August 4, 2014 It did not start with BROWN JUG – Bay Thoroughbred Colt, Foaled 1951, Newmarket, England. My love affair with horses began in 1958 with a bareback gallop on a pony through the cow pastures belonging to the Little Family in Billerica, MA. Five years later, a lanky 16-hand Thoroughbred gelding and I fell in love. His papers indicated that he was foaled in New Market, England, in 1951. His legal name, “IVORY MARKET” was scrawled roughly by hand on tattered papers. Nothing more was noted, other than a reference to his obvious gender and color. Everyone knew him as Brown Jug, a gentle soul with spark and spunk to spare that our neighbors up the road didnt need after their daughter went off to Vassar. He had been treated with respect, and looked out for both of us very well during hundreds of exciting, unsupervised adventures in western Massachusetts. While I was learning how to get around on him from one place to another I took countless trips to the ground, of course, but he never wandered more than a few yards away for a bite of grass while I got re-organized for the rest of our ride. We went all over Berkshire County in western Massachusetts -- from Williamstown into Vermont, across the hills to eastern New York. Years later, we even ventured across East Mountain down to the tip of the Northwest corner of Connecticut. From what I hear and read it seems that for decades, and perhaps even for centuries, unwanted horses have given lots of other people a similarly fantastic – at times thrilling -- introduction to horses. The luckiest ones got a launch into the horse careers and lifestyles they enjoy today. Between 1984 and 1995 roughly 30% - 45% of my time and resources were devoted to horses, ponies and mules who needed to find the right people to care for them as much as I needed Brown Jug to look after me. I have had many wonderful experiences matching horses with horse lovers of all ages. From this I learned how incredibly good it feels to give something back to horses and help a person’s dream come true at the same time. Twice I eventually returned horses to owners who had lost track of them and deeply mourned their absence until the moment they received my call. Had I had a good camera at the time, the film from those reunions would have made a lasting impression on viewers about the value of love from a horse. My apprenticeship with Bill Dorrance lasted nearly 5 years (1994-1999) after the learning, writing, editing, publishing and distribution of our book, “True Horsemanship Through Feel” (1999) is figured in. Bill passed on a few weeks later and it took me a long while to recover from that loss. In 2000, I resumed the match-making I’d been successful with in former times, and discovered that people of all ages and descriptions were ready to be hitched up with horses that needed a better situation. Some horses needed re-starting. One woman had only a few bucks and dusty model horses packed away in boxes alongside her dreams, which were still very much alive. One man still had an aluminum cap-gun with plastic handles he’d been given in 1962; he never lost the vision either. The ways that the love from a horse is realized and the understanding of its genuine importance happens in so many small and beautiful ways. In 2013, donations of books, DVDs, audio books and time were invested in these organizations and: Khas Tan Horsemanship ( Prince George, BC, CANADA) Carlos Mancera Esquival (Santiago Tlapacoya, Pachuca, Hidalgo, MEXICO) Perfect Fit Equine Rescue (Morgan Hill, California) Sunshine Sanctuary for Kids and Horses (Los Molinos, California) The Healing Ranch (Agoura Hills, California) Hoofprints on the Heart – now closed (Livermore, CA) Therapeutic riding center of Huntington Beach (Huntington Beach, California) Archway Foal Rescue & Training Operation (LaPorte, Colorado) Dream Catchers Equine Rescue (Fountain, Colorado) Ruby Ranch Horse Rescue (Ramah, Colorado) Triple Acres Horse Rescue, Inc. (Boone, Colorado) Save the Horses (Cumming, Georgia) Trinity Rescue Inc. (Acworth, Georgia) Personal Ponies of Indiana (Cloverdale, Indiana) Blue Horse Foundation (Foreston, Minnesota) Cross Wind Ranch Spirit Riders (Fulton, Missouri) Owl Hollow Farm (Lone Jack, Missouri) Borrowed Freedom Equine Assisted Therapies Program (Vestal, NY) Rosemary Farm Sanctuary (S. Kortwright, New York) Ketchum Roundup (Ketchum, Oklahoma) Mustang to the Rescue (Redmond, Oregon) Pacific Wild Horse Club (Gaston, Oregon) Lonesome Dove Equine Protection (Godley, Texas) Lost Creek Ranch Camp (Beldenville, Wisconsin) Natures Edge Therapy Center (Rice Lake, Wisconsin) Now I am building a new recipient list of non-profit horse centers that will be sent out at the end of 2014. May I get your recommendations and contact details (names of board members, and official addresses) of 40 additional organizations? I am committed to the expanding education of both paid staff and volunteers at rescue and rehabilitation centers, or other non-profit groups dedicated to equine welfare. I am drawn to organizations whose plans and history of actions remove all doubt that the needs and futures of unwanted horses are taken seriously. If you know of groups who would benefit, please let Laura know by sending a note with the details here: horses@lesliedesmond. Many of my students and associates who are familiar with Bill Dorrances Feel & Release approach to handling and riding horses are sharing their knowledge with people in a position to make a difference for the horses they reach: Boards of Directors, paid staff, volunteers, new horse owners and other trainers at horse rescue and relocation centers and boarding stables around the US, EUROPE and CANADA. Recently, two groups of students who want to learn more about how to apply Feel & Release (in the west and in Colorado) decided to raise the tuition money for their trainers who plan to enroll in my 2015-2016 apprenticeship course. I am encouraged that scholarship money is being raised for this purpose, and also very happy that Bill Dorrance’s philosophy and techniques will be shared with the next generation of young horse enthusiasts. If you know a trainer who would benefit from this course and appreciate a portion of this scholarship fund, or if you know a competitor or coach who has reached an impasse with their current approach and could be re-inspired by an intensive course in the “Feel & Release” approach to handling and riding horses (for any discipline) please ask that person to send their complete contact details with a request for an application, to Laura: apprenticeship@lesliedesmond. Registration materials will be sent out by post by the 15th of August, and the 20 participants will be selected by September 15th, 2014. Readers are welcome to share this post. With best wishes, Leslie Desmond International School of Horsemanship, LLC PO Box 1057 Great Barrington, MA 01230 USA horses@lesliedesmond / apprenticeship@lesliedesmond books@lesliedesmond lesliedesmond facebook/thefeelofahorse
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 12:38:37 +0000
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