If you’ve been receiving these “Memos and Musings with Mel” emails for a while you will remember the video I posted of Mac’s arrival on his return here in early June. This video, begins with the footage that was shown to me of Mac’s last ride before his first visit here about 3 years ago. It’s followed by our very first interaction where he didn’t want to be caught or interact with me. His energy was very defensive and he was quite angry as well as feeling very unsafe in the new environment – he had just arrived on a transport truck. The footage here doesn’t depict the depth of his emotions very well – they were much more intense than it looks here. I am using the flag softly to get his attention so we could catch him and then move him to a different yard.
The video progresses to some of our most recent play sessions and rides. He has come such a long way si doing incredibly well.
You may have already seen this video and read this story on Social Media but not everyone uses social media and its always a bit of a gamble what people see there, so I have put it here as well.
Those in the Online Mentoring with Mel Program are following Mac’s progress closely in our weekly “Steps to Synchronicity” videos – seeing all the different stages of his training since June.
If you are ready to go next level with your horsemanship, groundskills and riding – joining our Online Learning Community Mentoring with Mel – to really accelerate your progress with weekly check ins for video feedback, Q &A and to receive a weekly educational/inspirational videos from me, which often includes Mac’s training sessions – we would love to have you join us.
You can find out all the details here.
To read the longer version of the Mac story and find out about the music in the video read on.
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–
About the song and the lyrics – I See You – It’s written by a special friend and student Sally Rosin. She said the song was inspired by me and what I teach in Connecting with Horses & Riding with Synchronicity.
Namaste – If you are not familiar with the term it is a greeting in Sanskrit – (think India and yoga). It means the spirit in me greets the spirit in you. It’s seeing another at the deepest essence of their soul and honouring them. It’s another way of saying “I see you” on the inside. This is what horses want – it’s what every human ultimately wants – to be seen, heard, understood and appreciated. Namaste is a word I often use in my teaching.
When I talk about connection with horses I am talking about SOUL DEEP CONNECTION.
I teach people how to:-
ENGAGE their horse’s MIND,
WIN their HEART,
CONNECT to their SOUL
And HEAL their BODY
Broken Body – So many horses are broken in their bodies and it’s a big part of what I teach with the postural development for optimal biomechanics and the energy healing work that I do. Mac’s body wasn’t too broken – but it has a few things we are working on.
Broken Spirit – So many horses are broken in their spirit. They feel misunderstood and unappreciated.
You are my teacher – Horses are actually teachers if we allow them to be. It is a reciprocal relationship. They are leading us in how to “be”, how to train, how to be leaders for them and ultimately how to be better leaders for ourselves.
Mac (MacIntosh) was sent to me for training with a history of bolting and bucking. This was not a one off incident. He had become an extremely difficult and dangerous horse. I wasn’t taking horses on for training anymore, but I took him on because he was a fancy and very talented warmblood and because he would be a real test of my methodology and the evolution of how I was working with horses. He was in training with me for about 9 months (almost 3 years ago). When he returned home he sustained a terrible injury and had nearly a year off to recover. He then went to a couple of other trainers, local to where he was, to bring him back into riding and his owner started riding him again. He was doing pretty well but his owner felt he wasn’t happy. So he came back to me a few months ago.
This video, begins with the footage that was shown to me of Mac’s last ride before he came to me for training the first time. It’s followed by our very first interaction where he didn’t want to be caught or interact with me. His energy was very defensive and he was quite angry as well as feeling very unsafe in the new environment – he had just arrived on a transport truck. The footage here doesn’t depict the depth of his emotions very well – they were much more intense than it looks here. I am using the flag softly to get his attention so we could catch him and then move him to a different yard.
