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by Curious Equestrian
Ask why before how. Conversations with researchers, vets and trainers, for anyone who cares about horses. Each episode takes a real question about horse behaviour, training, care or welfare and asks what the evidence says. No gurus, just better questions. Hosted by Anna Louise Claydon, produced by Theresa McCaffrey.
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- 3 weeks ago59 min
How did horse tricks turn a biting rescue horse around? | Noche Miller, Horse Tricks 101 trainer
Noche Miller turned to trick training when Rusty, a young rescue Morgan, bit and walked straight through people. He had been dumped at auction because nobody could handle him, and two or three months of traditional handling had got nowhere. Noche, an instructor with Horse Tricks 101, tells Anna Louise how teaching him to fetch a rubber chicken changed the way she works with horses, and why the same small steps prepare a horse for trailer loading, dental checks and being ridden.In this episode:- How fetch is built up from a single nose touch- Why standing on a pedestal makes trailer loading less of a leap- Treat manners, and why a good scratch can be a reward too- Choosing a reward worth working for that doesn't tip a horse into overexcitement- Scent boxes and grazing boxes for horses with limited turnout- Why it's fine to own a horse you don't ride- How Rusty and Ghost the cow each earned a Guinness world record for tricksGuest: Noche Miller, instructor with Horse Tricks 101horsetricks101.com, plus Facebook, Instagram and YouTube @horsetricks101Follow Curious Equestrian on Spotify to hear each new episode as soon as it's out.Free newsletter, including the behind-the-scenes listener Q&A with Noche Miller: https://www.curiousequestrian.co.uk/#/portal/signupSupport Curious Equestrian:Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/curiousequestrian (Bookshop pays us a small commission on purchases and a share goes to independent bookshops; it costs you nothing extra.)Merch: https://curiousequestrian.teemill.com/Chapters00:00 Introduction00:43 Rusty, the rescue Morgan nobody could handle07:55 What changed when trick training began09:21 Building fetch from a single nose touch13:43 Becoming a Horse Tricks 101 instructor14:52 Treat manners: from biting to waiting16:30 Dumped at auction21:00 Where Rusty's behaviour came from22:22 Guinness world records for Ghost the cow and Rusty26:02 Tricks for horses that can't be ridden27:28 Useful tricks: mounting blocks, trailers and teeth31:31 Working around a bad start32:43 Scent boxes and grazing boxes36:59 The Horse Tricks 101 community39:07 Over-horsed? Go back to groundwork41:17 It's fine not to ride45:09 Changing horsemanship by example49:01 Does a horse need to be food motivated?51:45 Choosing the right value of reward53:38 What trick training does for the human56:53 Ending the stigma around food
- Oct 1, 202652 min
Dartmoor Pony Crisis: The truth behind the headlines
In June the headlines said 90% of Dartmoor's semi-wild hill ponies faced a cull. A former consumer journalist went looking for who had actually said so, and for what would happen to a moorland herd that had to leave.Recorded in June 2026, before the Government changed the grazing rules on 15 July. There's an update at the end of this description.Angelique Ruzicka is a former personal finance and consumer journalist who now writes about sustainability in the horse world at Willow's Earth. Host Anna Louise Claydon starts where the panic started: why do so many people care so much about these ponies, and where did the cull story come from? Then the two of them test every rescue plan people were proposing against what a pony that has lived wild on the moor actually needs.In this episodeWhere the cull fear came from, and what Natural England had and hadn't saidWhy "let them stay" runs into a moor where grazing is already scarce and shared with sheep and cattleWhether an unhandled moorland pony could, or would want to, become a riding school ponyWhat a farmer's field, a sanctuary or a family home would ask of a pony used to travelling miles a day with its herdWhy throwing out hay is harder than it soundsThe question Anna couldn't answer on the day: what happens to the foals taken off the moor every year?What a journalist does when the headlines start shoutingFind Angelique Ruzicka online Willow's Earth: https://willowsearth.shop Her June piece, "Saving Dartmoor ponies sounds easy until you try and do it": https://willowsearth.shop/blogs/news/saving-dartmoor-ponies-sounds-easy-until-you-try-and-do-it Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/willow20222026 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelique-ruzicka/Subscribe to our newsletter: www.curiousequestrian.co.ukBook shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/curiousequestrianMerch: https://curiousequestrian.teemill.com/
