Product Description
In the 1980s, the world of riding, training, and competing with horses took a major turn with the spread of natural horsemanship, which at its most basic foundation rejects the use of abusive techniques and relies on methods derived from understanding the dynamics of free-roaming horse herds. Since then, equestrians across disciplines have incorporated elements of natural horsemanship into their work. But despite what was certainly an advancement in human-equine interaction that has improved the lives of many horses, Italian animal behaviorists Francesco de Giorgio and José de Giorgio-Schoorl dare to now ask, What if much of what we think we know about horses is, in fact, wrong? What if the premise of herd hierarchy is a myth? What if “conditioning” the horse’s behavior in the ways we’ve grown accustomed is undercutting his potential for development? What if there is another—better—level of partnership to which we can aspire? Their provocative book takes us into a dimension where we shed our assumptions of leadership, dominance, and control, convincingly showing a way forward that acknowledges that a horse, when allowed, is driven by his own inner motivation to explore and understand the world around him, including his relationship with humans.
Paperback, 112 pages, black and white photos.
1 review for Equus Lost? by Francesco De Giorgio & José De Giorgio-Schoorl
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mallorca –
I found this book to be an intriguing read. It challenged many of my ideas about horses and horsemanship. I am still not sure what I think about some of the book’s theories. I know, though, that listening to and understanding differing viewpoints is an important part of growing as a horse person. The book opened my eyes to other possibilities about how horses might think and learn. Definitely worth the read.