Warwick Schiller

[HuskyFluff]

I've watched some of his online content, so have an idea how he works, but was interested to know if anyone subscribes to his online video library (approx $30 per month) and if it's worth it?

 

[SibeliusMB]

I've been a subscriber for a couple of years. I admit I hardly watch the videos because life is crazy and I don't have time. But I think Warwick is at the cutting edge of horsemanship and a leading advocate for personal development for people (to make the world better for horses). If you are able to make time to really watch and learn, it's absolutely worth it. I have the annual subscription which is slightly less. His Journey On Podcast is a great supplement, and is free on most audio platforms. The Podcast is more personal development and some really fascinating discussions with a lot of different and inspirational people, not necessarily horse trainers.

A close personal friend of mine and I both jumped on the attuned horsemanship train by following Warwick and like minded trainers. We've both immersed ourselves in these new approaches and it has 100% transformed us both personally, as horsemen, and vastly improved our relationship with our horses.

 

[HuskyFluff]

Thank you @SibeliusMB that sounds just like what I'm after.

 

[magicmoments]

I really rate him too. I did sign up for a while, and my trainer followed him too. Money was what stopped me continuing, and I no longer have a horse.

 

[cosmic389]

Yes I follow WS and have subscribed on and off in the last few years. Recently he added a 30-day jump start program which makes it easy to follow and each step contains key videos. If you want to watch more there are plenty others in the video library. His course focuses on relationship and attunement with your horse and will change you, which in turn helps to change your horse.
I believe he still does a 7day free trial so you can take a look and decide if you want to subscribe. As a subscriber you can also post questions to Warwick under each video.
I subscribe monthly and pause the sub every now and then if I need a break or need to more time to work on something specific.

 

[Barton Bounty]

I really like him too!

 

[pistolpete]

Love the journey on podcasts.

 

[Jambarissa]

I've had all the free and cheap Schiller material, I do really rate him. I'd love the subscription but it is expensive.

I don't have any issues with my horses and am confident I could deal with any that arise but I find this sort of thing motivating and inspiring, life is so busy I need more of both.

 

[MuddyMonster]

I'm on the fence about him. I think he's good now (his earlier stuff was a bit wince-inducing for me) but perhaps not as good as the hype but you could do a lot worse than follow his methods.

I really like Josh Nichols and would highly rate his programme.

 

[TPO]

I'm on the fence about him. I think he's good now (his earlier stuff was a bit wince-inducing for me) but perhaps not as good as the hype but you could do a lot worse than follow his methods.

I really like Josh Nichols and would highly rate his programme.

Having audited at one of his clinics pre his breakdown and epiphany I wouldn't give him a penny. He was horrible to women and horses.

His free stuff is easy to signpost people to who need a starting point.

There's nothing new under the sun and he certainly hasn't invented the wheel.

He used to like to name drop Ray Hunt and Buck Brannaman. Pretty sure he didn't train with Ray and no idea if he's spent time with Buck. Regardless, I'd spend money on the real deals, RH/BB, books, dvds and streaming channel over WS.

TRT, Joe Midgley and Richard Maxwell all have subscription services. Again, I'd use any of them over WS.

 

[MuddyMonster]

Having audited at one of his clinics pre his breakdown and epiphany I wouldn't give him a penny. He was horrible to women and horses.

His free stuff is easy to signpost people to who need a starting point.

There's nothing new under the sun and he certainly hasn't invented the wheel.

He used to like to name drop Ray Hunt and Buck Brannaman. Pretty sure he didn't train with Ray and no idea if he's spent time with Buck. Regardless, I'd spend money on the real deals, RH/BB, books, dvds and streaming channel over WS.

TRT, Joe Midgley and Richard Maxwell all have subscription services. Again, I'd use any of them over WS.

Yes, I remember hearing he made a comment about women being fake and untrust worthy because they wore make up and that's partly why horses found women difficult ... ! Or words to that effect I believe. He kinda reminds me a bit of Pat Parelli. But that is just my personal opinion.

The cynic in me is still unconvinced if he actually had a eureka moment or if he just realised insulting his main target audience of women, was just bad for business.

Either way, like you, there are other's I'd actively chose first!

 

[TPO]

Yes, I remember hearing he made a comment about women being fake and untrust worthy because they wore make up and that's partly why horses found women difficult ... ! Or words to that effect I believe. He kinda reminds me a bit of Pat Parelli. But that is just my personal opinion.

The cynic in me is still unconvinced if he actually had a eureka moment or if he just realised insulting his main target audience of women, was just bad for business.

Either way, like you, there are other's I'd actively chose first!

And thanks to you I have someone new to find out about. I hadn't heard of Josh Nicol before. Thanks for sharing

 

[Jambarissa]

Having audited at one of his clinics pre his breakdown and epiphany I wouldn't give him a penny. He was horrible to women and horses.

