A Sanctuary for wild horses and wild humans
Create a genuine connection
Join us in a transformational experience for yourself and the mustangs! This retreat will focus on the basics of training theory as well as how that relates to us in our daily lives. We will spend a lot of time in nature focusing on introspective journaling and meditation as well as fun and active community building activities with the group. We'll be working with freshly wild horses to create their first impression of what life with humans will be like for them. We will help you choose an unhandled mustang on Friday at the BLM adoption event in Swanzey, NH (or Annville, PA for the june event), bring the horse home to our facility in Sterling CT. You can meet us at the event or drive up with us if you're planning on adopting, otherwise attendance is optional. Using positive reinforcement and awareness based training techniques, we will work towards having your horse trained in the basic behaviors such as haltering, leading, picking up the feet and loading into a trailer so you can bring her home with you. Not sure if you're ready for horse ownership? No worries, you can work with one of our adoptable horses or just observe from the sidelines.
Cost including meals and camping accommodations (split into three payments)
Adopter: $2950 (choose a horse to adopt at the event and work with all week)
Participant: $2450 (be assigned one of our adoptable horses to work with - training levels may vary)
Observer: $1950 (Audit training sessions without being assigned a horse, but participate in all other activities)
Also included: 6 week live virtual course on mustang training basics
Accommodations: we are offering camping in tents with wood stoves or there are local airbnbs and hotels you can stay at if you'd prefer. NOTE: tent shown below is a stock image, our campsites are under construction. Every other picture is our beauiful facility!
Dates
Option 1: April 12-19, 2024, where we will attend the Swanzey, NH Adoption event and begin our training the day after we bring the horses home.
Option 2: June 7-14th, 2024, where we will attend the Annville, PA Adoption event and begin our training the day after we bring the horses home.
Daily activities will include:
8am: Breakfast (yogurt, cereal, oatmeal, fruit, coffee, tea, juice)
9am: Morning meditation and yoga classes
10am: Lecture
11am: Training sessions
12pm: Lunch break (make your own sandwiches, hot dogs, hamburgers, sides, beverages - vegan and gluten free options available)
1pm: Training demo
2pm: Training sessions
3pm: Afternoon Activity (hiking, journaling, off road excursions)
4pm: Free time or additional help with training
6pm: Dinner (we will be coordinating with a local restaurant depending on dietary needs and preferences)
7pm: Evening Activity (creative projects, discussion groups, movies, etc)
Gentling Retreat: Participant
816.67$Every monthWork with one of our horsesValid for 3 months- New Beginnings Mustang Gentling Retreat
Gentling Retreat: Observer
650$Every monthParticipate in all activities except horse training, where you will audit our training sessionsValid for 3 months- New Beginnings Mustang Gentling Retreat
Daily Schedule
Tentative - subject to change based on weather and other factors
Thursday April 11
Optional - come early, settle in and set up your camp site. No dinner or other activities.
Friday April 12 - Daily theme: Beginnings
Option #1: Meet us at the adoption event at 8am in Swanzey, NH
Option #2: Meet at our facility at 5:30am and drive up to the event with us
Option #3: Skip it! If you're not adopting, attendance at the adoption event is optional
*Breakfast and lunch will not be served on Friday because we will be on the road, so plan to stop at a restaurant or store and buy your own breakfast/lunch/snacks
Once we arrive back at our facility, we will unload the horses. We ask that you let them settle in and do not interact with them. We will be doing safety briefings and giving tours of the facility to attendees who are here prior to the official start of the retreat at 6pm. In the mean time, you're encouraged to settle in, set up camp, explore the property.
6pm: Welcome and opening ceremony with campfire with food (various appetizers, cheeses, meats, fruits)
7pm: Get to know each other game night and ice breakers
Saturday April 13 - Daily Theme: Grounding
Training objective: Cultivating Awareness to Create a Safe Environment
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Lecture - Operant and classical conditioning, learning quadrants, stress signals, calming signals, nervous system regulation, engagement level
11am: Training sessions with the mustangs
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Training demonstration - the four quadrants & the basics of clicker training
2pm: Training sessions with the mustangs
3pm: Afternoon Activity: build your own terrarium. We will hike through the property to look for plants, mosses, rocks and more to build our own terrarium
4pm: Free time or additional help with training your horse
6pm: Dinner
7pm: Evening Activity: movie night under the stars
Sunday April 14 - Daily Theme: Creativity
Training objective: Become comfortable sharing space and touching
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Lecture - eliciting and shaping behaviors
11am: Training sessions with the horses.
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Training demonstration on creative approaches to train a behavior
2pm: Training sessions with the horses
3pm: Afternoon Activity: journaling sessions with prompts and discussion
4pm: Free time or additional help with training your horse
6pm: Dinner
7pm: Evening Activity: Paint your horse or pet. Jody Whitsell has been painting vibrant, colorful and creative portraits for nearly 25 years and now she's helping others learn to paint. You will provide a headshot of your horse or other pet by Friday and she will put an outline on canvas and walk you through creating your own masterpiece step by step
Monday April 15 - Daily Theme: Empowerment
Training objective: Self haltering
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Lecture - empowering your horse through choice. Start buttons, stop buttons, anchor behaviors.
11am: Training sessions with the horses.
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Training demonstration on two way communication techniques
2pm: Training sessions with the horses
3pm: Afternoon Activity - off roading tours
4pm: Free time or additional help with training your horse
6pm: Dinner
7pm: Evening Activity - Campfire discussion: species appropriate lifestyle for both horses and humans
Tuesday April 16 - Daily Theme: Compassion
Training objective: Hoof handling
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Lecture - building trust with a prey animal mindset
11am: Training sessions with the horses.
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Training demonstration - hoof care, trimming basics, introducing your horse to the farrier
2pm: Training sessions with the horses
3pm: Afternoon Activity - moving emotions through the body
4pm: Free time or additional help with training your horse
6pm: Dinner
7pm: Evening Activity - guided meditation
Wednesday April 17 - Daily Theme: Voice
Training objective: Leading & Maneuvering
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Lecture - what positive reinforcement looks like in various situations - emergencies, other people handling your horse, rehoming, etc.
11am: Training sessions with the horses.
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Training demonstration - taking one of our horses on a hike and seeing what comes up and addressing it
2pm: Training sessions with the horses
3pm: Afternoon Activity - journaling sessions with prompts and discussion
4pm: Free time or additional help with training your horse
6pm: Dinner
7pm: Evening Activity - improv games
Thursday April 18 - Daily Theme: Vision
Training objective: Trailer loading and obstacles
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Lecture - goal setting and training plans
11am: Training sessions with the horses.
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Training demonstration
2pm: Training sessions with the horses
3pm: Afternoon Activity - slack line obstacle course
4pm: Free time or additional help with training your horse
6pm: Dinner
7pm: Evening Activity - vision boards
Friday April 19 - Daily Theme: Connection
Training objective: Trainer's choice
8am: Breakfast
9am: Morning meditation and yoga class
10am: Training sessions with the horses
12pm: Lunch break
1pm: Closing ceremony