Discover What The Natural Connection Inc Offers:

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(The Natural Connection INC does not offer colt starting/breaking/feral horse training.  Colt starting requires a trainers focus full-time and also requires a home base facility with a round pen, indoor and outdoor arena and access to trails or a variety of terrain.  Ms. Jean is now committed to coming to you as a traveling trainer and instructor.)

Ms. Jean has put foundational training on dozens and dozens of horses.

You and your horse will learn and be exposed to 13 groundwork exercises and 14 under-saddle exercises.  Your horse will learn to be comfortable on the ground and will eventually ride on a loose rein in an arena setting, which should eventually lead you to the trails as well.

Is your horse's training finished after Foundational Training?  Never.  This work simply helps to create a more educated and confident equine partner, but you absolutely need to keep up with continuing to put more mileage on your horse, both on and off property.  

Western recreational horseback riding lessons can include learning to catch, lead, groom, saddle, mount, proper form and contact, warm-up, walk, halt, trot, diagonal, canter and leads, direct rein and neck rein, and one rein stops.  Ground poles and cavaletti's can be included in all gaits as well.

Successfully learning how your form equals functionality is a key to starting your English lesson journey.  With being in closer contact to the horse, and having more physical contact with the reins, riders are encouraged to learn to flow in the walk, be still in the trot and flow in the canter with their arms.  All gaits must be mastered in an arena setting first before moving to the trail.  Students will also learn the value of 2 point and light seat.  They will learn how to adjust the walk, trot or canter upward and forward or downward and forward.  Eventually working to medium trot and canter will be introduced. One rein stops, emergency dismount, working diagonal and canter leads.  Students will also work on balance on a lunge line, over ground poles and cavalettis.

 Ms. Jean has a true passion for putting foundational dressage on horses.  She has successfully trained and competed her own horse, Moneigh Moproblems, in USDF tests:

      Introductory ABC, Training I, Training II and Training III and First Level, but has started many other dressage horses.  These are the only levels she offers to teach in Dressage.

It is important to realize that horse's have to learn to be mentally, physically and emotionally ready to be "competititive" in this sport.  The goal is for the horse to have a strong "Framework" (see page) in order to continue to learn at home and off property.

Dressage is an incredibly valuable way to create connection between horse and rider.  At these lower levels, Ms. Jean is driven to help each horse reach his or her maximum capability through forward motion with balance through a light and natural connection.  Riders learn how forward, not fast, is the answer to most questions, with impulsion being created from the hind end to help the horse find connection in the front end.                

If you have the horse and you have access to trails, we can get you out there to learn how to keep your horse tuned into you and your needs and vice versa.  A solid foundation in the arena is essential before taking your horse out on the trails, particularly alone, so be open to training for the trail in both the arena and on the trail.

All horse trainers occasionally run into horse owners that believe that it's easy to create a trail horse.  Well, sorry to disappoint, your horse will not become a perfect trail horse overnight, in 30, 60 or 90 days.

The reliable and trustworthy trail horse is the result of having someone's butt in the saddle, over 100's and ideally 1000's of miles, in various terrain, all types of weather, both alone and in group environments, with confidence in all gaits, walk/trot/canter and gallop.  This reliable steed has learned through repetition that the rider can be trusted to help out when  in unforeseen circumstances, such as the deer, wild turkey, or hiker with a dog pops up.  The horse, through repetition of being through countless situations, learns to be less reactive and more on the thinking side of the brain.

A green, imbalanced or nervous rider is truly not the best suited combination with the green trail horse.  A human's natural instinct is always to go into fetal position when something startles a horse.    When that happens, the inexperienced rider pulls back on the reins to protect their stomach, then leans forward, and lastly, grips with the calves and heels around the horse's belly.  This makes the horse feel trapped and leads often to a secondary flight response from the horse.   Remember, the horse, a prey animal, was already having a flight response to the "stimulus" that startled him in the first place.  

So when you decide to put your horse in trail horse training with a reliable professional, do realize, this is a process that requires mileage both on and off property.  That's called "seasoning."  Be ready to commit to that process.

