Giving horses a better deal by playing and building confidence with them on the ground first allows everyone to enjoy the experience of "being with horses" in a conscious and safe way. ‘I-Thou Horse-Friendship’ follows the rhythm of horses innate knowing and natural intelligence by respecting their culture and sensitivity.  By gaining an understanding of horse psychology, herd dynamics, and a ‘learning from horses’ approach where an I/thou relationship is practiced rather than an I/it dynamic. ‘I-Thou Horse-Friendship’ comes from an approach of how humans can best serve the horse and with congruency act as a herd leader.   It starts with honouring the horses’ general welfare.  Being barefoot, bit-free and a natural living environment.  Caring for it’s physical needs of constant movement, herd life and free choice of grass or hay along with its’ emotional needs for safety, companionship and leadership. The herd, besides being a 60 million year old system, is a matriarchy.  Female horses have governance and create order and discipline in the herd.  So as a model, the herd is a feminine system that is different from our usual system that tends to value rational thought over intuition or manipulation over cooperation.  The matriarch works in collaboration with the stallion.  She is a demonstration of caring-based leadership that unites the herd and keeps it safe; a paradigm that creates optimal outcomes and strength in the system. Throughout history horses have never needed humans, although humans have needed horses.  Horses have carried us on their backs for millennium - now is the time for us to recognize how they can carry us back to ourselves. Horses epitomise relationship.  They are a demonstration of the right life way, exemplifying honesty and respect within an authentic social community.  Each herd member is as important as the other. Horses look out for each other, they do not abandon each other, they accept each other without "grudgement".  They sort out differences immediately and then go back to grazing. Horses show up best when you meet them with curiosity or a question that genuinely pertains to your life.  Their interconnecting energy, spatial awareness, and energetic fields are mostly unseen by the untrained eye. Yet when conscious of their subtle cues their energetic communication is beyond language.    Horses show us how energy is a vibration or a wave that broadcasts just like a radio. Sharing time with these magnificent animals and noticing how they interact gives us profound awareness of the way in which we interact with all species. These best practice principles are based on equality, being-to-being connections that enable a profound awareness, presence, deep listening, unconditional acceptance and engaging with what presents in the moment; with breath, intention, timing and focus. By allowing the horse to guide us, learning skills for building an I/thou partnership is intimate and magical. It's a dance.  Like yoga or meditation, with practice, patience and being in allowance relationships flourish and a deep understanding of self emerges. These words are conceptual – come join us for an essential equine experience and discover for yourself how horses have an innate way of replenishing the human spirit.