Free Flow Equine Therapies - Susan Rousak

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Most of us have big, exciting dreams about what we want to do with our horses. 🌊🐴

Maybe it's riding down a beach, heading out on a long trail with friends, winning a dressage competition, tackling a cross-country course, or simply showing them in hand.

This is human, normal, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting that.

But a lot of the time, we try to jump straight to the exciting activity without building a rock-solid foundation of soundness, happiness, and safety first.

Look, jumping ahead is fine if you don’t care about falling off. It's fine if you don't mind causing your horse worry, injury, or discomfort. If you are reading this, I’m guessing that’s not you.

The fortunate thing is this: A safe, sound, and happy horse will take very little to adapt to any activity we might ask of them. By slowing down to set them up with a proper foundation, we don't just keep ourselves and our horses safe. We actually open up the possibilities for all the fun, exciting things we want to do with them - completely free of the worry, guilt, or fear.

And of course, not every horse will have the capacity to fulfil our dreams. But it is much better to find that out systematically, in a way that keeps us and them safe, than to find out after the damage is done.

Don't skip the foundation to chase the dream. Build the foundation, and the horse will give you the dream willingly.

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Photo: Linda is a wonderful role model for what putting time into foundation looks like. Through working on her pony Bernie's health, comfort and understanding she has helped him to be more ready for the activities they might enjoy together.