Explore every episode of the podcast CLAN OF THE HORSES

In today's episode, you'll meet Master Trainer Mark Rashid. He is a soft-spoken horseman, skilled in martial arts (Aikido) and one of my favourite quotes from the episode is: Going slower is always a good way to start. Mark is an acclaimed author and horseman known for his ability to understand the horse’s point of view and using communication rather than force. He has just co-written the book A Horse’s life - The Neuroscience of Equine Welfare with Dr. Steve Peters and Crissi McDonald and the insights shared by this extraordinary horseman will surely benefit both you and the horses in your life - enjoy! ❤️ Episode photo: Crissi McDonald.

- I have learned so much about pressure and control, but if you get a real connection you can just ask the horse and wait and it will happen, says Jasmin Schacht. We met for the first time about 20 years ago and I have never forgotten the first time I met her red thoroughbred horse Mayday...

It's crucial to bring this perspective with us: we must remain humble and remember that horses expressing pain, discomfort, or uncertainty should always be taken seriously. Just because we don't always understand what triggers a horse's behaviour, doesn't mean it originates from nothing. It never does. In todays podcast episode, the topic is the horse seen from the inside and my guest is veterinarian and anatomist Ivana Ruddock. www.livebonnevie.no

Photographer and fine artist Crispin Parelius Johannessen has been called "a man on a mission," and he certainly is. A man with a self-imposed mission to remind us that we cannot trust our own eyes to be reliable enough to ensure the good welfare of our horses. Quite the opposite. Photo: Crispin Parelius Johannessen. www.livebonnevie.no

✅ Video materials & links - Norwegian blog: https://www.livebonnevie.no/blog/foto-velferd-tikkende-bombe

✅ Link to Norwegian bonus episode: https://shows.acast.com/hestenes-klan/episodes/bonus-247

✅ Video materials and links - English Blog: https://www.clanofthehorses.com/2025/06/02/39-the-whistleblower/

- Often, when our strategy is to increase pressure, taking a step back—allowing the horse to breathe and process—is a far better way to move forward. Synchrony is what horses want, and what they're always looking for. As a rider, you should seek it out too. Because when you and your horse are truly in sync, riding is effortless, says Dr. Steve Peters, who is a leading authority on equine neuroscience.

✅ For clinic schedule see: https://horsebrainscience.info/2025-schedule/

✅ For visual content see: https://www.livebonnevie.no/blog/pressure-and-relief

NOTE: I have no commercial affiliation with Steve or his clinics. I'm sharing this information purely because I believe in the value of his important work.

- Janet Jones earned her PhD from UCLA and taught the neuroscience of perception language, memory and thought for 23 years. But what caught my attention and piqued my curiosity was her understanding of how the equine brain compares to ours - and the value of brain-based horsemanship.

This week’s podcast guest is fine artist and photographer Crispin Parelius Johannessen, who has spent more than 15 years photographing horses in equestrian sports. I hope you view this episode as an invitation to question not only what you see - but why you see it.

Have Grand Prix Dressage on international level been reduced to a culture dominated by silence, greed and money? A culture where good people are reluctant to speak their minds when they should be advocating for the welfare of horses? Former FEI Judge Hege Trulsen, talks about some of challenges we are facing at the moment, and how we can solve them. This is a translated and updated version of the original Norwegian interview published in December 2023.www.clanofthehorses.com

In this episode, I revisit Sue Dyson, one of the initiators Horse and Hound referred to as top equestrians when we launched our petition campaign New Era for Equestrian Sports #LetHorsesSpeak in December 2023. Sue Dyson is a specialist in veterinary medicine and rehabilitation, a surgeon specialist in Equine orthopedics and I've come to know her as a professional who has dedicated her life to improve horse welfare. www.clanofthehorses.com

A horse can certainly be forced to do whatever we want it to do because they are sensitive flight animals seeking safety and survival. And if events organised by the FEI do not crack down on ugly riding on warm-up arenas, or displayed conflict behaviour in horses and fail to set a proper ethical and welfare standard for the sport, what do you think happens at events further down the food chain? www.clanofthehorses.com

- Sometimes the horse exhibits behaviour that we mistakenly interpret as disobedience, but it's actually a cry for help. In such cases, it's not effective to ride for a trainer who instructs you to look straight ahead, keep your hands still, and use your legs, says Elaine Butler, who was forced to change her approach when she bought a horse that wouldn't yield. www.clanofthehorses.com

- I really call this disruptive technology because from this point on there is no excuse anymore not to measure lameness objectively. It's practical, it's scientifically proven and it's validated, says doctor in veterinary medicine Filipe Bragança, who holds a PhD in biomechanics. www.clanofthehorses.com

- We need to start with the assumption that animals aren’t looking for conflict. They don’t want conflict any more than we do. But animals will become aggressive if they become frightened. So the number one point is never to scare them, says Professor Emeritus of Ethics and Animal Welfare, James Serpell. www.clanofthehorses.com

 

- Good ridning means that you stop disturbing the horse, and that is one thing I find it important to tell everybody; get out of the way, cause you are the problem, says Arne Koets, who during his five years as a rider and curator at the Fürstliche Hofreitschule in Bückeburg truly started to master the art of riding and the High School movements. He is a very versatile trainer and a full-time professional instructor in HEMA (Historical European Martial Art). Photo: Matilde Brandt www.clanofthehorses.com

- Rather than focussing on the footfall of your horse, feel the rhythm in the movement of his spine. It is like the rhythm of a song, and you can move with it, says Jeff Sanders. Photo: Amanda Melchior. www.clanofthehorses.com

- We have a running joke in the US about how California and Texas got into a fight about horsemanship and Texas won, says trainer Jeff Sanders.

