Buck Brannaman photo

Buck Brannaman

A horse trainer and a leading practitioner within the field of natural horsemanship, which is a philosophy of working with horses based on the idea of working with the horse's nature, using an understanding of how horses think and communicate to train the horse to accept humans and work confidently and responsively with them. One of Brannaman's stated goals is to make the animal feel safe and secure around humans so that the horse and rider can achieve a true union.


“Gentle in what you do, Firm in how you do it”
Buck Brannaman
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“As a rider, you must slowly and methodically show your horse what is appropriate. You also have to discourage what's inappropriate, not by making the inappropriate impossible, but by making it difficult so that the horse himself chooses appropriate behavior. You can't choose it for him; you can only make it difficult for him to make the wrong choices. If, however, you make it impossible for him to make the wrong choices, you're making war.”
Buck Brannaman
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“The road may bend out of sight at times, but I know what lies ahead: the faraway horses.”
Buck Brannaman
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“In life, we don't know why things happen. I believe God is not responsible for the bad things that happen to you. Sometimes I think He's responsible for the good things, but sometimes it's something you shape up for yourself.”
Buck Brannaman
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“They say nerves heal real slowly. Lots of things about us heal real slowly.”
Buck Brannaman
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“Solutions to problems often come from knowing when to ask for help.”
Buck Brannaman
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“Discipline isn't a dirty word. Far from it. Discipline is the one thing that separates us from chaos and anarchy. Discipline implies timing. It's the precursor to good behavior, and it never comes from bad behavior. People who associate discipline with punishment are wrong: with discipline, punishment is unnecessary.”
Buck Brannaman
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“Timing is everything.”
Buck Brannaman
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