CLASSICAL DRESSAGE, NATURAL HORSEMANSHIP, HORSE AND RIDER DEVELOPMENT

Every horse is an individual and, just like people, horses want to be understood. As horse owners, our biggest challenge is to grow our awareness about who our horses are and what they need. We work closely with horse owners, building individualized riding and training programs in their horse’s best interest. We work with conformation and movement patterns, addressing any one-sidedness or asymmetrical movement. We also specialize in injury prevention and injury recovery/rehabilitation. Any behavioral issues are addressed carefully and without aggression. We help horse owners refine their riding and horsemanship skills. And we thoroughly enjoy bringing a horse and rider team far along in their relationship.

Our main interest is in the long-term mental and physical health of all the horses we work with.

We treat each horse as an individual and try wholeheartedly to structure a training program around their specific needs. We use our depth of experience to help the horses that often slip through the cracks of other training methods to find confidence and understanding. With our combination of natural horsemanship, classical dressage, Masterson Method Bodywork, and creative thinking – we try, as hard as the horses, – to find a common ground of trust, curiosity, and willingness to work together.
We like to begin our relationship with riders by asking questions: What are the skills you think you would like to work on and improve upon? What kind of riding disciplines interest you the most? Do you have goals for your riding? And how much time do you have to practice your new skills with your horse?
We will ask questions too about your horse's skills, such as: how much training she has and in what disciplines? What, if any, are the holes in your horses’ training? And what does your horse enjoy the most when you ride him?
We like to teach our students no less than twice a week, when possible. This helps the rider and horse move forward with the skills they want to improve upon.
The Masterson Method® is a unique, interactive method of equine bodywork that can help build trust with the horse. Years of stress and stiffness can often be resolved in a few sessions, by relieving built-up tension in core muscles and key junctions of the body that affect the horse’s performance.
With The Masterson Method®, you learn to recognize and use the responses of the horse to find and release tension. In contrast to traditional massage, it works with the horse’s nervous system and the horse actively participates in the process. It is something you do with the horse, rather than to the horse. This participation and interaction are what makes the method transformational for the horse.
With Leela's background in the Masterson Method and with Ginger's background in Injury Recovery and Equine Rehabilitation, we combine our sets of knowledge and develop an individual plan for each horse in our care.
You may want us to ride your horse while you are on vacation, or do groundwork and reconditioning exercises after an injury. With any horse in need of injury recovery or reconditioning, the most important aspect to consider is the time frame. The pace is much slower and deliberate.