This article first appeared in the November 2020 digital edition of Equestrian Life. To see what’s in the current issue, click here. 

The importance of a trusting relationship

By Dr Kerry Mack

Developing trust between two beings is the foundation of an ongoing relationship. When one being is human and the other animal, then communication is the cornerstone to building that trust.

For many of us, our equestrian life is a vocation, a lifestyle. It’s so much more than a hobby, an interest, or a sport. The rhythm of our lives is determined by our horses’ needs: We get up in the morning and feed up before breakfast. We prepare our own dinner after our horses are safely bedded down for the night. It is the love of the horse, and our special relationship with them, that motivates us universally, whatever style of saddle we choose, whatever the rules of our chosen discipline, whatever the monetary value of our “fur babies”. We want to have good relationship with our horse…
 

Read the full article in the November 2020 issue of Equestrian Life magazine here.