In the early days of cowboys and vaqueros, horses were “broke” to ride. The emphasis of most horse training was on overpowering a horse or wearing him down until he accepted a rider on his back.
Natural Horsemanship has been a growing trend. There are several famouns natural horse trainers who propose that the best horse training is to use a horse’s natural instincts to “partner” with your horse - to receive his understanding and cooperation in your mutual activities.
The basic tenet in most of these training methods is that horses have a set of built-in programs that make take flight, stand and fight, look for a leader, and understand comaraderie. If humans take a little more time to understand the mechanisms by which horses communicate among themselves, your horse will choose you as his leader, giving full allegiance and cooperation even in the most difficult or stressful circumstances. His athleticism can be shaped into very complicated maneuvers that benefit the rider’s agenda with no physical abuse or pain whatsoever.
The programs of natural horsemanship have been tried and true for the past 15 years or so. Even wild mustangs have been shaped into gentled saddle horses in a very short time with no “wild indian” antics or “bucking” contests.
See Clinton Anderson, Pat Parelli, Frank Bell