as closely as I could. My little colt had attitude and was a biter and kicker right from his first week but we got through that. He’s now 2 and … Read more
Fear-free Horse Training, every step of the way explains every facet of horse training – from catching a foal for the first time, starting a horse under saddle, teaching your horse to move forward and give, overcoming problems such as shying, rearing, pulling back, and much much more. A horse training book built on removing … Read more
A horse that’s confident and relaxed thinks on a very simple level. When you tap your horse on the rump or touch him with your leg or spur, he moves forward and the tapping, leg or spur stops. Your horse soon learns how to make you stop tapping or spurring – just move forward and … Read more
Here’s a scenario to ponder: A person who’s never even been near a horse before, attends his first riding lesson. The teacher says, ‘Welcome, we’ll start by putting you on a horse that bucks. Don’t worry, just work your way through it. We’ll teach you coping skills and tomorrow you can do it again. After … Read more
Everyone looks for a magic fix to ‘cure’ their horse problems. Plenty of people will sell you a ‘magic’ halter, stick, lead rope, bit or some other contraption. None of them will really help. No contraption ever invented will teach your horse to be relaxed, confident and ready to learn. I’m going to tell you about the most valuable … Read more
It’s interesting to read of the problems people have with their horses and the advice given. In a lifetime of working with horses, the problems haven’t changed and unfortunately, the thinking about horses hasn’t changed much either. People think they need to make a horse ‘soft in the face’ or ‘control his hindquarters’ or chase … Read more
Here’s a quote from a scientific magazine. Although it’s written for social psychologists, it also applies to the horse world. ‘Social psychologists, of all academics, should be particularly alert to the dangers of epistemological homogeneity, or groupthink as some prefer to call it. They would be aware of the errors that can pollute the group’s … Read more