Understanding Collection

Written by Martin Black This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman Issue No.25 Collection is something I find that is greatly misidentified and misunderstood among many riders. Instructors may drill students, trainers may drill their horses, and many times what I see is confused and lethargic victims. Not only does the person need to understand what […]

Finding The Sweet Spot

Written by Martin Black This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman Issue No. 24 Before man domesticated horses for working animals, they were prey animals. Their survival depended on their speed, agility, intelligence, and strength. Since the domestication of the horse, man has tried to improve those traits for personal gain through selective breeding programs. Different […]

Doubling and Its Importance

Written by Martin Black This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman Issue No.23 Doubling isn’t a maneuver you would see in a reining pattern, dressage class, cow horse event, or any other advanced performance competitions. But if it is the first maneuver a horse learns and maintains properly, it can help prevent a lot of mishaps […]

Developing The Stop

Written by Martin Black This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman Issue No.21 Getting a horse to stop isn’t only necessary in most riding disciplines but is also a safety precaution at some point for most all riders if things ever get out of control. If a horse doesn’t understand to stop, it can be difficult […]

Separating Disrespect From Unknowing

Written by Martin Black In general, this is probably the most misidentified problem horsemen on varying levels deal with. The big problem for the horse is, many of the handlers are unaware and want to “discipline” the horse for not performing to their expectations. If the person is open-minded enough to consider where the horse […]

Understand Yourself To Better Understand Your Horse

Written by Martin Black People often try to explain a horse’s actions by comparing and rationalizing them to how a person thinks. Though I exclude myself as an expert on horses, I have had the opportunity to observe their behavior and believe there is some definite difference in the characteristics of horses and humans. I […]

What Kind of Experience Will Your Horse Get Out of Your Next Ride?

This article first appeared in Eclectic Horseman No.20 Think of the big picture and what it is you are trying to achieve and what kind of steps you may take to reach your goals. If every ride could be a positive step in the direction you want and you can keep building on each step, […]

Protect Your Space

Written by Martin Black This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman Issue No.17 The horse’s self-preservation instinctively tells him to get away whenever he is unsure of humans. Once he gets confidant that we are not going to jeopardize his well-being he can be drawn to us. At first this will be out of curiosity and […]

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