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Rising Talent Horsemanship Vol. 6 April, 2022

rthorsemanship.com

Energy is Key

-By Sloan Adams

Staying Patient in the Process -By Micha Asburner -& MORE!

Featuring 3 Up-and-Coming Trainers

Social Media & Mustangs -By Ann Hanlin Never Stop Learning -By Sarah Brillhart

“Equines are sensitive beings and can pick up on small, intangible things such as your thoughts and energy. Opening your mind to this concept can result in you being more self-aware of your thoughts and feelings.”

-Sloan Adams

Sloan Adams and her horse, Sedona Photo Credits: Melvis Photography

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Editorial Page Information Rising Talent Horsemanship seeks to highlight new and established horse trainers.

Rising Talent Horsemanship

Volume 1, Issue 5, February 2022

Legal Any views, opinions, or training techniques expressed in Rising Talent Horsemanship are not necessarily those of the editor, nor can they be held accountable. Rising Talent Horsemanship, VanFleet Mustangs or Samantha Van Fleet will not be held responsible for any copyright infringement or misrepresentation on the part of advertisers or highlighted trainers. Any correspondence to Rising Talent Horsemanship, its editor, or publisher are assumed for publication. All stories (verbal or printed), photos, news items, and any other submitted materials, solicited by Rising Star Horsemanship or not are assumed to be legally released by the submitter for publication.

EDITORS Sarah Burgner Sam VanFleet Contributing Writers Salone Adams Micha Asburner Sarah Brillhart Ann Hanlin

www.rthorsemanship.com

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Meet the Editors... Hey there! I’m Sarah, and I reside in Jonesborough,

Tennessee. Like most little girls, I have been in love with all things equines since I was 6 years old. From pretending I was a horse myself, to starting my own colts, loving on mustangs, to jumping in the show ring, I have never been able to get enough of God’s most gorgeous creation, the horse.

Now, twenty years later, I have started my own natural horsemanship mentoring business and am elated at the opportunity to be a collaborator and editor of this magazine!

Hey guys, I’m Sam, a 23-year-old trainer

whose passion is gentling, training, and rehoming mustangs to get them out of holding. My other passion is helping other horse owners communicate with their horses better. Over the past few years I've developed my business through YouTube, clinics, training, taking and teaching lessons, learning through internships, social media, etc. My goal is to help other young trainers grow their businesses as well and connect the equine community… which is why I began this magazine.

Sarah and I are so excited to bring you this magazine full of content. We hope you enjoy!

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Table of

Contents

Sloan Adams

Micha Asburner

Read all about this young women’s wisdom towards equine energy and psychology.

Get inspired by Micha’s constant commitment to learning all she can.

Sarah Brillhart

Ann Hanlin

pg 5

Learn to love learning with Sarah, as she grows in her training methods. pg 12

pg 9

Be encouraged as Ann shares her story of mom life with social media and mustangs. pg 15

April Features

The Trainers

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Read and be encouraged by the stories and testimonies of these trainers!

Micha Asburner with Burro, Echo Photo Credits: Anouschka Rokebrand

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Sloan Adams SEA Horsemanship Greenback, TN

Age 17

Hello, everyone! My name is Sloan Adams, I am 17 years old, and I am the owner/trainer of SEA Horsemanship in Greenback, Tennessee! I started my journey training horses at the age of ten when a local horse rescue my mom volunteered for asked if I would be interested in halter training five untouched yearlings. Of course, I said yes! starting my love for training horses. Thanks to my supportive friends and family, I am now training horses full time. I offer equine gentling, colt starting and restarting, problem-solving, groundwork, lessons, and I teach clinics! I recently pushed my training skills and competed in Rally for the Rescues 2020 and 2021, winning Grand Champion both years! Next, I hope to begin my mustang journey and compete in a mustang training challenge this year. Not only do I compete in trainer’s challenges, but you can also find me showing in various disciplines such as Hunter/Jumpers, Trail Challenges, Barrel Racing, Pole Bending, and flat shod Tennessee Walking Horse shows. I hope to learn more disciplines as I grow! Without the love and support of my family and friends, I would not be where I am today. So many doors have been opened for me and the faith and encouragement given to me has lifted me up and given me the strength the persevere.

