Horse Training the McLean Way : Equus Education

The Science Behind the Art

Here’s another book that was required reading for the Equine Behaviour subject I undertook as part of my course this year. Honestly I haven’t enough interest in equine behaviour, perhaps because a lot of it is someone’s theory rather than proven fact.

Andrew McLean’s text takes a different approach. As a zoologist and someone who in 2002 was completing his PhD in animal psychology, McLean focuses on explaining the natural mechanisms behind their training system based on how an equine learns. Following this is a series of defined practical tasks to be carried out in hand and under saddle. Each task has a specific goal and technique.

The McLean training system focuses on seven qualities required of the horse that will encourage the establishment of a disciplined individual. These qualities are progressive, being:

basic attempt
obedience
rhythm
straightness
contact
engagement
proof

McLean suggests that any issue that arises while training a horse can be brought back to an inconsistency in one of these qualities. Consequently the problem can be fixed by going back in these progressive qualities and fixing the issue before again moving forward.

Horse Training the McLean Way, Andrew and Manuela McLean. The book is very straightforward and logical, easily explaining why the training process works and how to go about fixing particular issues with regards to the horse’s response.

The success of both Andrew and Manuela McLean with regards to the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre and their riding achievements provides physical proof of this training system working. This book and other training resources can be found through their website.

Authors: Andrew and Manuela McLean
http://www.aebc.com.au/
Non Fiction
In my library? Not yet; I borrowed this one from a friend for the subject but would love to add it in the future as a training resource.
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.

“A well trained horse isn’t less exciting than a wild one.”

Tag: horse story, equine book review, equine author, horse library, horse writing, Andrew McLean, Manuela McLean