Ysabelle Dean
Instructor, Associate Clinician and Australian Representative - Dr Cook's The Bitless Bridle TM
Only a few months ago, I picked up the phone to respond to a message on my answering machine from Suzanne Balen, who was making enquiries about purchasing a Dr Cook’s Bitless Bridle for a young mare. Nothing unusual about that; as a Bitless Bridle Instructor and Clinician, I receive many such enquiries. Little did I realize as I was dialing Suzanne’s number that this particular phone call would change my life.
Suzanne turned out to be a lovely lady. We chatted at length about Bitless Bridles and Dr Cook’s extensive research into the abusive effects of bitted bridles, and went on to discuss the merits of keeping our horses barefoot, subjects about which I am passionate. I spoke of the Dawn of the Metal-free horse, a vision towards which I have been working since 2000 after losing a much-loved horse to laminitis, a painful hoof condition. Suzanne then shared with me her own vision of seeing horse rescue organizations all over the world become self-funding, and how she hoped to make it a reality through the Make a Difference and Whispering Hope Horse Rescue Foundations. I was spellbound, moved, excited, delighted, thrilled and, most of all, inspired.
Less than two weeks later, I joined the Make a Difference Foundation.
 I was born loving horses. It is a love affair that has continued, unabated, for fifty years and shows no signs of diminishing. On the contrary, I can’t imagine life without them. Just being around them restores and re-energises me – emotionally, spiritually and physically. But it has taken me decades to understand that our equine companions suffer many hidden abuses at the hands of humans – and so often that abuse happens in the name of love. We love horses and so we want to ride them, show them, race them, breed them, jump them. We keep them in stables or small paddocks, often alone. We put narrow-treed saddles on their backs, bits in their mouths and nail shoes to their feet. Our methods of training are often based on forcing them through fear or pain to do our bidding. We do this not because we mean to hurt them, but because we are ignorant as to their true nature and needs. And because horses are such stoic and resilient creatures, we assume they are happy and healthy under our care. It is often only when they reach their teens or early twenties that the damage becomes self-evident – damage that will prevent most of them from reaching their true natural lifespan of thirty-five years and even older. Knackeries are full of broken down ‘nags’.
In 1999 I acquired a ten year old thoroughbred mare that had been living wild in a herd for all her life. I called her LadyHawke. Her story and the journey we began together nearly a decade ago can be read on my website - www.ausequinearts.com. Through her, I came to understand that there is no genetic difference between a wild horse and a domestic horse – and their needs are the same. They need to live in a herd. They need room to move. They need to be free of rugs and metal shoes and bitted bridles. And, wild or domesticated, if you handle, train and ride a horse with your mind open to learning about those needs and a commitment to meeting them as best you can, you can forge a bond with that horse that will enrich your life beyond description.
Because of the lessons learned from LadyHawke I became a co-founder of the Australian Equine Barefoot Movement Inc - www.aebm.org.au, a non-profit organization with a mission statement to promote the health and welfare benefits of a natural barefoot lifestyle for domestic horses. Through my work with the Barefoot Movement, I became acquainted with Dr Cook, a veterinary surgeon who spent five decades of his life researching the illnesses, diseases and behavioural problems linked to the use of bitted bridles. Through Dr Cook I became an advocate of the Crossunder Bitless Bridle, the first effective and pain free alternative to bits and other designs of bitless bridles. Through my work with the Bitless Bridle, I came to know Suzanne and joined the MAD Foundation.
Life is a journey. Each step leads to another step, and each step takes you closer to your dream. You may start out alone, but along the way you stumble across a like-minded person, a companion for your journey – and then another, and another and yet another. Soon your steps are echoed by the tramp of a thousand pairs of feet. You are part of a veritable army, marching towards a shared dream.
I share Suzanne’s dream of a better world for horses and I am very, very proud to be a member of her ‘army’ and the Make A Difference Foundation. I hope those of you who also have this dream will join us on the journey.
Ysabelle Dean
Instructor, Associate Clinician and Australian Representative
Dr Cook's The Bitless Bridle TM
Australian Equine Arts
www.ausequinearts.com
Ph 0412 684 374
Vice President -
Australian Equine Barefoot Movement (AEBM) Inc
www.aebm.org.au
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