The Ultimate Guide To Horse Training

Gentle Natural Horsemanship

by Eric Bravo

Horse Training Videos

How To Train A Horse At Home Like a Professional Horse Trainer

If you're looking to properly train your horse yourself- you've come to the right place.

You'll find a huge collection of proven horse training information and tips developed by professional horse trainer Eric Bravo-and used by horse trainers worldwide. Our goal is to help you train your horse in a positive and effective manner based on respect and trustworthiness instead of having to resort to physical force.

Gentle natural horsemanship is an easy to apply system based on the nature of the horse and how your horse thinks. In this easy-to-follow system, you will learn how to train your horse step-by-step using the very latest horse training techniques - and your horse will love you for it.

How To Train A Horse - The Right Way

There are so many theories and so much conflicting advice regarding the various ways to train horses - it's hard to know who to trust and what to believe.

This is what I personally consider to be crucial, and always strive for when training my own horses:

    * To build a strong human-horse relationship, based on trust and mutual respect.

    * To have confidence in, and control of a horse in any situation.

    * Most importantly to a have calm, confident horse that listens to you for guidance.

    * To work with the natural drives and instincts of the horse-speak to him in his own language.

    * Absolutely no cruelty or harsh "old school" training techniques. We don't believe you have to "break a horse's spirit" in the training process

You may feel that you have to hire an expensive trainer to "fix" your horse. But the fact is...

You Are The Best Person In The World To Train Your Horse

Anyone who loves horses knows how difficult they can be. Horses bite, kick, invade personal space, rear, buck and bolt. Or maybe they're just stubborn!

Wouldn't it be nice if you had a horse training system based on the nature of the horse-that you could use to deal with any situation a horse can throw at you?

It turns out that there is. What's even better - this system is so simple anyone can learn how to apply it. Gentle Natural Horsemanship was developed and taught by master horse trainer Eric Bravo using methods that have been successful not only training everyday horses to ride, but at rehabilitating even the most difficult horses. This includes those abandoned and abused horses you find in rescue ranches or horses saved at the sale barn.

Eric Bravo developed and honed these skills over a lifetime. Now you can learn the techniques that can be applied to any horse and any situation because he's sharing everything he knows about horse training the natural way.

New Article: 6 Steps to Horse Breaking (without breaking your horse)

The Seven Steps To Leadership Horse Training Video Series

Loaded with invaluable insights into the nature of the horse and essential training tips, Eric Bravo's Seven Steps to Leadership series includes a 7 DVD horse training video set that will teach you everything you need to know about horse training using natural horsemanship from start to finish. This system helps you understand the nature of the "herd" and how you can get inside the mind of your horse to build a solid connection that will last a lifetime. This begins by gently establishing leadership and trust with your horse.

These seven information-packed horse training videos include:

Catching and Leading your horse
Starting Your horse-a system that can be used to initiate a training program with any horse, no matter the breed, sex, age, or riding style (works with western or English)
Circling/Lunging your horse to build communication
Mastering Basic Groundwork
Natural Riding-Training your horse in the saddle - riding the natural way and training your horse to be light and responsive
Riding Bareback and bridleless
Building A Solid Riding Foundation-refining your horseback riding to get in tune with the horse

For information about Eric Bravo's horse training DVDs click here.

Eric's horse training videos are also available for instant download for viewing on your computer that includes horse training cue cards. Our horse training video software includes 17 video clips covering all aspects of horsemanship and can be viewed on your computer, whether you have a Windows PC or a Mac. For more information click here.

If you're interested in working with your horse in the saddle and are interested in videos which you can purchase and download instantly, see Eric's "Horseback Riding Videos" described below.

Sample Horse Training Video Clip

See More Sample Clips on the Natural Horsemanship Facebook Page

Eric Bravo Gentle Natural Horsemanship

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Ground Training Video Software

Click here for Groundwork Horse Training

Good horse training begins with a solid foundation on the ground, which leads to a solid riding foundation. We train on the ground using natural horsemanship techniques to speak to the horse in his own language.

