Omg Shelby Dennis is spot on ! She has so much insight ❤

Love this! Brightened my hope for the horse world for today. Thanks all!

Great discussion. So glad I “clicked” on it. It is R+ for this human just to listen and know it isn’t a hopeless dream!

Such a great conversation, love these women. Shelby is so right about how we are brought up in the horse world. We love horses and I had a natural way of relating to horses as a child, I knew how they were feeling, but as we grow up and are mentored by trainers, we are not given a way to relate to the horses in any other way than using pressure and force. I tried to be as soft as possible and give my horse choice, but when I seen R+ done well and started implementing it, I knew there was no going back...As Shawna says, once you see it you can't unsee it.

For me this journey has been a myriad of emotions where I feel 2024 is finally connecting the dots. I am a trainer in TX that comes from the Morgan Horse Show world and industry. While I, among many have only been taught or mentored in one way with a certain amount of knowledge that was thought to be the way to teach a horse, I truly felt my methods were kinder and more thoughtful towards helping a horse get through trauma. My introduction to R+ was through a clinic I attended with my daughter with Shawna. To say it was eye opening was an understatement. Those who are open minded to learning and change come out with a lot of excitement and couldn’t wait to begin. So much so we hosted a second clinic a few months later. You dive in without realizing exactly how different it is. You do classes and fall behind because at the same time you are still trying to earn a living to support what you do while still maintaining interest with the clients you have. It’s hard. 2022-2023 was a lot of change. But much like you stated in this video…horses get overwhelmed and confused sometimes frustrated… same as people. I did. While I don’t consider myself a full out R+ trainer I do feel I have changed a lot about the horses environment, diet, care and how I train as a whole…how I even teach lessons that made an impact that I couldn’t see till now. So just like R+ training with horses, any small step toward a betterment, even if it’s not full blown R+ all the way needs to be rewarded or recognized. Because otherwise the top people will get frustrated. I had to remember to give myself grace :)

So my new years resolution is to become better. To try and make more small changes every day in that direction. And to continue to show them by being present at shows and continuing with the KZread channel for training rehabs.

Thanks for sharing :)

This needs to happen! So much to say towards the Positive Reinforcement! It is amazing when you get it and see it working! I finally got the young girl that helps me on occasions to use the clicker and reinforce it with a cookie or treat and now she is seeing it work! I just grinned from ear to ear. Cannot wait for the tons of snow to go away in 5+ months and get more done!