Contact Information: Website: seahorsemanship.com Email: seahorsemanship72@gmail.com Phone: (865) 258-8373 Facebook: SEA Horsemanship Instagram: @sea.horsemanship

RISING TALENT HORSEMANSHIP

Above All- Energy is Key Here at SEA Horsemanship, my methods are energy based. Sounds intriguing, but what does it mean to be energy based and how does it affect your horse's performance? Horses are prey animals and react based upon the feel and energy of their environment. These creatures can sense the intention of those around them, whether human or another equine. As the partner of an equine, you are relinquishing your inner thoughts and feelings to the horse, possibly even thoughts and feelings you are not aware of. Horses can dive into your subconscious, helping them decide how to feel and react to your presence. Not only can horses read your body language and develop an understanding of what you are presenting to them, but they can also sense your tone of voice, your emotion, your energy, and, most importantly, your intentions. As prey animals, horses have a keen sense and can interpret intentions beyond what the human can. Some horses are more sensitive to your electromagnetic field and have a stronger feel of your energy and aura. Because these horses can better sense the intentions of a predator, in a herd, these equines would fall at the top of the herd hierarchy. On the other end of the spectrum, some horses cannot properly read more than what is presented through body language, these horses fall to the bottom of the herd pecking order. Now, how does this affect us as the equine’s partner? When working with any equine, it is important to use your body, mind and spirit when asking for performance of tasks. I’ll start with the most evident, using your body. As horsemen and horsewomen, we learn from the beginning how to use our bodies to ask a horse to perform, whether on the ground or under-saddle. I won’t go into much detail as to how you use your body to communicate as it is also shown . in how you use your mind and spirit. A more advanced level of communicating with your equine involves the use of your mind. Our minds hold all our deepest thoughts and feelings and we project these thoughts and feelings, sometimes without realization. Feelings can be easily read through body language by horses and humans alike. But how? Lauri Nummenmaa, a psychologist at Aalto University once said, "Our emotional system in the brain sends signals to the body so we can deal with our situation.” When nervous, your body responds by releasing stress hormones which increase your heart rate, tighten your muscles, and elevate your blood pressure. When relaxed, your heart rates slows, your blood pressure is reduced, and your body naturally relieves tension. Your body responds to your thoughts and feelings and this energy is transferred to your horse. Equines can hear a human's heartbeat from up to four feet away and synchronize their own heartbeat. When you are nervous or tense, your heart rate increases and in response, your horse's synced heart rate increases, resulting in a nervous horse. When you are relaxed, your heart rate decreases, leading to your horse's heart rate decreasing, making a more relaxed and calm horse. This is the same for all thoughts and feelings. How your body responds determines how your horse responds.

RISING TALENT HORSEMANSHIP Photo by Zoe Adams

Lastly, but most importantly - how your spirit affects communication with an equine. As electromagnetic beings, humans have a field that projects 4-5 feet from their physical body commonly referred to as an “aura”. Every being has an aura unique to them! Some humans can easily read another’s aura and quickly establish trust – or lack thereof. Animals, like dogs and horses, can also feel and read one’s aura, deciding if a human can be trusted or not. It is commonly said that dogs can sense evil, well horses are no different! Some people hold negative energy in their aura, commonly from a past trauma leaving tension in their mind and body. Horses will react to this negative aura and can become tense, fearful, and uncooperative. On the other hand, some people hold positive energy in their aura. Horses will react confidently to this and will tend to trust quicker and be more in tune with the handler.

How do you change and manipulate your body, mind, and spirit to better your horsemanship? Your body physically responds to your brain and in order to control the “uncontrollable” factors of your body, such as nervous responses, you need to learn how to manage your mind and energy. The easiest and quickest way to manage your energy is physically through your body by taking deep breaths, grounding yourself, and clearing your mind. You can ground yourself by making your body and the earth “become one.” I achieve this by imagining a line connected to the top of my head that runs down, through my body, into the center of the earth. I imagine a force pulling this line down, meshing me with the earth, grounding any negative thoughts or feelings. This can be achieved when handling or riding a horse. I frequently find myself doing this if I am anxious or nervous when working with a new equine. I have often heard that a horse could be charging me and you would never know it because I look so calm. This is because I ground myself, lowering my energy, creating a safe space for a nervous or dangerous horse. This should lower the horses’ energy, calming them down. A long-term method of controlling your energy would be through meditation. Meditation can be used to bring your energy down and help you find mechanisms that work for you to calm and relax yourself in what may be a nervous situation. This may be while riding or working with a horse. Learning to control and relax your energy will make a tremendous impact on your horsemanship and how your horse responds to your presence. Equines are sensitive beings and can pick up on small, intangible things such as your thoughts and energy. Opening your mind to this concept can result in you being more self-aware of your thoughts and feelings. Facing these feelings and accepting them may relieve unknown tension that you carry, effecting your horse's performance with you. Because it is such a critical component in understanding and communicating, the practice of energy will remain the foundation of my training and should became a big part of yours!