In this video series, horse trainer Eric Bravo teaches you everything you need to learn about handling and training horses on the ground. Covers everything from catching and leading your horse, to working with him in the round pen. Along the way you'll learn how to teach your horse to respect you, and important aspect of safety. Includes a bonus video on trailer loading difficult horses.

Click here to learn more

Sample Horse Training Video Clip from our Software System

Horseback Riding Videos

Natural Horseback Riding Instructional Videos

Imagine being able to ride safely, with confidence and with a horse that's light and responsive. You can do this taking natural horsemanship from the ground to the saddle. In this 5 video set, horse trainer Eric Bravo teaches you how to train your horse to be relaxed and confident when you're in the saddle. Then you'll learn how to teach your horse to be light and responsive to your cues, and how to ride the natural way to avoid bouncing and clamping down when in the saddle. Also covers riding bareback and bridleless.

Click here to learn more

Sample Horseback Riding Video Clip

Articles

Natural Horsemanship: Riding Bareback and Bridleless

Natural horsemanship is about thinking like a horse, and a good way to get in tune with your horse is to ride bareback and bridleless. The purpose of doing this isn't to be like Stacy Westfall, although that's certainly a goal some of us may aspire to. The real purpose is to enhance our riding skills and improve the communication we have with our horse while in the saddle. (Read More and watch sample video).

Catching A Horse

While most people see it as an inconvenience, catching a horse is actually an opportunity for horse training. Fact is, the way you go about catching your horse says a lot about where you stand in the horse-human relationship. Are you the leader, or is your horse the leader? Surely you wouldn’t want your horse to assume the leadership role. If you’re out on the trail and something spooks him-you want to be the one making the decision as to whether or not its something dangerous-not your horse! (Read More and view sample video...)

Circling A Horse

If you've been around horses for any length of time then you're familiar with the usual routine of lunging-a mindless process used to wear the horse down or simply to exercise him.

Are you aware that mindless lunging is one of the biggest missed opportunities in horse training (catching being another)? (Read More and view sample video)

Flexing

When training a horse to be ridden, one of the most important aspects of that training is teaching him to respond to the reins. A horse should respond to light cues, so you don't have to tug on the rein as hard as you can to get him to turn. Instead you want to be able to lightly flutter the rein and have him follow your direction. (Read more and view sample video)

Natural Horsemanship Groundwork

In this article we're going to talk about groundwork horse training. While this is often associated with natural horsemanship, you can incorporate groundwork with any training style. Groundwork is simply a way to start working and handling a horse without sitting on his back where you might get bucked off or he may bolt. (Read more and view sample videos)

5 Keys to Natural Horsemanship

In the old days people used to "break" horses. But now, most of us don't have the old time cowboy skills or the desire to jump on a green horse and most of us don't want to use force in our horse training either. That's why natural horsemanship resonates with so many people.

The fundamental idea of natural horsemanship is to learn to think like the horse does. When you speak to a horse in his own language, your training can be effective without being forceful. More importantly you can develop a strong connection with your horse that will develop into a bond that lasts a lifetime. On a practical level you can train your horse to be light and responsive and above all, safe. (Read More Here)

Round-Pen Training

The first exercise we are going tackle is called the hook-on. In a nutshell, the hook-on involves taking your horse to the round-pen and having him run around in circles without his lead-line or halter. The purpose of this exercise is to establish you as the leader of your horse. Go out and observe a group of horses. What do the dominant horses in the herd do to the other horses on a regular basis? They make them move around. By doing this exercise, you will be doing this with your horse in a controlled fashion. When starting training, perform this exercise every single time you get your horse out. In the beginning, it might take a long time to have success-so hooking on may take an hour or more. You might only have time to do the hook-on and nothing else if this is the case. But don't loose patience-it is important to build a solid foundation. You wouldn't move on to building the frame of a new house if the concrete foundation had not set would you? (Read More)

Leading Your Horse

Now we're going to talk about leading your horse. Leading is on of the most important training activities you can utilize. Not only is it something you're going to be doing day in and day out, you can also use leading to establish leadership and respect with your horse. Moreover, we don't want our horses crowding us. One of the most important issues we face for safety on the ground is making sure our horses keep out of our personal space. Leading is a good way to train a horse to maintain a good distance between himself and human handlers. Leading also helps communicate with your horse, and hence forms a vital part of natural horsemanship training. (Read More Here).