- Aug 23, 202642 min
Horse listener, not horse whisperer with Nicci Mackay
Horse whisperer — or horse listener? Nicci Mackay on what horses are really telling usCan horses actually understand us? Nicci Mackay has spent her life arguing the question is backwards. She doesn't "whisper" to horses, and she's quick to correct anyone who calls her a horse whisperer — she listens.Nicci has communicated with animals since childhood, and has built a remarkable career translating what agitated, shut-down and "broken" horses are trying to say. In this episode she challenges the conventional wisdom around equine communication, what horses pick up on, and why so many of us are shouting when we should be listening.We talk about:• Why "horse whisperer" is the wrong word — and what "horse listener" actually means• What horses are really responding to (hint: it isn't the words)• The danger of anthropomorphising our horses — and how to read them on their own terms• Nicci's years as a groom and jockey, and what working in secret taught her• The moments she's been able to reach horses everyone else had given up onAbout the guest: Nicci Mackay is the author of Spoken in Whispers — The Autobiography of a Horse Whisperer. She has worked with horses, domestic pets, farm animals and birds, travelling widely to translate on behalf of animals for their owners. Her book is a rare insight into the minds, emotions and behaviour of the animals she's spent her life alongside — thought-provoking, often funny, and always honest.📚 Grab the book in our bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/4745/9781780572987
- Aug 9, 20261h 12m
What mouth breathing does to a rider's position | Ciara Glaisher
Chartered physiotherapist Ciara Glaisher treats horses and their riders as one system, and she says horse rider fitness starts with the breath. Most of us mouth breathe, brace our bellies and sit in chairs all day, then expect our pelvis to move with a horse's back. She tells host Anna Louise Claydon why a rider's position collapses mid-ride, what she keeps finding when a "sluggish" horse gets checked out, and why she'd rather riders learned a short symmetrical flow than signed up to a strengthening programme.In this episode:Why the yoga breathing rule, in through the nose and out through the mouth, might be wrongWhat holding your tummy in does to your breath, and what a baby does differentlyThe horses booked in as "a bit sluggish, maybe arthritis", and what a horse-and-rider assessment keeps turning up insteadWhether a sitting sport lets riders skip the warm-up every other sport demandsFind Ciara Glaisher: merlinvetphysio.co.uk (her Symmetry & Synergy rider programme Instagram @ciaraglaisher_merlinphysioFacebook: Merlin PhysiotherapyCurious EquestrianFollow the show on Spotify so you never miss an episode, and join our free newsletter for the full story behind this episode and the after-hours listener Q&A: https://www.curiousequestrian.co.uk/#/portal/signup
- Aug 2, 202646 min
Equestrian vaulting: the horse sport you can start without riding
Equestrian vaulting is gymnastics on horseback, and everyone in this episode says the same unlikely thing about it: you can start with no riding, no gymnastics and no particular level of fitness. Curious Equestrian spent a day at RDA Woodbridge as the centre launched vaulting for the first time, meeting Anne Hardwick, chair of British Equestrian Vaulting, two-star vaulter Annika Sievert, and Lizzie Bennett, The Para Vaulter, who started the sport from a wheelchair and coaches there from this month. Host Anna Louise Claydon, who is scared of heights, has a go herself. A sport that began with Roman cavalry and 18th-century circus acts, and appeared at the Olympics once, in 1920.In this episode:- Why Anne says you need no ability at all to start, and what the first sessions actually look like- What Anne looks for in a vaulting horse, and why temperament is settled long before movement- The other 23 hours: herd turnout, hacking and pole work, and why a vaulting horse that is only lunged does not last- The hat question, handed straight back to us, and where RDA rules and FEI rules part company- Why the barrel and the mechanical horse exist: rehearsing the biomechanics so a real horse never pays for the mistake- Annika Sievert on the fall at Saumur that should not have happened, and what the sport gave her that school never did- Lizzie Bennett on blacking out during every upside-down move, and what ten years of very small steps changedFind the clubs and coaches:British Equestrian Vaulting: britishvaulting.orgFind a club near you: britishvaulting.org/clubsSuffolk Vaulting Club, Poplar Park, Hollesley: suffolkvaulting.comRDA Woodbridge & District Group: rdawoodbridge.org.ukLizzie Bennett, The Para Vaulter: instagram.com/theparavaulterVaulting at the FEI World Championships in Aachen runs 13-16 August 2026 and is streamed online: aachen2026.comCurious EquestrianFollow the show on Spotify so you never miss an episode, and join our free newsletter for the full story behind this episode and the after-hours listener Q&A: https://www.curiousequestrian.co.uk/#/portal/signup
