My last post thinking out loud about offering personal development/leadership/team building workshops on the basis of horsemanship and with the help of our Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Mustangs was very well received.
It’s something I’d like to start offering in the near future. I’m thinking starting on Sundays, mid-morning until mid-afternoon here in the Guffey, CO area. If that format works, we can do other days too, or make it longer for a 2-3 day intensive.
I had a fellow therapist once say to me that you can’t combine counseling and horsemanship. My belief is that you can’t not do that if you’re involving horses.
They deserve better. Even newbies can learn to communicate with them in a way the horse is able to understand, otherwise they’re just a tool and we’re setting horses up for frustration and putting participants in harm’s way.
So much about horsemanship serves us in real life: We become more self-, other- and situationally aware. We learn to normalize fear and work through it. We learn that sometimes what we say and what we mean isn’t the same thing and how to change that. We learn to step outside of ourselves and consider other perspectives. We also learn goal setting, problem solving, asking for guidance, and about the importance of emotional regulation, fairness, discipline and consistency.
What it’s not:
To be clear, we’re not talking about Mustang gentling workshops. That being said, I’d be happy to adjust content to the needs and desires of the group, so long as we can put the safety of participants and the sanity of the horses first. If the participants are horse people and instead of communication the group wants to focus on ground work, riding prep, packing or ground driving, or even gentling techniques and tips, we can certainly do that.
It’s also not equine assisted therapy. I am a licensed counselor and I can and do bring that to the table but in this case I’m looking for ways to bring together people looking for real-life skills in a relatable and efficient format that pushes them just far enough out of their comfort zone to make it interesting.
We will not be riding. I want to make this accessible to non-horse experienced groups and individuals as well and we simply do not have enough and not the right kind of riding horses to take a group into the mountains or offer riding lessons on a regular basis. I do have recommendations for those looking for riding opportunities.
Input on this developing idea of Mustang Sundays – or Thursdays or Fridays – is very welcome.
Exact location TBD, limit of 6 participants to make it both personal and effective and to allow for hands on horse time for everyone who desires that. Groups and/or individuals can sign up.
Proceeds go to WHOA so we can continue to gentle Mustangs and help them find amazing homes.
Pictured: Some fun in the sun and sand with WHOA Ambassadors Lacy and Firefly. Lacy’s annoyed look at Firefly’s unwelcome sniffs is pretty on point. PC: Tay Martin
