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Hi lovely,

This week, it feels only right to pause and remember Monty Roberts.

The man whose work, courage and determination helped change the way so many people think about horses.

And, of course, the man whose journey became so closely woven with Kelly’s, and with the beginning of Intelligent Horsemanship.

Kelly first met Monty in 1993, in one of those stories that almost sounds too unlikely to be true: a chance meeting at a French petrol station.

But then, some of the best stories do start in slightly unexpected places.

That meeting led to Kelly working alongside Monty, helping with The Man Who Listens to Horses, learning from him, travelling with him, and eventually putting together the first Monty Roberts courses in the UK.

Those courses began in 1995, and in 1999 Kelly went on to set up Intelligent Horsemanship.

So when we talk about IH, and all the courses, trainers, members, magazines, webinars, horses helped and humans encouraged over the years, Monty is very much part of where it all began.

First of all, if you didn’t see it mentioned in Kelly’s recent email, we are delighted to share with everyone the  special celebration of Monty’s 90th birthday we did in the Autumn/Winter 2025 IH Magazine.

It is a lovely piece to revisit now.

Not only because it marked such an extraordinary milestone, but because it reminds us what Monty gave to the horse world: the belief that there could be another way.

A kinder way.

A more observant way.

A way that asked us to listen before we labelled, and understand before we forced.

Read the Monty 90th birthday celebration here.

And then, for something a little lighter, does anyone remember when Monty helped Kelly as she took on (and won) BHS Trec Pro-Am at Royal Windsor Horse Show?… 

Don’t worry if not, because we have it all on video!

In Pie & I Take on TREC! Watch Out For The Low Hanging Branches!, Kelly and Pie take on the challenge of the low hanging branches, with Monty helping from the ground.

These funny and entreating little pieces of IH history are well worth revisiting.

There is also a wonderful selection of Horsemanship Essentials 30-minute episodes in the Members’ Area, where Kelly and Monty work together to tackle real horse problems and practical training challenges.

These include episodes on:

Loading – Helping horses who are worried, resistant or difficult to load, with a calm, step-by-step approach.

Clipping – Working with horses who are genuinely frightened of clippers, not simply “being difficult”.

Fear of tractors – A very useful one for anyone whose horse has strong opinions about farm machinery, vehicles, or indeed most unexpected objects. The skills can be applied to all sorts of scenarios.

Phobia of cows – Or pigs, donkeys, sheep, alpacas, suspiciously shaped logs, or anything else for that matter. As many riders will know, this can feel like a niche problem until suddenly it very much isn’t.

Control of emotions – A brilliant reminder that horsemanship is not just about what the horse is doing, but also about what the rider or handler is doing. This is something Monty taught so well. Not just how to work with horses, but how to help humans understand themselves around horses too.

What I love about these videos is that they are not polished, perfect demonstrations with horses who have clearly read the script.

  • They are real horses.
  • Real humans.
  • Real problems.
  • And real solutions.

Monty’s great gift was not simply that he could do extraordinary things with horses.

It was that he made so many people believe they could learn to see horses differently too.

Which is so important, because once you believe the horse is communicating, not just “misbehaving”, everything changes.

So this week, perhaps the best way to remember Monty is not only to look back, but to keep using the ideas that helped start all this.

  • To be curious.
  • To be kind.
  • To ask, “What is the horse trying to tell me?”
  • And to keep learning.

There is a great deal of Monty, Kelly and IH history waiting for you in the Members’ Area, from magazine pieces to training videos, TV programmes and Horsemanship Essentials episodes.

So members do make yourself a cup of tea and have a little browse.

Lots of love,

– Abi Pass MSc Vet Phys & The Intelligent Horsemanship Team

PS. if you have a friend who might find these emails interesting do pass this on or get them to subscribe at www.intelligenthorsemanship.co.uk and get the free groundwork exercises!

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Lethornes RG17 8QP Lambourn GB