Natural Horse-Man-Ship: Six Keys to a Natural Horse-Human Relationship

Having read (and re-read) Parelli's work countless times in the past few months and having consistently applied his programme when "playing" (Parelli believes that humans should never "work" a horse) with my young Quarter Horse, I have witnessed enormous improvements in my horse's demeanour and, crucially, in the trust he has for me. By establishing dominance over my horse using the sensible, humane tactics Parelli recommends, I have made major progress en route to transforming this horse from a fearful, unridden colt into a willing, dependable, "true blue" mount.

I highly endorse Parelli's work; if his programme is applied with persistence, patience, and an open mind, the possibilities in the horse-human relationship are limitless.


Important book for anyone that truely cares about horses   July 22, 1998
134 out of 141 found this review helpful

This book should be a required read for anyone who is interested in caring for horses to the best of their ability and look after their mind, as well as their body, whether they be horse owners, horse workers, equestrians, or just an occasional rider. A book full of 'true knowledge' which teaches what is required to gain 'the knack' or 'gift' with horses.

Parelli, who is very experienced and knowledgable in the theory and practice of horse training, psychology and behaviour, gives us an understanding of how horses think and learn, so that we can learn to be more sympathetic, learning to do things with the horse, not to the horse, so that the horse can become a willing, safe, happy partner and enjoy your company too.

Parelli stresses that since 99% of problems with horses are 'problem people' not 'problem horses' his book is really a people-training book. He has developed a step by step program that is easily followed, that enables anyone with a fair attitude and fee! ling towards the horse to acheive outstanding results with any horse.


Parelli-Safe way 2 start new relationship, info beyond book   May 15, 2004
60 out of 62 found this review helpful

Being a beginner 3 years ago, I bought many books to prepare myself and my new 3 year old for our relationship. I learned alot from the concepts of Lyons and other authors, but they didn't give me enough direction to start actually working with my horse.

I found Parelli's book to be the best help - it started out with more specific exercises and details on how to applied what I'd learned. In one year working with Parelli book techniques a few times a week my horse went from green broke to "too well trained" to be enough of a challenge for me. I have since attended Parelli seminars and bought the "system" to start my new horse. I disagree with the reviewer that said some of Parelli is untrue or unsafe - that some horses cannot be ridden bareback. Parelli has a very detailed system with very specific pre-flight checks that guarentee your horse will be safe before you get on. If the horse is not safe to get on bareback, then he is not really mentally ready to get on with saddle & bridle either! It's all about preparing his mind and starting a relationship - and it does take patience & lots of work (DON'T try to rush it or shortcut). If you are looking for a quick way to make your green broke horse into an old trail horse, this book is not for you. But then again, you probably will get sick of trying to "train" your horse and be like the 80% of new horse owners that quite before the 1st year is up.

In Parelli training with Teri Palmer, I saw some "un-sane" horses with terrible relationships with their owners being ridden by the last day with a lead rope and halter. My new horse was on the other end - terribly confident and walking all over me. It took him a VERY long time to pass the "pre flight checks" (as Pat says to each new lesson & test, "I've never seen it take more than 2 days!"), but once he did, it allowed me to ride with more confidence and way more safely (no one in the program had a single problem, spook, stubborness, or anything on their horse!!!!-and everyone was there because their horses were terrible originally). The book does describe these pre-flight checks, but I recommend getting a video or going through training if you are unsure about any one of them since seeing it is easier to understand than reading it.

I do say though that although the book is a good start, the parelli trainer sessions (level 1) really helped me with some of the confusion and questions I had about certain techniques. It was very expensive, but so interesting that my auditing husband signed up for the last 2 days after the first 2 were so progressive. I would highly recommend that if you are serious about trying parelli, you consider sessions with a 3 or 4 star trainer, even over buying the system. And find a friend interested in working with it also - it's easier to bounce concepts off each other and get some feedback while working your horse. And it helps with motivation - I'm a "common just do it NOW" type person and it took alot of motivation to take a step back and really do things right (as my horse was ready for).

I'm actually out here today looking to buy Linda Parelli's riding video - I feel that I'm not quite communicating what I want to now that I'm up on my youngster bareback and I really like the way Linda communicates her ideas (she helped organize Pat's).

One other nice thing about the book - if you don't like it, you can alway sell it for asking price on ebay. One downside with parelli - although you can make your own tools (and I did), his ropes and carrot stick are really one of a kind and are expensive. His rope is custom made for his company, and is much much heavier than all other ropes - you cant buy this rope at any store that I've found, or already made lead ropes of this sort. I used much lighter rope of the same size & softness, with heavy clasps on the end, and it's much less effective in giving signals (but it does work sort of). The carrot stick can easily be replaced with any 4-5 foot stick with leather taped on the end(and he uses golf club handles on the end) and if you are new at it a lighter stick won't wear you out as fast (this stick is heavy). The savvy string is a must - it's also extra heavy weight, and there are no replacements (trust me I tried). And obviously rope halters are easy to make or buy on ebay.


Warning: This Book Will Change Your Life Forever.   October 21, 2003
Lauren & Toby (Palm Beach, FL United States)
39 out of 41 found this review helpful

I'm a believer. I tried the others, then found the truth in Pat Parelli's teachings. If you don't know anything about Parelli Natural Horse-Man-Ship, this book is a good start. His whole home study program and the tools that go with it can be purchased online. Once you get into Parelli, there is no turning back. We came to him because of a horse that adamantly refused to get into a horse trailer. Now the whole family has learned to savvy our horses in ways we never thought possible. This book will explain how humans behave like predators around horses, driving a wedge in their relationship. More importantly, he explains how to overcome that tendency and how to teach yourself new ways of communicating with your horse as a loving partner and leader. Giving you specific techniques and exercises to use, Pat sets you up for success with your horse, no matter how difficult he may be now. I have now seen dozens of people get incredible results from their horses by changing their approach and adopting Pat's methods. My own former spookaholic Arabian now trots after me at liberty and I ride him bridleless - with nothing on his head. This didn't happen overnight - in fact it took a year of dedicated focus, but the results are, frankly, amazing. Try the book, then the program, but be warned: you cannot return to normalcy. And by the way, the horse that wouldn't load now trots happily onto the trailer when we point to it. No kidding.


HORSE MAGIC   March 10, 1999
17 out of 18 found this review helpful

THIS BOOK TOOK ME FROM A PERSON WHO FELT LIKE I HAD MADE A BIG MISTAKE GETTING INTO HORSES TO ONE WHO COULDN'T BE MORE SATISFIED..I LOOK FORWARD TO LEARNING MORE AND HAVING MORE FUN,,,,READ IT!!!!!! PLEASE DISREGARD ANY NEGATIVE COMMENTS UNTIL YOU HAVE TRIED THIS YOURSELF...A VIDEO MAKES IT EVEN EASIER TO UNDERSTAND...YOU DON'T GO TO THE FORD DEALER TO FIND OUT ABOUT A TOYOTA ....GO TO THE SOURCE...LEARN AND HAVE FUN