I am writing this post as I update the site. I am linking to an article by Kate that is describes the fundamentals of natural horsemanship. “From Prey Animal to Partner“. We are carnivorous, we eat meat (some of us do) and that makes us a predator. Kate describes four phases of firmness she describes how we can go from predator to partner, and partner up.

A snippet follows or see the whole article here: From Prey Animal to Partner

In order to encourage horses to perceive us as leaders, we must develop the skill of presenting all instructions in their own language they are used to. There are four aspects to the horse’s language. The first is focus, and we use three eyes, our two eyes and our belly button to show the horse where we want to go. The second is body energy. When we become active in our body the horse will become active in their’s. Conversely when we slow down our energy the horse slows their’s. Thirdly we ask the horse to follow a feel with “four phases of firmness” – just as horses do with each other.

At first we ask with a touch or suggestion (Phase 1), and then increase the stimuli through Phases 2, an ask 3, a tell and 4 the promise. Phase 4 is enough to cause the horse to wake up and respect our leadership if he/she has not responded to the previous stimuli. Fourthly as we progress through the phases, we immediately stop asking when the horse responds correctly.

This link is in the left column under Articles and information, where you will find many more interesting items.