“I am delighted with the way Jason starts my homebred youngsters, and he has also helped me with working through problems with my older horses, too”

– Laura Tomlinson MBE (nee Bechtolsheimer, Olympic Dressage Gold and Bronze Medallist)

Training Philosophy

I have spent my working life building on my experiences and the knowledge of generations of horsemen in my own family and other exceptional horse trainers and these decades of experience underpin my training philosophy.

My grandfather and father were using techniques based on the natural instincts of the horse well before the term “natural horsemanship” was introduced to the equestrian world. They understood how to read the horse’s reactions to situations and adapt their own movements and behavior to bring out the best in their animals. In turn, they passed their stockman’s knowledge onto my siblings and I. After such a good start in my horse training education, I have spent the next twenty years refining these techniques through working with thousands of horses and owners to produce a training program that I believe works for both horses and riders.

My horse training revolves around these three concepts:

• Developing a balance between TRUST and RESPECT in both horse and owner creates an attitude to learn. They are fundamental to your partnership with your horse and future progression and success in your chosen discipline.
• Having the skills and confidence to be a leader to your horse creates willingness in the horse to follow and try for you.
• Knowledge is power. The more you learn, the more knowledge you can impart to your horse and the more your partnership will progress and strengthen… Never stop trying to learn to be a better horseperson!

Jason’s Training Method

All of my training programs revolve around my MO:RE4 process:

MO:RE4 Training = MOtivate >> REsult >> REward >> REflect >> REpeat

In practical terms, this process is often related to the concept of ‘making the right thing easy and the wrong thing hard’, ‘advance-retreat’ and ‘pressure – release’. However, this same process can also allow the horse trainer to choose a positive reinforcement as a “motivation”, therefore encompassing both the negative and positive reinforcement scales of horse training.

When you consider the definition of pressure as ‘the exertion of force against a thing; influence or persuasion of an oppressive kind’, it is only natural that I should prefer to use the word “motivate” as it is defined as ‘to stimulate the interest of; to inspire’ (Oxford English Dictionary). Within my horse training, I am not forcing the horse to follow my commands but I am giving the horse an option and in time they will find the easy option (my desired “result”) and be rewarded.

Horses are Animals

I always impress upon people the need to consider that their horse is an animal, with instincts and needs that have evolved through thousands of years in order to keep them alive. When I train horses, I use and work with their natural instincts to teach them but I also try to look at the whole picture; how is the horse managed at home? What is he fed? Are there simple steps that could be taken to change his behaviour? How can we balance the needs of the owner with the needs of the horse? Horses are amazingly adaptable animals and it is part of our duty as owners to consider not just their physical health but their mental well-being too.