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

As long as it takes for them to ﬁnd trust and joy…

“Never again will harm threaten you” is the promise we make to every horse who crosses our path. While spending time with these mustangs, you can feel their gratitude every single day. Contact Sweetbeau for more info. email: info@sweetbeauhorses.org phone: 805-591-0533

Sweetbeau YouTube Channel “Sweetbeau Horses”

@sweetbeauhorses Located in Creston, California

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Micha Asburner McNeal, AZ

Age 16 ~ Trainer at Lucky A Ranch

My name is Micha Ashburner, I am 16 years old, and I am a donkey and mule trainer. I have been training animals for 3 years since my ﬁrst Arizona TIP challenge I competition in 2019. I gentle and train wild burros with the BLM and train domestic burros and mules for clients in liberty, pack-racing, and tricks. As well as saddle breaking mules. I have competed in the youth burro division at the Arizona Mustang Heritage TIP Challenge for the past three years and placed 1st in 2019, 3rd in 2020, and 2nd in 2021. I always use natural training methods that are rope-free. Patience and consistency is key! As I continue my journey in training, I hope to learn a variety of training methods from my mentors and those willing to give advice. I am competing in both the May and September Arizona TIP challenges in 2022 and hope to continue advancing my skills as a trainer as I continue training.

Contact Information: Instagram: @luckyamulegirl101 Email: Mulelove159@gmail.com Facebook: @Micha Ashburner Phone Number: (520)366-7675

Micha and Burro Photo Credit: Anouschka Rokebrand

10 RISING TALENT HORSEMANSHIP

Staying patient in the process…

Micha & E.T. Micha & Tuco

Micha & Rene

One of the best tips I have for success is forming a connection between you and the equine you are training. Every animal learns differently and at their own pace. As a trainer, it is important you understand training is a process that takes consistency and time. I own two mules that were rescued from kill pens in the US. Both had severe trust issues and even acted aggressive out of fear when I got them. It took my molly mule over a year of consistent human interaction to finally trust again. I was the only person she allowed to handle her the first year and a half; because, I was the one who took the time to work with her. It has been three years since I rescued her and she is thriving due to the patience and consistency she was given. Since then, I re-started her to ride in my own style and I am in the process of teaching her liberty. It is important not to give up on an animal because they seem “too difficult” to train or just “untrainable.” I believe every animal is trainable with the right mindset. Some animals just need to be worked with by a trainer who is willing to train through a different perspective. Every chance I get, I reach out to others and ask for advice on how to improve my training and ask if there’s any different methods they would encourage me to learn. Training is a never-ending learning process for both the trainer and the animal. Every animal I have trained has taught me something new. I have been taught so much, from the importance of patience to the thinking process to prevent frustration. By spending fifteen minutes a day with the animal you are training, you can form a great connection that will provide a foundation for a successful session. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask advice in areas of training you aren’t confident in.

Everyday you have the opportunity to learn new things that can improve and enhance your training abilities.

Counter Designs! ~Rising TalentCanter Horsemanship~

Mystery of the Mustang

. . LEARN MORE 11

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Sarah Brillhart Trainer and Riding Instructor -

WF Stables -

Jonesborough, TN -

Age 22 Sarah and Bishop

Ever since I can remember, I have wanted to be around horses and begged to ride any time I could. When I was ten, I started taking riding lessons, and I never looked back. I started where everyone does, as a beginner who struggled to learn how to post on the correct diagonal, but I stuck with it through the years and started showing in the hunter ring. After a few years of showing and getting my ﬁrst amazing packer-type horse, I decided I wanted to learn how to train horses, so my trainer started letting me exercise horses of all ages and training levels. Several years later, I decided I was ready to ﬁnd a horse to start from the ground up, and that’s when I found Bishop. A scraggly, little palomino pony with a BLM brand. She was the perfect amount of challenging, forgiving, and sparked my interest in wild mustangs. After developing her for a year, I made a leap of faith and decided to adopt a six-year-old mustang gelding now known as Moose. Moose challenged my training style and ultimately introduced me to positive reinforcement, which I have integrated into my everyday training style.

Sarah working on halter training with her mustang gelding, Moose.

RISING TALENT HORSEMANSHIP

Never Stop Learning…. My biggest tip to anyone who is just getting started either in their horsemanship or training journey is to never stop learning. When I dove into training by purchasing a young horse to develop, I thought I knew what I needed to know and had a plan with a start and a finish. Bishop showed me rather quickly I was wrong and still had lots to learn. Once I decided I wanted to adopt a wild mustang, I did months of research and preparation and once again thought I knew at least the majority of what I needed to know and had a plan to gentle and train him. I am sure it is no surprise, but I didn’t even know half of what I thought I knew. Moose challenged me and continues to in all the right ways and inevitably sent me down a completely different path in my training that I had no interest in before adopting him. As a wild mustang, he survived by running away from scary things, and just holding on was not going to suffice for him. This is when I found out about positive reinforcement training. I took time to learn about the basics of positive reinforcement and finally built up the confidence and knowledge to try it out on my horses. It immediately switched on a light bulb in Moose’s head. He went from terrified and unwilling to trusting and kind in a matter of weeks. This is not to say we do not have bobbles in our training, and there are days I still have to go back to the drawing board, but it has completely changed his attitude in the best way possible. He is a constant reminder to me that one specific way is not going to work for every horse, and as a trainer, you must be creative, kind, and flexible. With creativity comes a need for learning and thinking outside the box in order to do the best you can for each individual horse you come into contact with. One of my favorite quotes is, “Never stop learning, because life never stops teaching.” -Unknown. Moose is one of those horses that forces you to learn and changes your life in a way you didn’t see coming, but would not trade for anything.