His free stuff is easy to signpost people to who need a starting point.

There's nothing new under the sun and he certainly hasn't invented the wheel.

He used to like to name drop Ray Hunt and Buck Brannaman. Pretty sure he didn't train with Ray and no idea if he's spent time with Buck. Regardless, I'd spend money on the real deals, RH/BB, books, dvds and streaming channel over WS.

TRT, Joe Midgley and Richard Maxwell all have subscription services. Again, I'd use any of them over WS.

I will look into these, thanks.

I really do just need a bit of inspiration.

 

[SibeliusMB]

Miri Hackett is one you can follow who does a lot of the same attunement, compassionate horsemanship, consent-based training, and introspection that WS is now promoting on his platforms. I really like her. She has a Patreon you can subscribe to that might be a better bang for your buck.


I stand by what WS promotes now, and I absolutely appreciate how it has inspired me to change myself and my approach to horses. I'm sorry that some don't have good experiences with WS, and respect everyone's opinions. Yes, he was one those NH trainers when it was so popular, but I would never put him on the same level of Parelli. He did a lot of therapy, introspection, and has fundamentally changed himself and his entire philosophies to horses and humans alike. Listen to his entire story, and he'll tell you where those comments and behaviors came from and what he's done to fix that mentality in himself. I respect that, too.

 

[sbloom]

Lockie Phillips Emotional Horsemanship is a fab one. I know someone who was quite bullied by WS.

 

[HuskyFluff]

It's a minefield isn't it?! Thank you everyone - I'll have a look into the other names mentioned as well. I suppose one of the takeaways is that nobody will be liked by everyone so it's a case of doing your research!

 

[MuddyMonster]

Miri Hackett is one you can follow who does a lot of the same attunement, compassionate horsemanship, consent-based training, and introspection that WS is now promoting on his platforms. I really like her. She has a Patreon you can subscribe to that might be a better bang for your buck.


I stand by what WS promotes now, and I absolutely appreciate how it has inspired me to change myself and my approach to horses. I'm sorry that some don't have good experiences with WS, and respect everyone's opinions. Yes, he was one those NH trainers when it was so popular, but I would never put him on the same level of Parelli. He did a lot of therapy, introspection, and has fundamentally changed himself and his entire philosophies to horses and humans alike. Listen to his entire story, and he'll tell you where those comments and behaviors came from and what he's done to fix that mentality in himself. I respect that, too.

Oh I have, I felt I owed it to him, well anyone, to listen to their back story . Which is why I think his newer stuff is much better than his early stuff.

I respect what he has achieved and there are lots of people and more importantly horse's he's helped. People could do a lot worse than follow him for sure & a lot of people would probably do very well.

But I can (and do) respect that independently of liking him enough to want to use him or whole heartedly recommend him for everyone. For me, there is still something about WS and the programme that doesn't quite 100% align right for me (and I always felt that way about PP despite starting off in NH via Parelli - but I was fortunate I had a fabulous, non die-hard & emphatic local trainer that branched off some time ago - hence the comparison)

I'm so glad he's helped transform your horsemanship and relationships - it's so powerful what horse's can help us do when we actually stop, slow and attune ourselves before bowling on in with them, isn't it?

 

[Caol Ila]

I've watched a lot of Warwick's free stuff and bought his book. I'm not wild about the whole 'subscription model' that has taken over cyber horse training. Them and bloody Netflix, right. Like Tik Maynard (I also have his book) says, I like taking bits and pieces from different trainers' toolboxes and not dedicating myself wholeheartedly to one system. And when I watch these things, I'm shopping around for new ideas/inspiration, or I want to see how trainers deal with a particular issue. Ideally how different trainers approach it, because some methods gel better for some horses/people than others. I don't train my two horses in exactly the same way because they don't have the same needs and worldviews.

I don't need or want to watch every video someone ever made. I appreciate that people gotta pay the mortgage somehow, but for me, and other horse owning friends I've spoken to about this, it's kind of a dysfunctional system. It would be stupidly expensive to take out subscriptions for the channels of half a dozen or more trainers. I generally manage alright with my horses, but sometimes just want to see how pros do something.

Lockie Phillips is interesting. His website hints at useful and fascinating ideas and philosophies, but it doesn't tell you what he actually does when he is with a horse and how he solves one particular training problem or another. At least with Schiller, you can get a pretty good idea from his free sh1t. When I was feeling a bit stuck with Fin two years ago, I had Lockie's half hour free Zoom consult. I tried to draw out of him what he would do with the horse, but he was very cagey. He said something like, "It's based on how a mare interacts with her foal." Right. Couldn't get more details out of him than that. He definitely wanted me to subscribe to his channel, and if I payed like £100 or whatever he charged, I could find out. But my own view was that I wasn't going to do that while flying blind, because I hadn't the faintest idea how well his methods would suit me and my horse.

