Neil Davies 
One of my grandfather’s favourite sayings was ‘Work beats the best of them, man or beast’. He firmly believed that if you were having trouble with a horse or a man, the best thing to do was to work them to the point of exhaustion. When I was a kid, Billy Wilkie was another old … Read more
People often say “but my horse doesn’t like having his head rubbed”. I know this is true in many cases. No horse likes having his head rubbed when he’s first handled. Every horse will be worried when your hand first comes near his head and ears. If a horse doesn’t like having his head rubbed, … Read more
Everywhere I go I see older horses that are frightened of humans. Riding horses, brood mares, competition horses. Horses of all shapes and sizes, from four years old to twenty four years old. I see horses that are nervous and worried every time they’re approached, let alone handled or ridden. I’ve read that’s there’s been … Read more
Many times I’ve seen someone take the rug off their horse and leave it on the arena fence while they ride. When they trot around the arena, the horse takes fright of his own rug and shies as he goes past. Trainers often say ‘He’s gotta get used to it. Let him stop and look … Read more
Everyone wants to be able to lead their horse calmly alongside. Nobody wants their horse to hang back or rush in front or pull away or run over the top of them. Some trainers say humans have a bubble around them that horses aren’t allowed into. Last time I looked, I didn’t have a bubble … Read more
My pet aversion is seeing people chase horses backwards on the ground. The last thing I want any horse to do is move backwards away from me to relieve pressure. Everything you ever want to do with your horse relies on moving forward, not backwards. You must have forward movement to control your horse. Forcing … Read more
If you watch a week-old foal playing in the paddock, you’ll see that he already knows how to walk, trot, canter, do flying changes, turns, spins, levade, piaffe, passage, extended trot/canter/gallop and every other movement you ever dreamed of. When we ride, the problem we have is to convince our horses to perform these movements … Read more
Back in the early 1970s, the Megalong Valley Gymkhana was a horse event not to be missed. The gymkhana ground was just a clearing in the scrub, about two furlongs (400 metres) in length and fifty metres wide. There were flag races, bending races, pick up races and other novelty events. The main events of … Read more
Many equine scientists say that horses must be habituated to every situation – a new stable, the saddle and girth, the headstall, bit and bridle, the saddle cloth, the rug and on and on it goes. If you ask ten different people what they mean by habituation, you’ll get ten different answers. Habituation seems to … Read more
Nothing irks me more than when people call me a Horse Whisperer. Let me say once and for all – I’m not a Horse Whisperer. There are no special gifts or secret magic powers when it comes to training horses. No-one can teach a horse by ‘whispering’ or looking into his eyes. No-one can apply … Read more