It was only recently that I came across the name,

Jesse Beery.

The Jesse Beery Manuals

Perhaps this was due to the fact that I’m “way down-under” tucked away in Tasmania, Australia. Anyway, it appears that he was a significant figure in the “horse world” during the latter 1800s until he passed away in 1945.

Based on what I’d heard about Jesse Beery I did a bit of research and discovered that there’s lot of information available about his impact on the horse training world.

Wikipedia, in their introductory paragraph described Jesse Beery this way.

“Professor Jesse Beery (June 13, 1861 – February, 1945) was an American horse trainer and writer. He claimed he could train any horse, horses that ran away, horses that pulled too hard, horses that were spooked too easily and horses that refused to be shoed. His best-known work was Prof. Beery’s Mail Course in Horsemanship, and sold widely through mail-order ads placed in various equine magazines. His horse training methods are claimed to have been used by horse trainers all over the world over the last hundred years.”

It also appears that in his early life he found that he had a unique skill at handling animals. So he decided to capitalize on these skills and he began to visit various areas of the US in order to display his techniques. After 16 years of impressing spectators with his talents, Jesse eventually finished up with a greater volume of demand for his work than he could handle.

To quote further from Wikipedia …

“In 1905, Berry made the decision to go back to his hometown and start an educational enterprise he would call the Jesse Beery School of Correspondence in Horsemanship. The main objective was to help others gain the skills and mastery that he believed he possessed. He propounded common sense horse training methods, and even today, his supporters claim him to be one of very few horse trainers to have had this kind of far-reaching effect.

“In addition to his unique talents in the realm of horse training, he was the inventor of an array of implements he claimed to be intended to help gain mastery over the animals he oversaw, creating an assortment of tools, bridles and bits that were also sold via mail order. The correspondence school was said to be inundated with scores of letters and notes throughout its history containing endless gratitude and respect for the techniques promulgated by its founder.”

Jesse Beery authored a series of 8 mauals covering these subjects …

1. Colt Training
2. Disposition & Subjection
3. Kicking & Baulking
4. Shying & Running Away
5. Bad to Shoe & Halter Pulling
6. Promiscuous Vices
7. Afraid Of Automobiles / The Story Of Kate
8. Trick Training & The Story Of Queen’s Life

These manuals have been commercialized in a number of ways and can be purchased in various media formats. I’ve included links at the end of this article, including a link to my own reproduction of the originals which you can download at no cost. At the finish of the YouTube video on this page is one way in which you can purchase the manuals.

There is so much information about horses and the fundamentals of training theme that I suggest it should be essential reading for everybody, whether novice or professional.  It may be old, but it is the basis of what every horse trainer is doing today.

On the lighter side, one of the manuals has a chapter on the life of two horses. It’s written from the horses’ perspective and covers how each horse was trained, their life experiences, their phobias, and feelings. It gives you a real insight into what it must be like to be a horse and also what a great understanding Jesse Beery had of the horse.

Though Jesse Beery passed away in early 1945, his legacy in the world of horse training is obviously still highly regarded and many thousands of students of horse training have learned his approach.

Now for the links to get your copy of  the Jesse Beery manuals I mentioned earlier … for access to these, please click the Google +1 button below.

No related posts.

A book review.

I’ve not done a book review here before, but having recently being told about and reading Joe Camp’s book, The Soul of a Horse, I really felt that I should spread the word. I love horses and I love a book that makes me think. The Soul of a Horse did that and more. The book is clever and witty, but at the same time, inspiring. I actually felt quite sad when I’d finished the book because I wanted to read more.

Many of Joe Camp’s lessons can be applied to life … not just horses!

Being one of those exploring horse riding as a kid and finally coming back to it in my early 50s, this book was just what I needed to help weed out all the conflicting traditional information. In particular Joe Camp challenges his own perceptions and the perceptions of others as he seeks to learn what a horse needs, rather than what we think they need.

Throughout the book you’ll see three separate perspectives exposed; a wild herd of horses, a neophyte horse owner, and experienced voices of experts in their field. These three views create an ever evolving, ever building understanding. The choices made in the book are not always the easy ones, but prove to be the right ones.

Life lessons from the herd.

To use the words of of another reviewer, Ysabelle Dean (Victoria, Australia) “ The Soul of a Horse examines the biological, physiological and emotional needs of the modern domestic horse and how successfully these are met by widely used and accepted methods of husbandry, handling and training. A delightful blend of autobiography, critical analysis and storytelling, this book engages the reader intellectually and emotionally from start to finish. Joe Camp  presents his ‘life lessons from the herd’ with the same humble, gentle yet persuasive persistence we admire in the very best horse trainers”.

If you’ve ever owned and loved a horse, then this book is truly a “must read”.                                                                             

 Be prepared however, once you begin to read this book you won’t want tp put it down! Joe Camp takes you on his journey into horsemanship and it’s a journey I’m sure you’ll enjoy. He weaves a fictional story alongside his real life story. Even non-horse people will love this book. He learns why natural horsemanship is a better deal, both for you and for your horse.  His experiences are real and well-described. He admits to being a new horseman but you’ll find you will learn a few tricks from him.  The Soul of a Horse is just a great book and a great read; one you’ll almost certainly want to read a second time.

Related posts:

1. Early Lessons ~ The Backbone of a Foal’s Higher Education.
2. A Horse First Aid Kit Could Save Your Horse’s Life ~ A Few Helpful Tips!
3. Do It Yourself Parelli Horse Training.

This is Guest Post slightly removed from the subject of  EASY HORSE CARE.  I’ve included it here with the idea that it might  provide you with a bit of horse entertainment when the weather is just too inclement for riding.

With all due respect to the other games, we can freely say that there is horse games fever.  These games are knocking on the big door, and guess what; they are here to stay for a long, long time. It is rather accepted to say that all horse games lovers can find variety of them researching on the Internet; there are games that you can download and play on your home data processor, games that you can play online competing with other online players, children’s horse games and even games where you can breed virtual racing horses. As you can see there are many types of horse games, but the ones that we are talking about are the racing ones.  

 The most popular among players are the online horse games, as they are free and can be played all day long. Some of these games just send the de facto outcome of the race, and allow people to bet on those occasions. In others you can simply take the place of the jockey and race with other horses to win a treasure or place in horse racing society. But, according to many reviews the most fun and the most interesting is “Stableking” – and why is that? Its unproblematic, you can breed your own virtual horses, have your own stable, race with other stables and do everything that real stable owners do. In other words, horse racing games give us 24 hours of fun and amusement.

 True or not, some reckon that the popularity of these games is because of the gambling they extend. And to be utterly factual, that’s true. Some games begin with secretly placing bets on the horse you consider a winner. Only after placing bets, players can take the role of jockeys and make strategies how to win the race.

 Gambling or not, Horse Racing Games have been here long before other racing games. Win, Place and Show, is reasoned to be the first modernized horse table game, primitively promulgated in 1966 by Avalon Hill. This game offers six horses and six lines, each marked up with quantity, allowing the players to have certain amount of strategy in the lines they prefer to take.

Horse racing games are found to be highly interesting and gratifying for players of all ages. If you haven’t tested a horse game till now, you should do so! I’m sure you’ll find them very addictive and a great way to relax. And what is the most satisfactory is that you can find variety of them on the Internet free of cost.

Here’s a good horse racing game gift idea:  Deluxe Wooden Horse Race Game

Related posts:

1. Lucinda Green’s Equestrian Challenge.
2. Barrel Racing: Not For The Faint-Hearted!