Alot of hoopla about connecting and establishing relationships with horses … its all over the natural horse cyberspace … and I will be bold enough to say alot of it IS “hoopla”.

Be the Boss.

Be the Alpha.

Run ’em round the roundpen until he stops and submits.

Lick and chew. Lick and chew. Lick and chew.

Well, again — its hoopla.

Yes, there are certain exercises we can do with our horses that let them know that we are the Leader. BUT — what’s the definition of a good Leader?

Unknown author but excellent words:

— Lead, Follow or get out of the way: A good leader is a natural leader that also knows when to follow and when to just get out of the way.

— A good leader sets the example and is not caught in hypocrisy.

— JESUS is the BEST example of a good leader: Gentle yet full of authority.  Strong belief in His vision and endured to the end.

— Great leaders inspire us to be better.

Leaders are CHOSEN by the team, the herd. They do NOT bully their way with the others. Yes, they set their boundaries and, with strong respect, expect the others to be respectful as well as respect others’ boundaries.

Bullies, bosses, alphas care about one thing – what they want and need to do their job. Period.

Leaders, as seen above, inspire greatness. From horses to humans. They teach, they counsel, they console, they encourage, they nurture, they feed,  they groom …

I guess it might be apropos to ask in a perplexing situation with a horse … WWJD? 🙂