Backing Up Your Horse

A basic exercise you should do with all of your horses and a good one to do if you're just learning how to handle horses. There are a few different ways we can do a backup. Let's start by considering a case where you are leading your horse from the standard position, and you've come to a stop.

Something we emphasize in natural horsemanship (but is true regardless of the training style you use) is that horses tend to yield to and from pressure. Backing a horse up involves applying pressure alternatively to each side of the nose (left-right-left-right). This can be done using energy or by shaking the rope side to side. (Read more here).

Trailer Loading Your Horse

In this lesson we will discuss tips that can be applied with horses are difficult to load in a trailer. The first thing to state is the obvious-many horses are afraid to get in a trailer. To understand why, put yourself inside the mind of the horse. A horse is a prey animal and so is looking out for things that will put its life in danger. Asking a horse, being that we are predators, to put itself in a confined, dark space, is actually asking a lot. Remember these things happen on a gut level. Sure you're horse might “know” in a conscious sense that you're her friend and not going to eat her, but on a gut level she still recognizes you as a predator. So let's think about how to put ourselves inside the MIND of the horse when trailer loading.

Read More About Trailer Loading Your Horse

Catching and Leading Your Horse (Book Exerpt)

Does your horse walk or run away when you enter the pasture with a rope and halter? If so, you aren’t alone-this is a common experience among many horse owners. In this episode of Eric Bravo Gentle Natural Horsemanship, we lead you through the steps you should take if your horse won’t let you catch him. When you apply these techniques you will establish respect, trust and leadership with your horse instead of having to resort to bribing your horse with treats.

Any good relationship begins with a solid foundation, and with horses it isn’t any different. By putting quality into the way you approach, catch, and lead your horse, you start to build a foundation which will translate into a successful riding experience. In fact when it comes to catching your horse you can learn a great deal about how horses think and how to react to what they do. The tools you learn here will help you in every aspect of your horsemanship.

Read More About Catching and Leading Your Horse

Prepare for Riding

If you're like most people, you probably want to just throw a saddle on your horse and jump on. While this may have been how your grandfather approached things, today we seek a better way that is not only safer, but promotes harmony with our horse. This means that the first step when going out to ride is making sure a horse is actually ready to ride, rather than just jumping on and hoping for the best. This process actually takes place over all aspects of horse ownership, so you are preparing for this step when you catch your horse, lead him, groom him, clean his feet, and do groundwork. If you haven't done so you should study catching and leading your horse to make sure you have the first two stages of your horsemanship developed properly. In this guide, we are going to assume you are leading your horse properly, have been doing basic groundwork, and you have taken her out for the purpose of riding.

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Getting and Keeping the Attention Of Your Horse

We are going to briefly describe an important exercise that you can use to gain your horse's undivided attention and trust. We call it magic eyes because the goal of the exercise is to get your horse to focus her attention on you at all times-which helps solidify your relationship with your horse. If you master this exercise she will trust you and follow your lead, making her safer to ride.

All you need for this exercise is a halter and lead line. Begin the exercise by facing the horse. The first step is to learn to open and close doors telling the horse which direction to move.

Read More About Keeping the Attention Of Your Horse

What Is Natural Horsemanship?

If you're new to the concept you're probably wondering what "natural horsemanship" really is. No doubt you've seen the "Dog Whisperer" Cesar Milan on television and maybe you've seen the movie "Horse Whisperer". Is it all some kind of magic? Do you have to be some kindf of special, gifted individual to apply and use natural horsemanship?

Read More About Natural Horsemanship

Safe Horse Handling Techniques

When we begin to build the solid foundation using natural horsemanship we need to develop in a true connection with our horse, one skill we need to develop is recognizing when a horse is calm, scared, or showing signs he is about to explode. All too often, to the untrained eye a horse looks like he is just fine when in fact he's ready to bolt. or engage in some other destructive horse behavior But with a little work, you can start to recognize when a horse is feeling uncomfortable. More to the point, you can use natural horsemanship techniques to help your horse develop into a calm, relaxed, and confident horse. I

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