- Jul 24, 20261h 4m
She was taught to dominate horses. Her rescue horse said no | Shelby Dennis
Shelby Dennis was taught to "get after" horses from the age of four, showing on the Arabian circuit and told not to worry: they're big animals, it doesn't hurt them. Then a rescue horse called Milo squared up to fight her when she escalated pressure the way she'd been taught, and everything she'd internalised started to come apart.That's where this conversation with the IAABC-certified equine behaviour consultant and author of Secrets of the Horse begins. There was another catalyst too: when her family went bankrupt and her horse moved from a show barn to a yard with herd turnout on 20 acres, his spooking and bolting stopped almost overnight, and nothing in his training had changed. Now she trains with positive reinforcement, on the principle that all behaviour is a symptom of an underlying feeling: a horse can't disrespect you, because respect is a human concept.From there, she and host Anna Louise Claydon take the same questions to the sport itself. Can equestrian competition ever be ethical? Shelby's answer is yes, but not under the current governing bodies. She points to the FEI's softened blood rule, the equipment still permitted at the top levels, and a study that found oral lesions in 87 to 88% of horses examined after an upper-level cross-country test (one event, as she's careful to say, and one that needs replicating). Her challenge to the industry is simple: if these things are truly harmless, prove it.The conversation also turns to the humans: trigger stacking, emotional regulation, and the permission not to ride today; and the connection between neurodivergent minds and horses, which Anna (freshly diagnosed with ADHD) and Shelby (diagnosed later in life) both speak to from experience.In this episode:- How being taught to dominate horses unravelled, one rescue horse at a time- How moving one horse to herd turnout on 20 acres did what training never had- Why positive reinforcement gives a horse a reason to enjoy the work, where pressure and release can only offer relief- Whether equestrian competition can ever be ethical, and why Shelby says not under the current governing bodies- The FEI blood rule, permitted equipment, and the cross-country oral lesion study- Trigger stacking, emotional regulation, and honouring your body around horses- Neurodivergence, masking, and why so many neurodivergent people are drawn to horsesFind Shelby DennisBook: Secrets of the HorsePaperback: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/4745/9781608689736Audiobook: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/4745/9798349163685Website: milestoneequestrian.ca (Publications tab)Instagram @sdequus | Facebook Milestone Equestrian | TikTok @sdequus(The Bookshop.org links are affiliate links: they support independent bookshops and Curious Equestrian at no extra cost to you.)Curious EquestrianFollow the show on Spotify so you never miss an episode, and join our free newsletter for listener Q&As with our guests, bonus content and behind-the-scenes: https://www.curiousequestrian.co.uk/#/portal/signup
- Jul 11, 202659 min
Horse's Hierarchy of Needs with Marcel Olivé
What if your horse isn't being naughty at all, but telling you something you were never taught to hear? Horsemanship expert Marcel Olivé joins Curious Equestrian to challenge everything we assume about horse psychology, and why the words we reach for, stubborn, lazy, mischievous, moody, almost always miss what the horse is actually saying.Drawing on more than 15 years with horses and his book The Truth About Your Horse, Marcel argues that good horse psychology starts by dropping the idea that we're the boss. Horses aren't kings and queens who want luxury; they're animals with a hierarchy of needs, and until food, freedom, safety and social contact are met, no amount of training will build the partnership we're after.In this episode:→ Why "we treat horses like kings and queens" fundamentally misreads what a horse actually wants→ The Horse's Hierarchy of Needs