It was a long process to build his trust, connection and confidence. In the beginning, at liberty he was very shut down and closed off and would not walk with me at all. He would just stand in the corner of his paddock and not want to move. When he finally came out of the corner he would take a few steps forwards with me, then bolt off, do a lap around the paddock then go back and stand in the same corner. I worked with him at liberty for about 2 weeks in his 2 acre paddock because he would get emotionally overwhelmed so easily and that would end up with him bolting, pulling the lead rope out of my hand and running around dangerously dragging the lead rope behind him. I was very concerned for his safety when this happened. Connecting with him at liberty and helping him regulate his emotions in the safety of his own paddock, was the safest way to work with him.
Getting him to come out of his shell and start to “play” at liberty or on line was a major breakthrough. In this video he is just starting to come out of his shell and play. He was still unsure about whether it was safe to come out, express himself and trust a human and you will see he sometimes looks away when he stops.
The riding here is one of our most recent rides. He is starting to find the mix of relaxation, energy and carrying and pushing power, with his hindlegs. Some people would say “You must be a brave rider to take on a horse like that”. I say “I’m not a brave rider at all”. For me it is not about being brave. It is about getting to the core of the issues and resolving them so the horses don’t feel the need to repeat the dangerous behaviours. It is about building connection and communication, developing the quality of feel, balance and timing that horse’s love, listening to them and going at the pace that we both feel comfortable with. Mac has never bucked or bolted with me riding him or even come close to doing that.
The process has been slow to build our confidence together. A big focus was on teaching him that he can choose stopping whenever he is unhappy, uncomfortable or feeling unconfident – then he doesn’t need to resort to extreme behaviours. This is the most important lesson I want all horses to learn. It is the biggest thing we can teach horses to make things as safe as they can possibly be.
Mac is now a pleasure to work with. He’s trying so hard and putting a lot of effort in. He is now extremely affectionate, open and friendly. I am excited to continue developing our partnership and to see how far we can go together. He’s a beautiful soul. It is amazing what is underneath the surface of these troubled horses. When we can let go of our agenda, tap in deeper, connect, communicate and meet them where they are at, we uncover some amazing souls underneath. It is also amazing how we can transform their bodies and turn ordinary looking and moving horses into magnificent beings. Mac never looked ordinary or mediocre – but many horses are physically very compromised, and this way of engaging with them and developing their bodies can help them immensely. It can truly transform their posture and movement so they can shine — turning the proverbial ‘ugly duckling’ into a beautiful swan.
There were many steps in the process of Mac’s transformation. These steps are what I teach in my CONNECTING WITH HORSES, RIDING WITH SYNCHRONICITY PROGRAM. Whether you have an extreme problem horse or just want to improve your partnership, if you are looking for a way that uses LEADERSHIP WITH LOVE to build a PARTNERSHIP where your horse feels like a FRIEND, this program can help you.
“It’s a partnership that’s pleasurable and where you can feel safe, while also achieving high-level performance through the development of optimal biomechanics — supporting happiness, health, soundness, longevity, and performance for both horse and rider.”
My aim is to INSPIRE the horse to WANT to participate.
If this is something that you would like and if you too want to
CREATE THE HORSE OF YOUR DREAMS – I can help you.
Whether you’re working with an extreme problem horse or simply want to deepen your partnership through better connection and communication… whether your goal is to ride in synchronicity as one or to develop your horse’s body so it becomes strong, supple, and athletic through optimal biomechanics — this program provides a clear pathway.
If you’re looking for an approach that is based on Love and Kindness, one that honours the physical body as much as the mind and spirit, and recognises the essential role of developing optimal biomechanics for the ridden horse, this program is your roadmap. The result – a HAPPY ATHLETE and a happy horse equals a happy human.
I have Introductory courses to my program coming up at
“Banyandah”, HOWLONG, NSW/ VIC border – NOV. 13-15
https://go.melfleming.com/banyandah-nov-2025-1-9410
BATHURST, NSW – DEC. 13-15
https://go.melfleming.com/bathurst-2025-1-9760-5731-115366
To find out more about Online Learning Options and the Mentoring with Mel Program.
click here
Or sign up for the mailing list to know what’s on where and when.