At Stillwater, our philosophy is grounded in a natural horsemanship approach.
What is that exactly? It means this:
We use communication methods based on natural equine instincts. We watch and learn how our equine friends communicate with each other, and we imitate that approach. At Stillwater, a student will never be told ‘kick to go and pull to stop’.
We focus on building a rapport and a relationship with our horses. This goes beyond throwing on a saddle and making your horse or pony walk, trot and canter around a ring. This means working with your horse from the ground up, learning to tack up your horse gently and respectfully, and knowing that once you’re in the saddle you have already started working on a special and trusting friendship.
Our interactions with our equine friends are guided by the basic principles of love, respect, trust and fun. Horses are smart and they like to play and work. We use ground work maneuvers as building blocks that become the foundation of a solid relationship.
Everything we do leads our students to having a deeper understanding and connection with their horse.
