Love Thy horse Magazine 25
Now we see a new player on the block, “Cowboy Dressage”. Ridden in western costume and displaying both English and western maneuvers. Because the increments of the task and not the whole task is trained it is making this discipline very popular.
It seems to me that the further we get away from the master the more diluted the message, which opens us up to a lot of individual interpretations so we now see many different styles of the same dressage, some good and some not so complementary, but we have a choice.
Now we see a new player on the block, “Cowboy Dressage”. Ridden in western costume and displaying both English and western maneuvers. Because the increments of the task and not the whole task is trained it is making this discipline very popular. It seems to me that the further we get away from the master the more diluted the message, which opens us up to a lot of individual interpretations so we now see many different styles of the same dressage, some good and some not so complementary, but we have a choice.
When I think of the discipline called natural horsemanship I remember when the term was coined. It was a way to encourage people to study the innate characteristics and psychology of the horse as a prey animal. I was fortunate to meet and learn from some of the originators of this movement, they were inspirational thoughtful people whose horses had purpose. I wonder how similar these men would have been to the old English masters. I think modern society with its demands for a softer, more thinking, agreeable style of life, looking for partnership has made it possible to embrace natural horsemanship. I have heard it called rope twirling, or airy fairy, in some cases for good reason. This style of horsemanship has now been around long enough for people to be able to choose the style of natural horsemanship and the style of teacher. Because of the different aspects of study (liberty, online, freestyle and collected riding) it makes natural horsemanship attractive to people to cross train.
As with English riding, natural horsemanship and western riding alike, I wonder why some people, men and women have to look and act like bullies while addressing their horses. I don’t think they eat meat, so we don’t have to train them like they are tigers.