To enter upon an apprenticeship with the horse as our sacred guide, we must release all vestiges of ego: only then can the most elevated journey of discovery begin: one living being to another without rank. In this journey the horse will become your teacher. To come to this final place of apprenticeship, you must be humble. You must search out and learn from human teachers to prepare yourself to be worthy of a journey with horses; remembering not all persons are what they claim. To present yourself to a horse before earning the right to enter their world, insures your lessons will be painful and difficult at best and at worst you will fail in your ultimate goal.
I bring 50 years as a professional, to my consulting work and to the court room as an expert witness. I have had the rare privilege, during my career, to work with some of the twentieth century’s most innovative thinkers, including: Sally Swift, Linda Tellington-Jones, Peggy Cummings, Monty Foreman and Gene Lewis. I have also worked with and observed world class horseman: David Brandenburg, Bert DeNemethy, Jack LeGoff, Denny Emerson, Nuno Olivera, Herman Friedlaender, Charles deKunffy and Anders Lindgren.
A national clinician, lecturer, author of three books, in 1991 the American Riding Instructors Association recognized my contribution to the industry by making me the recipient of their first ever Lifetime Achievement Award. It is the second most treasured award of my career, the first having always been my TEVIS buckle.
I continue to offer the insights I have gained through a lifetime of work with horses through my consulting service. The service will allow you to have an “expert’s opinion” as close as your e-mail or telephone. This service gives the amateur horse owner, rider and lover the ability to get quick answers to important, time sensitive equine questions as well as getting additional referrals to important related research information. I also offer video analysis for horse and/or rider performance based questions in my “virtual lessons with Donna” service and customized training, conditioning and competitive program assistane for endurance riderse. For more details, please contact me directly.
To build a successful career that will last a lifetime you must acquire a detailed knowledge of the elements which constitute your foundation.