Obstacle training is a fabulous way to engage in an open communication with your horse.  They learn how to be brave, how to look to you for guidance, and enjoy the process since we focus on positive reinforcement.

Taking on a new equine family member is truly an exciting adventure!  But for the first time horse/mule/donkey owner, it can seem daunting with all of the responsibilities involved.  Whether you purchased your first horse or adopted a rescue horse, Ms. Jean would be happy to come to your equine’s new home to help with transition needs.

This could include but is not limited to:

• facility needs
• horse care needs, nutrition, shelter, exercise, farrier, veterinarian 
• horse training needs

Ms. Jean has an extensive background in rehabilitating and retraining horses.  She has safely and successfully started colts (ages 4 and up) with no prior handling, OTTB’s, older horses that were out of work for 5-10 years, and horses of all ages that recovered from injuries. She can help you bring your favorite equine partner back under-saddle by teaching your horse the 13 foundational groundwork exercises and 14 under-saddle exercises.   Assuming no new medical issues arise, once foundational training is completed, you should be able to move your horse back into your primary discipline.

Horses are the most delicate yet tough prey animals.  Due to their ever changing needs, living in our human worlds with human schedules, learning all aspects of horse care and management is becoming increasingly more important for the horse owner.

If you are facing unexpected challenges with your horse, and you feel a need for a second opinion from a professional, let Ms. Jean come assess your horse in his/her environment.  Sometimes a different perspective can be helpful in complicated situations.

Ms. Jean has ridden over 750 horses and owned over 70 horses in her lifetime.  Hands on and vast field experience is what she brings to the table.  She can help assess whether other professionals in the horse industry need to get involved with your situation or even if her skillsets in training should or can be considered.  She can provide unique perspectives on:

1) Movement analysis: Ms. Jean has developed a keen eye for discomfort, compensatory movements, pain and conformational flaws causing imbalance.  Sometimes an experienced set of eyes can help pinpoint some places on the horse to guide you and other equine professionals in a direction to explore.   

2) Ms. Jean is not a veterinarian.  But there are specific groundwork exercises that are part of the program that actually can be considered her "diagnostics" and essentially, if a horse does an evaluation, and red flags pop up during the evaluation while working on specific skillsets, Ms. Jean will inform you of why each skillset was red flagged and provide thoughts on how to move forward.  

Don’t throw in the towel yet…frustration begins where knowledge ends, perhaps getting a team on board to help you is what you need!

You have the most "beautiful" horse at home.  And you think he or she is just perfect...well, most of the time.  "Snookums" is perfect except for when he or she:

• Be:                  BUCKS
• Kind:               KICKS
• But:                 BITES
• Be:                   BOLTS
• Realistic:        REARS

These are considered 5 serious behavioral problems, that not all trainers can fix, and rightfully, it is up to the trainer to choose whether or not to take on that challenge. 

Often these are ingrained behaviors that came from either purposeful or accidental poor human handling and/or decisions, or a lack of knowledge that spiraled out of control in specific areas, such as horse care, horse management, horse health or horse training.  Often, it's a combination of many of these things that have caused a horse to behave the way it does.

The hardest part for a trainer is ciphering whether the behavior(s) is due to pain, due to discomfort, due to habitual expectation of pain, lack of strength, lack of knowledge, lack of foundational training, lack of discipline training, combined with an imbalance in the "Framework" (see page).

So keep in mind this scenario: 

You may have a horse "built for" and has "experience in" a specific discipline, but the horse continues to show one or more of these 5 serious behavioral problems, even with the guidance and training of a professional trainer, veterinarian, farrier and other equestrian professionals.  This may be a case where the horse has reached the limits of help or knowledge, with that specific trainer, or within that discipline.  So I go back to my favorite saying:

"JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN, DOESN'T MEAN YOU SHOULD..."

Don't continue doing something for convenience...

• Not all trainers are the right fit
• Not all horses are the right fit for that discipline
• Not all equine professionals, including the most common like vets and farriers are the right fit
• Not all facilities are the right fit
• Not all environments are the right fit

There is so much for you to consider on your journey with your horse.  Find the right people to create your support group.  And it's ok if your support group is different than that of your "barn friends."  Be your advocate and be your horse's advocate first.