Leah is a horse trainer based in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Central California. Her practice is rooted in natural horsemanship and she works to develop better relationships between horse and human through communication and prioritizing consent.

Some people are talented in working with horses. Other are talented in working with humans. Leah is one of the rare few who is very skilled at both. With nearly fifty years of experience in the horse world, Leah talks passionately about horses’ unique personalities, how to truly listen to the horse in front of you, and the importance of addressing fears and taking your time every step of the way.

In this interview we talk about:

- Working with very different horse personalities and finding what motivates each individual

- How culture informs horsemanship, and the difference between primitive and evolved horse cultures

- Leah’s background in the traditional English riding world in Philadelphia, PA and her experience working with top level three day eventing horses

- The traumatic riding incident that broke her tailbone, but didn’t break her love for horses

- Leah’s return to horses after a break during college when she lived in Montana and raised a fiery chestnut filly from birth

- The influence of birth on foal-mare bonding, Dr. Maddigan’s squeeze, and developmental work

- Her experience training horses in India and how it all began with wanting to learn about Marwari horses

- How deeply rooted misconceptions are around stallions, and why we need to reexamine our beliefs about them

- The problem with getting back in the saddle after taking a fall, and how to respond to your fears about riding

- How when you’re really listening to your horse, you begin to see that they are not “misbehaving,” but rather that they are asking for help

- The life-changing practice of showing your horse how much you care

Resources

This show is supported by The Herd, a holistic horse community. Herd Members gain access to the Herd Members Only Group at The Wild Side, along with my ever-growing Health, Wellness, & Horses resource library, and much more.

Check out the transcript for this episode, ‘Adapting to the Horse and Adventures in India with Leah Van Dinther’ on the blog.

Links from this episode:

Get in touch with Leah

Dr. Madigan’s Squeeze

Hold Your Horses Therapeutics (Equine Developmental Work)

Wild Willing

Wild Willing on Instagram

The Herd Membership

Podcast cover photo by Tricia Mogensen