- Offering our horses scentwork and exploration exercises not only reduces stress and make them more confident. It can also be a brilliant tool when horses struggle with what we often refer to as behaviour problems, says the Dutch trainer Rachaël Draaisma.

- We’ve been conditioned that many behaviours exhibited by the ridden horse are normal, when they are in fact often a reflection of underlying musculoskeletal pain. And if we resolve the pain, the behaviours will disappear, says veterinarian and Equine Orthopeadic Specialist Sue Dyson.

- What I teach can be tricky to teach people because they often expect a series of steps, but what I try to teach them is how to be more aware, more intuitive and more creative, says horse trainer Amy Skinner.

In today's episode you'll meet Turid Rugaas and Rachaël Draaisma who will shed some light on equine calming signals. Photo: Anne Lill Kvam.

- Being the leader is not being the boss. A true leader is the servant of the follower. You serve everyone and everything but yourself. That's when riding is fun. When you do it as a service to everything around you - including your horse, says Arne Koets, who teach and practice historical dressage and mounted combat.

- This dynamic riding style is very seat-orientated and advocates a light hand. Much like guiding your partner through the steps of a tango, it is all about directing energy into harmonic motions, a dance of horse and rider.

- I prefer liberty work with wild horses because the conversation is more honest and more direct. You can not afford to make mistakes with horses that are not domesticated. You only get one chance, says horse trainer Kelly Wilson from New Zealand, who specialises in taming and training wild kaimanawa horses.

- A short update regarding delayed podcast episodes.

- When you reach a new level with your horse, spend some time there before you advance the training. It will make your horse strong, confident and proud, says master trainer Benedikt Líndal.

- We are never allowed to surprise the horse, but the horse is always allowed to surprise us - with how good he can be, says master trainer Benedikt "Benni" Líndal. Illustration: Sigga Ævars.

- On my Norwegian podcast I have several short episodes that I refer to as Moments of Zen. They are apt to be moments I have experienced with horses that has taught me something important about horses apt to change the way I understand or relate to them. This is one of those moments.

- I thought I was a soft and supportive rider, but the Mongolian horses disagreed, says Cathrine Fodstad, who realised that our need for control is a bad deal for horses after participating in the world's longest and toughest horse race.

- If you ride well, you don't need draw reins, and if you use them because you think need them, you jeopardise the welfare of your horse, says veterinarian, rider and author Gerd Heuschmann.

- The horse has only one safety net on set and that is me, says animal trainer Sofie Polmar. Todays episode is a summary from this weeks Norwegian interview where we talked about training horses for the film industry.

In today's episode, I thought I’d say something about danger of being a rider. And I will illustrate it with a handful of accidents I have experienced first-hand and survived.

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Meet Vivienne. The young Swiss woman who was chosen to write the next chapter about the herd known as the Dreamvalley horses. Link to Vivienne's journey beyond this episode can be found here: www.hestenesklan.no.

- Dreamvalley connects visual art, peaceful communication with natural kept horses and personal growth. To me Dreamvalley is a relational work of art where we investigate our relationship to nature. The key is to listen to nature and be humble - and the horses play a very important part, says Tina Buddeberg in this interview that was conducted in August 2020.

- We need a better way for interested people to have a safer experience and be fit enough, and well prepared enough so we can actually revive the horse industry in a way that people can be proud to be part of it, says author and horse trainer Leslie Desmond.

MOZ (moments of Zen) refers to moments I have experienced with horses that have taught me something important or inspired me to make a significant shift in the way I relate to or understand my horses. This is one of those moments.

- The idea of a horse seeing a human as dominant is pretty sketchy. We really don’t know what horses think, but it works much better to not load them up with all this nonsense, says Dr. Andrew McLean, zoologist and CEO of Equitation Science International.

- There are so many things we, as human beings, get wrong with horses. We know better, but we have also got to do better and we have got to be much smarter about their real welfare, says Dr. Andrew McLean in this interview about equine cognition and learning.

Deconstructing Natural Horsemanship: Groundwork is the foundation for riding. So why in the world would you ask your horse to elevate the neck and hollow the back - which is the exact opposite of what riding in balance is all about? This episode is a transcript of episode 2 of 44 on the Norwegian podcast Hestenes klan.

When challenged to name one thing that would greatly improve horse welfare, Professor Christopher Pollitt replied: - Winning the battle against ignorance and promote true scientific knowledge about the horse’s foot. Because it is such a wonderful thing to comprehend.

A practical introduction to the Feldenkrais-method with Dave Thind. Take a break from your busy schedule and connect to your body for a change - your horse will thank you for it!

- With the Feldenkrais method we are always looking for ease, because that is what our nervous system strives for. Hard work isn’t necessarily better, neither for horse nor rider. Sometimes it’s just harder, says the Canadian Guild certified Feldenkrais practitioner Dave Thind who holds a German Trainer A licence and is a Grand Prix level competition rider in dressage and jumping.

- We all have a burning need to communicate with our horses, but we need to realise that they are talking to us all the time. It is just that we are not being in a place to receive it, says Stormy May, the director of the acclaimed documentary “The Path of the Horse”.

- Horses cannot respect us because they do not have that process in their brain, says horse advokat, clinician and author Anna Blake. - We have all been taught some version of ask, tell, make and if horses don't hear us, we talk louder. How about turning the volume down and listen for a change?

Your gaze is harder than you are aware of - and your horse will have a far better life if you fix it. Here is how.

There are numerous podcasts about horses. This one aims to tell a different story: A story that grows out of the Norse tradition.

Clan of the Horses premieres on Monday September 28th.