Shy Boy - The Horse That Came In From The Wild, by Monty Roberts, (c)1999, HarperCollinsPublishers
I love this story about Monty Roberts' introduction to the wild mustang and his happening upon the language of horses which led to his great success in starting and rehabilitating dozens of horses, travelling the world to teach others to do the same.
Roberts tells the story of the wild horse, from its' origins in North America and migration to Europe and Asia, to its' arrival back in North America with Spanish explorers. From herds of millions which once roamed the great plains, to a few thousand survivors of government roundups, sport hunts and starvation. He also narrates the evolution of horse training, from brute force, to gentle cooperation. Nearly all these techniques have been around since man first decided to ride a horse but brute force tends to be thought the quicker, more popular way to "break" a horse. To get a horse to want to cooperate often takes more time and patience than most people have. Roberts shows in Shy Boy's story, that taking that time is far more important in the long run than just quickly getting a saddle on. The proof is at the end of the book, when Shy Boy make his final choice between the herd and his gentler...
No compensation was received for this review. I checked this book out from my local library;)