I like books, though.

 

[Bluewaves]

Which of them explains the best whilst not talking too much?

Unfortunately my attention span for videos is so short these days.

 

[SibeliusMB]

It's probably worth saying that most of these folks (Tik Maynard, TRT, WS, Miri Hackett, etc) have a lot of talking and discussion in their long format videos because so much of their approaches are cognitive and based on understanding, not "doing" to or with the horse, necessarily. They are all quite chatty as a result but that's good.

I'd honestly probably start with Miri, her Instagram has a lot of good demos of her approach in short format. If that connects with you, sign up for her Patreon. Tik's book is great. Really all of them have something to offer and teach you. You can choose which elements from each person speaks to you the most and is most applicable, but they all require a bit of a time investment.

 

[SibeliusMB]

Oh I have, I felt I owed it to him, well anyone, to listen to their back story . Which is why I think his newer stuff is much better than his early stuff.

I respect what he has achieved and there are lots of people and more importantly horse's he's helped. People could do a lot worse than follow him for sure & a lot of people would probably do very well.

But I can (and do) respect that independently of liking him enough to want to use him or whole heartedly recommend him for everyone. For me, there is still something about WS and the programme that doesn't quite 100% align right for me (and I always felt that way about PP despite starting off in NH via Parelli - but I was fortunate I had a fabulous, non die-hard & emphatic local trainer that branched off some time ago - hence the comparison)

I'm so glad he's helped transform your horsemanship and relationships - it's so powerful what horse's can help us do when we actually stop, slow and attune ourselves before bowling on in with them, isn't it?

I completely agree and thank you so much for this post. Not every trainer or approach is right for everyone or their horses. FWIW, I didn't wholeheartedly recommend him for everyone, I simply stated my experience and perspective. And as I said in my first post, I follow others as well and choose what elements work best for my horse.

I saw a LOT of PP here in the States at the height of his popularity and unfortunately the results weren't usually great. Maybe not necessarily PP's fault personally, but for awhile it was all carrot sticks and games, and some horses learned to be very pushy because the way their well-meaning (but often timid or unknowing) owners went 100% all-in on the PP method. Then there was the Linda Parelli incident which makes it hard for people to separate the two.

Long story long, invest time exploring multiple trainers and choose what is best for you and your horse. I think the horse world is on to something important with attunement based horsemanship and consent based training, and I am excited to find new trainers who follow that general approach. And as much as we rightly revere RH and BB, probably in 20 years time, some of their methods may even look archaic. Time will tell.

 

[SEL]

My approach is to try and understand what it is I need to fix and then try and work out who is best to help me!

So for a loading issue I got someone in (Michael Peace). I'd exhausted my own knowledge and didn't think that any sort of videos would replace a set of eyes on the ground.

My lack of right canter (once we'd done vet & physio) I used some exercises from the Ritter guys - paid for but lifetime subscription for a particular module - and after a couple of weeks of just making sure we had those nailed then also eyes on the ground with a local instructor. The Ritter exercises have been great for giving some structure to my schooling for that particular horse so worth the money.

I'm not convinced there is a one size fits all but as said above these guys need to make money so the subscription service works for them. My friend signed up to the TRT method but it really isn't working for her horse and she's done so much better having a PK instructor help her out with some ground work. I've borrowed her login and there are some exercises I've taken away but I couldn't see myself following a whole programme.

I saw PP at the NEC many, many years ago and it was a very odd experience. I was with a friend who said she was beginning to feel the whole audience were going to raise their arms and yell hallelujah. It took me ages to work out you didn't actually attach a carrot to the end of a carrot stick - which was disappointing because I thought that might actually help me get the naughty welsh pony through water if he was following a carrot.

 

[Jambarissa]

After looking at a few mentioned I've gone with Joe Midgely. 2 day free trial then £6 a month, cancel any time.

So far pretty decent, it makes a change from the decluttering videos I've been watching.

 

[stangs]

Lockie Phillips is interesting. His website hints at useful and fascinating ideas and philosophies, but it doesn't tell you what he actually does when he is with a horse and how he solves one particular training problem or another. At least with Schiller, you can get a pretty good idea from his free sh1t. When I was feeling a bit stuck with Fin two years ago, I had Lockie's half hour free Zoom consult. I tried to draw out of him what he would do with the horse, but he was very cagey. He said something like, "It's based on how a mare interacts with her foal." Right. Couldn't get more details out of him than that. He definitely wanted me to subscribe to his channel, and if I payed like £100 or whatever he charged, I could find out. But my own view was that I wasn't going to do that while flying blind, because I hadn't the faintest idea how well his methods would suit me and my horse.

