My name is Sylvia, I am 42 years old. In the summer of 2008 I moved from busy Amsterdam to the more rural north part of Holland to start living my dream. My dream was to have my own horses, keep them in the most natural way I can provide for them, train and feed and trim them naturally. Not just for the horses' sake, but to have other people experience healthy, happy and well-trained horses without the usual problems.
I come from a place where people can buy and keep horses easily, but it is not always in the horses best interest to be kept in the way people often do. By that I mean keep them in stables by themselves. I have made it my goal to change some people's ideas about keeping, feeding and training horses.
The past three summers and three winters I have had my horses outside in a herd. I have fed them hay, water and saltblock. On the side I also gave them carrots, apples and other yummy things, but more as a treat. My horses work for me. I have a small horseridingschool and between 15 to 20 people riding my horses every week. The horses never have a bit in their mouth and the people riding them never use spurs and whips. All of my horses are shoe-less. Not because I hate horseshoes, but because they don't need them.
My horses can have all the things that they need, IF and WHEN they need it. I am not against horseshoes, rugs and other stuff. I am against the: "my gelding is three years old now, time to try on his horseshoes"-attitude. Or: "I am cold, so my horse needs a rug". One more? "I don't eat at night, so my horse doesn't have to either".
I have proved, first of all to myself, that keeping horses in a professional way doesn't have to interfere with their needs as horses to be healthy and happy. (The vet doesn't even know that I am here, I think.)
Through Natural Horsemanship I have learned that any problem can be solved. By problem I mean: hard to catch in the field, not easy to saddle, resisting the girth, not allowing you to mount, walking off as soon as you are mounted (or even before), biting, kicking, rearing, bucking, bolting and all the usual stuff that people take for granted.
There are loads of pictures on this website showing you the things that I do.
If you want to know more about me and my horses, you are welcome to contact me anytime.
Sylvia
"if you take the time that it takes, it takes less time" (Pat Parelli)