explained, from food and freedom of movement to safety, socialisation, confidence and fulfilment→ Why most "bad" behaviour is hidden pain or fear rather than stubbornness, and what horse psychology asks you to look for instead→ How the release of pressure, not the pressure itself, is what actually teaches a horse anything→ Why "respect the no" matters, and how forcing a horse into a trailer or a headcollar tends to backfire→ What walking with your horse, and sometimes doing nothing at all, does for connection that riding never will→ Why Marcel says the human, not the horse, is almost always the thing that needs to changeAbout Marcel OlivéMarcel Olivé is a horsemanship expert, equine-assisted facilitator and performance coach who came to horses as an adult and has spent more than 15 years pruning traditional methods down to what actually holds up under scrutiny. He is the author of The Truth About Your Horse and the creator of The Horse's Hierarchy of Needs, a free infographic he wants on the wall of every yard, stable and training centre. His work covers horse psychology in all its forms: horse behaviour and communication, equine welfare, the horse's hierarchy of needs, pressure-and-release training, and why understanding a horse matters far more than controlling it. Marcel's books are available on Amazon, and more about his current projects can be found on his website. Resources & links→ https://www.marcelolive.com/original-horses-hierarchy-of-needs→ Marcel Olivé's website: https://www.marcelolive.com/Subscribe & exploreSubscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@curiousequestrian?sub_confirmation=1Newsletter: www.curiousequestrian.co.ukBookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/curiousequestrianMerch: https://curiousequestrian.teemill.com/If horse psychology, horse behaviour and equine welfare matter to you, subscribe so you never miss an episode.
- Jun 24, 20261h 2m
She worked inside horse racing. This is what they don't show you
She worked inside horse racing. Then she started saying the things most people in the sport won't.After multiple racehorse deaths at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival and Grand National, the outrage landed on race day. But Alex Fleming says the deaths you see are not horse racing's biggest welfare problem. The harder question is the ordinary life of the racehorse: stabled for most of the day, little or no turnout or herd life, hard feed in place of forage, and stomach ulcers so common they have come to be treated as normal. They are said to live like kings, she argues, when what they actually want is to live like horses.It's a candid, good-faith conversation about what needs to change in horse racing, and why Alex believes education, not blame, is what will change it. She points to yards proving that better welfare and real success go together, and explains why she isn't calling for a ban, but won't rule one out either.Alex Fleming got into racing after a trip to Cheltenham for her 18th birthday. She trained at the British Racing College, worked in racing yards and freelanced riding out, and now retrains and rehomes ex-racehorses. Her Facebook post calling for an overhaul of the sport went viral after the 2026 Grand National.In this episode:– Why the deaths on race day aren't horse racing's biggest welfare problem– What daily life is really like for a racehorse: turnout, forage and stomach ulcers– Why nearly every ex-racehorse comes home with ulcers, and what that tells us– How breeding for speed has raised the risk of injury– What happens to thoroughbreds when their racing days end– Why educating the owners who fund racing might be what finally changes itA note on this conversation: Alex speaks from her own experience and opinion, and deliberately does not name the yards she refers to. This is a public-interest discussion of horse welfare, not a criticism of any particular yard or individual, and it is general discussion rather than veterinary advice. If you have concerns about your own horse, speak to your vet.Join our free newsletter, The Inquisitive Herd, for the listener Q&A with Alex that carries on after the cameras stop, plus producer Theresa's take.Find Alex Fleming on Facebook (Alex Fleming) and at coaching4confidence.co.uk
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About Curious Equestrian
Ask why before how. Conversations with researchers, vets and trainers, for anyone who cares about horses. Each episode takes a real question about horse behaviour, training, care or welfare and asks what the evidence says. No gurus, just better questions. Hosted by Anna Louise Claydon, produced by Theresa McCaffrey.
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