Apologises to OP that I’m going to go on a tangent and be unhelpful but re Emotional Horsemanship, I think a lot of “alternative” trainers like him are better with words than they are actually working horses. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing, because their posts can help you develop your mindset towards training, and that can inspire new ways of working in you. But, crucially, these sorts of trainers and their online courses are unlikely to leave you with new and practical training tools in your belt. (This is not to say that such trainers never post useful content.)

I did have a friend who spectated at a clinic of Lockie’s and I know she enjoyed it, but, thinking back, I think that was because she was enjoying being in a space with likeminded people speaking the same language rather than because she took away practical things to work on to improve her riding or horse’s way of going. Again, sometimes just hearing nice words makes you think you’re “connecting with the horse” and doing more than you’re actually doing. And his whole thing about step outside operant conditioning, be in tune with the horse’s emotions etc, seems to me to be a more marketable version of “deal with the cause of the behaviour, not the behaviour” which any dog trainer worth their salt will teach.

Frankly, I’ve been increasingly feeling that if you want to improve your horsemanship, take the time to learn from dog or zoo animal trainers because any developments in animal training reach horse training last. Giving animals consent, managing stress, etc: it may seem that so-and-so horse(wo)man is pioneering this “new outlook” but really the horse world is very late to the game.

 

[Caol Ila]

Apologises to OP that I’m going to go on a tangent and be unhelpful but re Emotional Horsemanship, I think a lot of “alternative” trainers like him are better with words than they are actually working horses. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing, because their posts can help you develop your mindset towards training, and that can inspire new ways of working in you. But, crucially, these sorts of trainers and their online courses are unlikely to leave you with new and practical training tools in your belt. (This is not to say that such trainers never post useful content.)

I did have a friend who spectated at a clinic of Lockie’s and I know she enjoyed it, but, thinking back, I think that was because she was enjoying being in a space with likeminded people speaking the same language rather than because she took away practical things to work on to improve her riding or horse’s way of going. Again, sometimes just hearing nice words makes you think you’re “connecting with the horse” and doing more than you’re actually doing. And his whole thing about step outside operant conditioning, be in tune with the horse’s emotions etc, seems to me to be a more marketable version of “deal with the cause of the behaviour, not the behaviour” which any dog trainer worth their salt will teach.

Frankly, I’ve been increasingly feeling that if you want to improve your horsemanship, take the time to learn from dog or zoo animal trainers because any developments in animal training reach horse training last. Giving animals consent, managing stress, etc: it may seem that so-and-so horse(wo)man is pioneering this “new outlook” but really the horse world is very late to the game.

I'm not gonna lie, I've had my best results with both Fin and Hermosa when taking bits and pieces of other people's advice when it seems relevant or helpful, but mostly muddling through and problem solving on my own, someimes in the most galikit and ponderous way.... like the Doctor. Peter Capaldi's 12th Doctor sometimes offers more useful horse training philosphy than anyone.

 

[McGrools]

I’ve discovered Ryan Rose on YouTube and I can’t get enough of him! He’s lovely and very good at articulating his methods. Have just signed up to his Patreon page. I’m absolutely lapping it up!

 

[HuskyFluff]

Thanks to everyone for your comments. I'm not looking to fix a problem as such, and I have an extensive library of books (it's ridiculous!). I'm a visual learner so I think what I'm after is to be able to see the body language of the trainer, as well as how they train and what they do. It's just that I think I could have done more with my mare in respect of groundwork so I want to see what I may have missed (she's a good citizen though). Plus I can't ride at the moment but want to do something with her but have hit a wall with what!

 

[sbloom]

In which case I'd suggest also having a look at Annie Dillon Horsemanship in FB, she's launched a course recently.

 

[daydreamer]

He doesn’t get mentioned much because I think he isn’t as good at the marketing and waffling but I really rate Jason Webb. It is less philosophical than a lot of them, just “do x to get y outcome because of z, if it doesn’t work try a or b or c”. It is a subscription model but you can get individual modules I think. A lot of it is groundwork and it is very progressive. Each video is short and makes it very clear what you are looking for and what you should do. I have a short attention span and a very low tolerance for waffle so find his approach really suits me.

 

[SussexbytheXmasTree]

He doesn’t get mentioned much because I think he isn’t as good at the marketing and waffling but I really rate Jason Webb. It is less philosophical than a lot of them, just “do x to get y outcome because of z, if it doesn’t work try a or b or c”. It is a subscription model but you can get individual modules I think. A lot of it is groundwork and it is very progressive. Each video is short and makes it very clear what you are looking for and what you should do. I have a short attention span and a very low tolerance for waffle so find his approach really suits me.

I had him out to work with my horse and found him really condescending and was very disappointed with his attitude. He gave me no advice so nothing to try to work on.