Featured Article (May 2004)

10 Questions for Pat Parelli

When it comes to natural horsemanship, Pat Parelli "Rules!" His common sense, horse friendly methods have positively impacted hundreds of thousands of horses and humans around the world, making Parelli Natural Horsemanship the most exciting phenomenon on the horse scene. Parelli will be conducting one of his extraordinary 2-day seminars at the Virginia Horse Center on May 25-26.

What have horses taught you about yourself?

Horses are definitely our mirrors. And horses are like computers --- they do what we program them to do, and the program is a mirror of the human. Horses are honest about my interaction with them, which pretty much tells me about myself and where I am in that moment. Horses give me great reasons to keep improving my communication skills and my mental, emotional and physical fitness.

You have a gift for communicating with horses and people. Was there a defining moment when you made the decision to make this your life’s work?

I don’t know if I had a specific defining moment, but I’ve always had a disease called "share-itis." Ever since I was a little kid, if I learned something new worth sharing, I couldn’t wait to share it with everyone. So once I started learning about having a natural relationship with horses, I couldn’t stop myself from sharing with others.

What is the most significant experience you’ve ever had with a horse?

Probably the most significant experience has been at the birth of a foal. The moments that ensue are a miracle that unfolds before your eyes. Three things happen at that moment between dam and foal: love, language and leadership. By truly understanding what’s happening in that first moment of encounter between mare and foal, and never losing sight of it, you’ll realize that those three ingredients happen in balance, in equal portions. Then you’ll have developed an understanding of the strength of bonding and of the lightness of response that everyone dreams of with their horses.

What is the most consistent error you see riders make with their horses?

The most consistent error is that many, many riders develop a chauvinistic attitude and treat their horses as though they are inanimate objects.

Then there are people who assess their horses as having human emotions and values, which is really unnatural, and they base that as their logic and interaction with horses. Horses are fantastic animals to have a relationship with, starting from the moment you sense each other’s presence in the pasture or stall and have them come to you. But remember, like the relationship between dam and foal — keep love, language and leadership in equal doses between you and the horse.

Is there any such thing as an irredeemable horse?

For people like my teachers, Tom Dorrance, Ronnie Willlis, Troy Henry, and Ray Hunt — I’ve never seen them think that any horse is irredeemable. But I have seen a lot of horses that are too challenging for the abilities of the owner. The owners need to find a positive alternative to constantly having the same problems. My program has a lot of solutions, and offers a great foundation program for people. But oftentimes the best alternative in those situations is for the horse to be a beautiful pasture ornament.

Whenever somebody doesn’t feel safe, that’s when the chasm between the human and the horse is too wide to bridge. You know how all the singles-matching organizations make you fill out a questionnaire profile to determine who would be the best match for you? That’s what people should do when they’re looking for a horse; they need to understand that the pairing needs to be appropriate. Many people find that they have picked the wrong horse for themselves. There are horses that want divorces, that’s why their owners should graduate my courses!

One of the things I recommend is for people who find themselves with what they think is an "irredeemable" horse is to seek professional help. A professional with integrity will give an honest and forthright opinion as to whether or not the gain will outweigh the efforts. This is what our Parelli Professionals are trained to do (there is a special rating for difficult horse trainers within the Parelli organization) --- to give this kind of advice and assessment before they accept the horse in training.

You are a fabulous trainer and teacher, but you are also a talented businessman and marketer. How did you get so business savvy?

I made a whole lot of mistakes! I woke up one morning and I was broke and the horses had all the bucks. Then a book fell into my lap called "Grinding It Out" by Ray Kroc, the originator of the McDonalds chain. That book was the first stimulation for me to really look at business from someone else’s viewpoint. When I found out what his definition of business was, I wanted to be the first person in the equine industry who created a model of a professional business. Then I started on my journey. Because it’s my passion, all the experience and education I’ve gotten is by seeking knowledge. From there I’ve ground it out like Ray Kroc did.

The other part of the equation is from what I learned in the E-Myth approach by Michael Gerber. He said, "Work on your business, not in your business." In order to do that, you have to surround yourself with people who are good at things that you’re not. His advice was to build an excellent team; and that’s what we have at Parelli Natural Horsemanship --- we have an excellent team.

I attended the Savvy Conference at your beautiful ranch in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. It was a wonderful experience and one of the best vacations I have ever had. I identified that what I wanted most was the emotional connection with my horse that you and all of your students had with their horses. That connection is the difference I see with "training" your horse and what I learned at the Savvy Conference. Once the emotional bond is made, does the training happen willingly?

Part of the essence of our program is that the pair bonding phenomena (like with mare and foal) can happen between an equine and another species. This is one of the very unique things about horses. The stronger you make the bond, the greater the response. There’s an old saying, "Horses can run faster and jump higher out of heart and desire." That’s where the value of that bond comes from. Horses see you as family, and the "blood is thicker than water" adage holds true as a philosophy for the rest of their lives.

If you were teaching horse psychology 101, what would be rule number 1?

Once you understand that horses are prey animals and humans are predators, then rule number one is that horses don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Rule number two is that you have to show them how much you know. From there on it’s a blending of love, language and leadership, in equal doses.

If you were teaching horse trainer psychology 101, what would be rule number 1?

Rule number one would be, "Never put your goal in front of your principles."

Your lovely wife Linda is an important partner in your seminars. How do you work and travel together 24/7 and still stay married?

We are equally passionate about this mission. Our mission is to help the level of horsemanship rise worldwide and make it a better place for horses.