Tom and Bill Dorrance

Brothers Tom Dorrance (May 11, 1910 – June 11, 2003) and Bill Dorrance (January 19, 1906 – July 20, 1999) are considered among the founders of the modern natural horsemanship movement. Born and raised on an Oregon cattle ranch with a background in the Great Basin "Buckaroo" tradition, they promoted natural, gentle methods of horse training, emphasizing "feel" of the horse and observation of its responses to the handler.

They had a particularly strong influence on Ray Hunt and Hunt's disciple, Buck Brannaman as well as Arabian horse breeder and trainer Sheila Varian. Many horse trainers claim influence from the Dorrance brothers.

"The thing you are trying to help the horse do is to use his own mind. You are trying to present something and then let him figure out how to get there." - Tom Dorrance[1]

"When people think of natural horsemanship that could mean a lot of things. It isn't natural for a horse to be around people, and it's not natural for a person to be sitting on him either. When we use these words we speak about what's natural for the horse to do within his own boundaries" - Bill Dorrance[2]

See also
  • Horse whisperer
  • Horse breaking

References
  1. True Unity, First Edition, Word Dancer Press, 2003
  2. True Horsemanship Through Feel, Lyons Press, 2001

Sources
  • True Horsemanship Through Feel by Bill Dorrance and Leslie Desmond. ISBN 1-59921-056-8
  • True Unity, by Tom Dorrance. First Edition, Word Dancer Press, 1987. ISBN 1-884995-09-8
  • The Revolution In Horsemanship by Dr Robert Miller et al. ISBN 1-59228-387-X
  • Death of a Legendary Horseman, Bill Dorrance obituary, New York Times, July 24, 1999
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