Follow Sarah and her two awesome stangs on Instagram! @hartsmustangs

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

A Natural Approach to Health for a Happy Horse and Human! Have you ever thought about using natural remedies and supplements for your equine partner? As a natural horsemanship and natural living mentor, I'm passionate about properly taking care of our equine partners. Essential oils and holistic products are a great way to show your horse the love they deserve. From emotional support to gut health, sore muscles to cleaning up cuts and scrapes. No matter what you and your pony's goals are, I can help you understand and implement a regimen using safe, natural, and effective products from the inside out.

Interested in learning more? Email inquiries to onehearthorsemanship@gmail.com for a FREE virtual consultation to discuss the best products, aids, and supplements for you and your partner to have a thriving relationship.

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Social Media & Mustangs by Ann Hanlin

My name is Ann Hanlin and I am the owner and trainer at SBF Mustang Eventing. My dad was a farrier and my mom was a small animal vet-tech, so I came to love animals at a very young age. Horses have always been a huge part of my life. I worked as an Intensive Care nurse for seven years before becoming a stay at home mom to my two sweet boys. I loved being a stay at home mom, but felt something was missing. My heart horse was a QH/WB paint I had just shy of twenty years before losing him. I was looking for another horse of color and a friend sent me the Bureau of Land Management Internet auction link. I quickly fell in love with a very special black and white pinto. Woodrow has taken my training to whole new level and has helped me ﬁll the void that was missing when I stepped away from my nursing career. I am now a TIP trainer through the Mustang Heritage Foundation and in 2021 I hosted the ﬁrst ever TIP Challenge in Maryland. Woodrow and I are actively spreading mustang love and awareness in the Eventing world, and our goal for this year is to qualify and attend the Waredaca 3-day event in the fall.

Pictured above is Ann with Curious George. Pictured to the right is Ann’s BLM Mustang, Woodrow.

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Social Media & Mustangs continued, Social media. Isn’t it a blessing and a curse? It is so easy to scroll through and compare ourselves, in all aspects of life. There are many pros and cons to social media, but today we’ll focus on the pros. Social media has been a huge part of growing my business and my mission with my mustangs. When I started my page, I strictly started it for the photographers, and a few others who had fallen in love with Woodrow as a way to follow our journey. Today, we have over 2,900 followers and some days it still seems so surreal. There are times it feels more like a dream than reality that my casual social media page has turned into a business. How did that happen? Well, some days I’m not too sure, but I have always believed in sharing every aspect of the journey. Some days are amazing and some down right stink. Sound familiar? When on social media many people post the amazing parts and leave out the stinky parts. Raise your hand if you’re guilty of this! We all are, but that isn’t reality. Some people want to follow only for the amazing parts, but I have found that most want to see it all.

The good, the bad, and the ugly. If you had told me four years ago that social media would help me start and grow a business with wild horses I would have told you that you were crazy, but now that I am living that reality everyday-it really is a dream come true. Let’s remember those raw and unedited posts that aren’t always pretty are hard to post, so let’s be kind, and know that they are posting because it is a part of the journey. Enjoy every part of the journey and know you are where you are for a reason. Keep sharing, keep growing, and keep learning!

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

Get Connected with Ann and Her Mission!

Follow us on Facebook at SBF Mustang Eventing to learn more about the mustangs and to see if Woodrow and I are reaching our goal for the year! Reach out if you are interested in the mustangs, especially if you are on the east coast.

Ann with her husband, Jeff, and two boys Will & Walt. Horses-Peekaboo (Woodrow’s daughter) and of course, Woodrow himself.

We’re looking for more more professionals willing to write a helpful article for the next few magazines. Please send an email if you have advice to offer! rthorsemanship@gmail.com

Sarah Brillhart and Bishop

“Every horse has something to teach and every person has something to learn.”

Ann and Woodrow

~Rising Talent Horsemanship~

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If you are a young, up and coming trainer and are interested in being featured in future issues… email us at rthorsemanship@gmail.com