Lutkemeier Follows Brune the Natural Horsemanship Way

Dressage

German Dressage News

German squad rider Fabienne Lutkemeier has joined countr mate Bernadette Brune on the natural horsemanship way. Lutkemeier travelled to Gestut Brune with her Grand Prix horse Fabregaz for some out-of-the-(dressage)-box groundwork.

German B-squad rider Bernadette Brune has been doing natural horsemanship ground work to desensitize spooky horses to scary, human objects such as umbrellas, flags, and plastic, while at the same time creating a better bond of trust between person and horse.

"I had been thinking about working my horses the horsemanship way for a while now," Fabienne explained. "Bernadette Brune does it intensively and I've watching her work on the internet for a while now. I really liked it, so I contacted her and asked if I could come round. Fabregaz came along. He's incredibly curious and wants to look at every thing. So I thought this would work for him. And it did!"

Lutkemeier's 10-year old German Sport Horse Fabregaz (by Florestano x Ragazzo) had to run over plastic, got covered up by it. Brune ran around the horse dribbeling a ball.

"You notice that it's mentally challenging for Fabregaz. During the work he always had a very focused expression on his face. I believe it was more exerting than a Grand Prix test," Lutkemeier explained. "Fabregaz found both days mega-interesting and had a lot of fun, just like I had. I'm totally convinced that this type of training is valuable for our trust."

Lutkemeier, however, is very well aware that two sessions won't do the magic trick. "It needs time," she exclaimed. "You can't do this type of training thinking, 'now I have 20 minutes time'. It doesn't work that way. It takes as long as it takes. The horse shows when he had enough. One time it's 20 minutes, the next 45 minutes. I will be adding some of those tasks at home; for mental diversity, trust and fun."