Quotable quotes

Harry Whitney said:

"I don't want just a response; I want a response with no worry."

"If you are early, you don't have to be fast."

"It doesn't take a lot of strength when it's right."

"A horse's feet are always working to be where his brain is."

"Traditional horsemanship is progressive firmness."

"The time to firm up with a horse is to block a thought." In traditional horsemanship, firming up is often done in order to make a thought happen.

"Be looking to see what took place behind the physical action."

"The magic is not in the feet. The feet are just a barometer for where the mind is. The feet are a manifestation of the mind."

"I want to help him respond differently when something worries him." People spend time getting a horse used to something like an umbrella or a plastic bag, but you can't get him used to a black bear. The main point is to help him change how he responds. "I'd rather a horse respond than act oblivious to a scary thing."

"Softness and forward are always separate issues."

"Nothing runs unmingled."

"Judgment calls cannot be taught."

"If a horse understands fully how to respond to it [the flag], why would he have to worry about it? When they understand exactly how to respond to it, they can be comfortable with it."

"How it is presented is what makes a difference."

"If my horse is tight, not listening, I'm going to be doing frequent, frequent, frequent transitions."

"Every time you ask, you have to stick with it till it comes through."

"Always start with what you're going to end up with."

"If you're meaning it to punish them, they're going to protect themselves."

"If we're not confident we can help them, we have nothing left to do but correct them."

"Clearly get in your head, in your being, that nothing that horse does is a reflection of you. It's not about you. A horse is about as self centered as you'll ever meet."

"The ears are not as tightly tied to his thoughts as his eyeballs are."

"When you feel all the power that a horse is putting out, the strongest ... is where it's all lined up through the centerline of the horse."

"A lot of times we're insistent when we just need to be persistent."

"We're working on freeing up the horse's thought -- that's what we want to carry over to the saddle work."

"You can work and work on the ground but on a horse that has riding experience, he's going to revert back to what he knew before." But if you get a change, some will carry over to the saddle. And you've opened up their mind to think about things differently.

"Every time you pick up the reins there should be a change in the horse."

"We all tend to remember the things that verify our opinions."

"The real work goes on at home. I hope none of you come to a clinic thinking you'll cure something."