First Do No Harm

Latest Episodes:

How do you ride your horse for soundness? part 1 Aug 06, 2025

Show notes

Join us in this episode where I share the focus of our riding school lessons for soundness first and ribbons second.

My goal with our horses is to have horses that enjoy learning and movement feels good. Creating a riding school environment where this is possible has been my obsession for the last 5 years as we have shared that journey with you and the lessons learned from valuable leaders in the industry pioneering this lens of working with horses.

In this episode we share the foundations of where we start our riders on this journey and next episode we will dig into the more advanced concepts.

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Sign up to our free webinar "say yes to a happy willing horse"

Ready to jump start into the work? Check out our groundwork program . Holistic horse handling

Or get the ridden and groundwork program: Holistic horse rider

What is connection training? Jul 23, 2025

Show notes

Join us in this episode as we dig into how we teach connection within our riding school. The soft skills are just as important as the practical and mechanical skills. Establishing congruence in training and a yes together requires understanding of what a no, not ready and not yet look like. It requires skills outside of escalation of pressure and power over when negotiating participation in an activity.

If you're ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian, check out our free webinar, "say yes to a happy, willing horse".

To lunge or not to lunge Jul 09, 2025

Show notes

In this episode we go over my history of learning how to lunge and when and why I will or will not use it now.

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian?

Join our free webinar: "say yes to a happy willing horse"

Make room for magic Jun 25, 2025

Show notes

There seems to be a great divide in equine industry where one side things that connection work is hippy dippy rubbish that has handlers that are too soft creating confused horses that aren't able to function in society and the other side that has experienced effective use of connection training where the horses are safer, more reliable and able to consent work even though hard things are being asked on them.

And we are on the side of equestrian history where connection is horse training is not only achievable but also so much more rewarding. Because if we wanted to work with horses mechanically, we would get motor bikes.

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Join our free webinar, "say yes to a happy, willing horse"

equine brain training with Dr Dana Rindermann episode 3 Jun 11, 2025

Show notes

Join us for the last of 3 episodes with Dr Dana Rindermann. Together with her mares and her trainees they are totally into equine brain training.Dana loves cognitive training, scentwork and all kinds of discrimination tasks. Let's deep dive into concept learning and innovative horse training such as fetching and ⁠⁠cooperative care training⁠⁠. Dana does equine scentwork, mainly tracking and searching for objects.Dana is a vet and founder of ⁠⁠@okapi_training⁠⁠, a professional R+ horse trainer, book author of "Mach mich stark", AAT alumna and R+Expert and a total behaviour geek devoted to ⁠⁠clicker training⁠⁠ and PORTL.

Want to work with Dana further?

Follow along with the video trainings on socials:

Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/equine_brain_training/⁠⁠

⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/okapi_training/⁠⁠

Facebook:

⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/Okapitraining⁠⁠

Check out the book (its in German) here:

⁠⁠⁠Mach Mich Stark⁠⁠⁠

The website here:

⁠⁠https://www.okapi-training.de/⁠⁠

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Check out our free webinar: ⁠⁠Say yes to a happy willing horse⁠

Equine brain training with Dr Dana Rindermann episode 2 May 28, 2025

Show notes

Join us for the second of 3 episodes with Dr Dana Rindermann. Together with her mares and her trainees they are totally into equine brain training.Dana loves cognitive training, scentwork and all kinds of discrimination tasks. Let's deep dive into concept learning and innovative horse training such as fetching and ⁠cooperative care training⁠. Dana does equine scentwork, mainly tracking and searching for objects.Dana is a vet and founder of ⁠@okapi_training⁠, a professional R+ horse trainer, book author of "Mach mich stark", AAT alumna and R+Expert and a total behaviour geek devoted to ⁠clicker training⁠ and PORTL.

Want to work with Dana further?

Follow along with the video trainings on socials:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/equine_brain_training/⁠

⁠https://www.instagram.com/okapi_training/⁠

Facebook:

⁠https://www.facebook.com/Okapitraining⁠

Check out the book (its in German) here:

⁠⁠Mach Mich Stark⁠⁠

The website here:

⁠https://www.okapi-training.de/⁠

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Check out our free webinar: ⁠Say yes to a happy willing horse

Equine brain training with Dr Dana Rindermann episode 1 May 14, 2025

Show notes

Join us for the first of 3 episodes with Dr Dana Rindermann. Together with her mares and her trainees they are totally into equine brain training.
Dana loves cognitive training, scentwork and all kinds of discrimination tasks. Let's deep dive into concept learning and innovative horse training such as fetching and cooperative care training. Dana does equine scentwork, mainly tracking and searching for objects.
Dana is a vet and founder of @okapi_training, a professional R+ horse trainer, book author of "Mach mich stark", AAT alumna and R+Expert and a total behaviour geek devoted to clicker training and PORTL.

Want to work with Dana further?

Follow along with the video trainings on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/equine_brain_training/

https://www.instagram.com/okapi_training/

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Okapitraining

Check out the book (its in German) here:

⁠Mach Mich Stark⁠

The website here:

https://www.okapi-training.de/

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Check out our free webinar: Say yes to a happy willing horse

How horses behaviours are affected by their eyesight part 2 with Andrew McLean Apr 30, 2025

Show notes

Join us in this episode with Dr Andrew McLean from Equitation Science International as he shares with us some insight into what horses can and can't see and how it affects their behaviour. Andrew shares all sorts of valuable information about their colour spectrum, range of vision and transitions from light to dark environments.

Jump over to Equitation Science International to see all of the valuable learning resources Andrew has put together.

⁠https://esi-education.com/shop/⁠

Interested in a horse training qualification? Check out the diploma of equitation science

⁠https://esi-education.com/courses/diploma/⁠

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Check out our free webinar

⁠https://www.equestrianmovement.com/sayyes⁠

What horses can and can't see and how it affects their behaviour with Andrew McLean Apr 02, 2025

Show notes

Jump over to Equitation Science International to see all of the valuable learning resources Andrew has put together.

https://esi-education.com/shop/

Interested in a horse training qualification? Check out the diploma of equitation science

https://esi-education.com/courses/diploma/

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Check out our free webinar

https://www.equestrianmovement.com/sayyes

Does my horse have hindgut ulcers with Kerri Hyland Apr 02, 2025

Show notes

Join us in this episode as Kerri digs into hind gut ulcers in horses: signs, symptoms, treatment and management. Kerri shares a complementary way to work with horses with ulcers in coordination with vet treatments.

To work with Kerri, pop over to her website and shoot through and enquiry

⁠https://www.vibrantanimalhealth.com.au/book-a-session⁠

Or follow Kerri's work on facebook

⁠https://www.facebook.com/vibrantanimalhealth/⁠

Or instagram

⁠https://www.instagram.com/vibrantlykerrie/⁠

Ready to start your journey as a holistic equestrian? Join our free webinar

⁠https://www.equestrianmovement.com/sayyes⁠