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Earning
Respect Builds Relationships
The
horse has to accept you into their world; you cannot
break down the door and demand to be let in. Fear
may get compliance, but it will never earn respect.
Respect will earn trust, which is also called
friendship, and this leads to solid foundations that
then create great partnerships. One of the weakest
points that I and other horseman have seen is that
most people that are working with horses today are
not willing, or do not know how, to start at the
very beginning of the education ladder. These same
people are starting further up the line of
progression and in doing so have overlooked many of
the basics that are so important to the relationship
between the horse and the handler. You have to be
ready and willing to invest the necessary time to
obtain the results that you are looking for.
I
do believe that this comes from our own lifestyle of
wanting to make things happen at a faster rate so
that we can get what we want and in many cases this
includes cutting some of the corners that we feel
may not be that necessary. The main point that is
overlooked with this thought is that the mind of the
horse does not think that way. Believe me, it is a
problem that most people have, I had to re-learn and
re-program my own method of thought to be more like
that of the horse. It has been my experience that
many people involved with horses today have a hard
time accepting that the building a relationship with
a horse is a process, remember we live in a society
that wants it all “NOW” … it revolves around
instant gratification. We may live in a
“quicker-faster” world, but the horse does not.
A
Clash of Cultures
My
basic goal is to help people understand that there
is a process to be able to develop and understand
the relationship they are creating with the horse.
All I want is for you to have the best relationship
possible, one horse and one handler at a time.
The learning of the fundamental steps creates a
relationship between you and your horse that leads
to mental soundness as well as physical soundness.
You cannot separate physical well being from mental
well being. I have witnessed countless incidents
where horses were punished for behavioral problems
that were really problems of lameness, ill fitting
equipment and poor communication on the part of the
rider/handler or even a failure to understand the
horse’s attempt to communicate their problem.
It has been my experience that any problem that a rider
has came from not having a solid relationship and
understanding of the horse when that rider is on the
ground. Once that a rider becomes a great horse
handler on the ground then and only then can they
move onto being a great rider.
A
“Building Block” Process Evolved
The concept came about after watching many of my
customers over the years trying to work with their
horses ~ and not being able to understand that they
were creating many problems that they had and that
they were making those same problems worse. These
same people wanted to do what was right but did not
know where to start. They had gone to trainers to
learn what to do ~ but in the process they weren’t
allowed to start at square one, instead they were
starting at about step 12 or 14 and had no solid
foundation to build upon.
What these people needed to do is to be able to start
at the very beginning and build the relationship
that comes from the solid foundation of mutual
understanding.
In
Closing
Progressing
through the material will result in benefits
received but; it will be what you alone receive from
it, while at the same time, different from what
others will receive that makes it unique, since the
entire program is based on relationships and
communication, two items that relate differently to
everyone that experiences them.
Everyone
that has been introduced and become involved with
the program has had much to contribute, each and
everyone of us will have our own level of commitment
as well as our ability to experience the belief that
we are doing the best that we can while also being
able to accept individual limitations and abilities
of both ourselves and our horse.
As
my knowledge developed and was expanded it became
quite clear that my contribution was the fact that I
had become responsible to the horse industry, in the
capacity as an elder, to preserve it’s history and
tradition by passing on this particular knowledge
and my experience that would make it possible for
new people becoming involved to have fun and be
safe.
I
am also aware that not everyone will want to get
involved with the me or what I have to offer. I also
realize that not everyone will be able to understand
what I have to offer but at the same time I know
that the people that are really looking for the
answers and want to understand their horse will be
able to follow along since this does not take a
great deal of intelligence what it does take is
dedication. And, dedication means that you want to
learn what you need to learn, you are aware that
results don’t happen over night – you have to
allow time for the information to be absorbed, it
then has to be digested and finally you need to be
able to redefine that same information into what you
are comfortable with.
My work with horses and owners is
dedicated to the thousands of horses that I have had
the distinct pleasure to meet, learn from and
allowed into their lives. That acceptance has given
me the insight that is necessary for the
understanding of their world and how I had to alter
my thoughts and actions to become the same as
theirs. These horses started as my clients,
became my friends, then my teachers and finally my
mentors. For that I am forever grateful.”
Bob
Burdekin
~
Orthopedic and Therapeutic Farrier |
