Welcome to The Elevated Equine — Conversations to Enhance the Horse-Human Relationship.

This podcast is a space for thoughtful dialogue about horsemanship, equine welfare, and interactions between horses and people who love them.

Each episode invites curiosity, reflection, and an opportunity to learn together.  Join us as we apply our knowledge of behavioral science to improve the horse-human experience.  This is the place to explore what it means to show up with intention and compassion for the horses in our lives.

It's natural to want to keep an animal as large and powerful as a horse under control.  Negative consequences to our well-being and our horses' safety are real and can be serious.  However, methods of control can also be detrimental to our horses' physical and emotional welfare.  In this episode Dale and Ashley explain the downside of a control-focused relationship and share how practical evidence-based techniques can help you and your horse have safe and successful interactions.  

Meet the hosts. Dale's work with horses focuses on welfare-centered care and training. Ashley is a horse-lover who works in special education with a passion for helping caregivers connect with their children.

Many horse owners want to have control of their horses for very important and valid reasons such as personal safety, the horse's safety, and the enjoyment of being with a horse who does what is asked.  In this episode we take on how control is perceived, applied, and how it may or may not work when working with the horses in our lives.  

Goals motivate us and give us satisfaction when we reach them.  While there are benefits to setting goals when handling and training horses, there are some pitfalls to watch out for too.  

Finding ways to communicate clearly between two very different species is easier when you find common ground and are clear about what you're saying. 

When you're interacting and communicating with horses and people, you are creating a relationship.  There are many ways we can contribute that will influence how well that relationship works for each of you.