Working with horses has taught me many valuable life lessons that one wouldn't typically understand unless they worked with animals.
I believe that horses aren't just some of the most beautiful creatures on the planet, but some of the most valuable creatures on the planet.
Before I get in-depth with talking about horses, I want to rewind back to when it all started for me.
Back in 2017, I was managing a supplement and nutrition store when one of my customers messaged me online about a new puppy he had acquired. He was searching for a new home for this 8 week old puppy and he asked me if I was interested in taking it. So, I asked him to bring the puppy by the shop so that I could meet him - little did I know that this moment would completely change my entire life.
I met the puppy and knew within 30 seconds that he was mine and that he was coming home with me.
Has that ever happened to you? Being introduced to someone or something and know almost instantly that it belongs to you?
This has happened to me a few times in my life. It has happened to me with every single animal that I now own and has even happened to me on two separate occasions with women that I have met and have had genuine desire to date - more on this for a later blog.
I met my dog Geno when he was 8 weeks old.
Geno changed my entire life at the age of 24 years old because I now have something that relies on me for survival - something that I have to care for before I care for myself.
He looks like me, he acts like me, and is the true definition of my spirit animal. He has moved with me all the way across the country twice and has been by my side through every single low point I have had in the last 5 years.
In 2019, after 6 months of living in Vegas, I met the most loving female I have ever met in my entire life - my dog, Aurora.
I found Aurora at the dog shelter - she had been there for months and was on her way out of the shelter because of the amount of dogs they receive on a daily basis. I had looked at almost every single dog on the property when I found her, laying on her on the cot in her cage. I crouched down and put my hand up to her cage when she got up, walked over to me, and put her paw up to my hand from the other side of the cage. I knew in that moment that she was coming home with me...
My dogs have taught me the true meaning of companionship and loyalty more than anything. All one has to do is give love and attention to their four-legged companions for a little bit of time each day and they will truly be your best friends - they live to protect you and love you no matter what.
Fast forward to 2022, I moved to Florida and started working on a horse ranch because I wanted to work with horses - my goal was to start training horses.
After a month of working at the ranch, my life changed again - I met my horse, Cooper.
Cooper is an off-track thoroughbred who used to race at the Gulfstream racetrack in South Florida.
My boss at the ranch acquired Cooper after his racing career was over and retired him from racing at the property that I would eventually begin working at.
I made my goal of training horses known to everyone at the ranch from the day I began working there. When I told my boss my goal was to start training horses, he told me to start with Cooper because Cooper hadn't been ridden since he came off of the track, six years prior.
I didn't know Cooper at the time, but once I got the green light to begin working with him, I started work with him immediately.
I didn't have much knowledge of training horses at the time - all I knew was that I had to learn and start with groundwork before I rode him, so that the horse could learn that I wasn't there to hurt him.
I began groundwork with Cooper with very little knowledge and started with lunging him around a round pen. After three sessions of lunging, I achieved what is known as "join-up". I didn't know what join-up meant, other than what I had read about it in a book. Join-up happens when performing groundwork with a horse, asking them to stop, and they walk in towards you and begin following you around - this is the foundation of trust.
Shortly after achieving my first join-up with Cooper, I began to ride him and train him how to be ridden.
For the record, I took lessons how to ride when I was a kid and hadn't ridden a horse until I moved to Florida last year. Cooper was the first horse I had ridden since I was 11 years old and he is a highly reactive thoroughbred that was bred and only trained to do what mother nature programmed in his DNA, to run...
So, long story short, I had to relearn how to ride on a horse that just wanted to run in every direction. I accepted this challenge because all I wanted was for him to trust me, and prove to him that we are a team and that I would keep him safe.
Cooper and I bonded from the very beginning because we both found each-other. He was a horse that deserved to be ridden and I was a man in search for a deeper meaning of life. On days that I couldn't ride due to inclement Florida weather, I would sit in his paddock outside with him, just so he knew that I was there.
My boss at the ranch took notice of mine and Cooper's bond and he ended up gifting me the ownership papers of Cooper - he was officially mine!
As I have progressed with learning more about training horses, I have learned a great deal about the psychology of horses and how they naturally think and operate.
Horses are herd animals, which means they stick together because they find safety in numbers, away from predators.
It is programmed in their DNA to run from danger, which is why they are often referred to as being "spooky". Mother Nature put it in them to rely on their feet to escape from danger. Once I fully understood this concept, training horses became instantly easier - all I had to do was control the direction and speed of their feet, and show them that I did not pose as a threat.
I often refer to it as hacking the horses brain by making them think about what I was asking, instead of relying on their reactive instincts that they are born with.
The only thing on a horses mind 24/7, is safety - this is why they often stick together in herds because they find safety in numbers. If I can prove to a horse that I am not a threat, and I can utilize the movement of their feet, I can earn a horses trust and respect.
Since I have learned about the psychology of horses, I have started my own horse training business, riding 3-4 different horses per day, and I have started two colts in a matter of 6 months - it all started with my boy, Cooper.
Horses have been a valuable asset to humans since the beginning of time. We used to solely rely on these creatures as our sole source of transportation for tens of thousands of years.
There is a reason why the ultimate predators (humans), and the ultimate prey animals (horses), have a deep connection. Horses live in our DNA, and the connection one feels from sharing a genuine bond and partnership with a horse cannot be replaced by anything else.
I will have horses for the rest of my life because they are a part of who I am. My animals are my life and will always be a part of my family.
There are two valuable life lessons that I have learned from working with horses - one being that living in the moment is something to be appreciated because it is all that horses and most other species on the planet experience 24/7 - the other lesson being that trust and respect is not given, it is earned.
If one wishes to gain trust and respect from a horse, then one must work for it. To me, this same rule applies to people. If you wish to be surrounded by a genuine group of people, then they must be able to work and prove to you that you can trust them. After-all, all relationships should be an equal exchange of value.