Samara Cygman
Times Reporter

Barbra-Ann Lachance’s enthusiasm for horses is contagious.
Through her business, Relationship Riding© & Remedial Training, this Cochrane resident, originally from Eastern Canada, has been changing lives and opinions for over 15 years.
“People come to me wanting a better understanding of horses, even after having spent most of their lives with them,” said Lachance. “What they don’t expect are the changes that happen in their own personal lives through this experience. They end up having a more spiritual outlook on life and, in the process, address issues such as anger management, low self-esteem, self-confidence and learning how to live in the present moment.”
After studying human psychology in Quebec, Lachance studied Horse Psychology and Behavior and began looking into the connections humans have with horses and how both can work together to form relationships and learn from each other.
She said horses are so sensitive to their environment that they can be communicated with non-verbally, minus pulling, tugging, kicking and prodding.
Founder of the “Relationship Riding©” technique, her philosophy is derived from the early European days when knights would ride their horses with a sword in one hand and a shield in another as their horses obeyed simple body signals.
“In Europe, between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries, only young men with very distinctive, strong presence and an open-minded personality were chosen to become knights. They knew that this type of work with horses would continually develop and strengthen their character. Noble caballeros rode their horses by the transmission of their thoughts.” said Lachance. “They knew that they could only go to war with horses who gave them both absolute obedience and absolute trust. They dominated their horses with the power of their personalities and with using a non-verbal language understood by horses.”
During customized workshops and weekend retreats, she uses her talents to bring people and horses together through feel, respect and honesty.
She also works with the Calgary Police Service in their Youth Wrangler Program and was recently presented with a plaque in recognition for support of the program. Lachance has created a program that helps youth at risk to develop self-esteem and confidence in a non-violent, nurturing environment.
“Horses react very quickly to non-effective communication or verbal abuse. They also react immediately to love, respect, honesty and trust,” said Lachance. “Through understanding horse behavior and observing how we interact with them, we end up having a better understanding of who we are.”
Barbra-Ann recently delivered her Train-the-Trainer workshop to the officers/instructors for the Calgary Police Service’s Youth Wrangler program.
Lachance travels all over Canada, working with people and their horses. She offers one-hour private workshops for you and your horse right in the comfort of your own backyard.
During a private one-on-one lesson, you will learn how to use Relationship Riding© techniques, how to have a better understanding of what your horse is truly telling you, and have a more profound understanding of yourself.
“You do not need to own a horse in order to experience this,” said Lachance. “We can accommodate everyone. Many people use our lesson and training services for years and then one day they decide they would like to explore themselves further and join our self-development program.”
Or, for those wanting to delve a little deeper, Lachance will be offering day-long clinics outside Cochrane, where people can learn how to communicate effectively with their equine friends using mind, body and soul.
“This is a really fun day and quite an eye-opener for most,” said Lachance, adding the hands-on techniques learned will benefit horse and rider for the rest of their lives. “By the end of the day participants see their horses in a whole new way, their relationship is off to a fresh start and their love for one another is deeper than it has ever been. It’s beautiful to watch it all unfold. It gives me chills up my spine every time!”
She also offers customized weekend retreats where people can go just for enjoyable, well deserved time-off from everyday pressure.
“There is always a certain amount of soul-searching and communing with nature as clients get in touch with their true selves, with the help of a caring equine by their side,” said Lachance.
Her horse-handling methods have helped many horses overcome problems such as trailer-loading, head shyness, bucking, rearing as well as undesirable behavior that has been ingrained in the horse's mind for a long time.
Lachance said she believes that it is best to work with horses in the comfort and safety of their own environment. For these reasons, she prefers to travel to the clients stable to work with their horse.
She also encourages the horse-owner to assist in these sessions in order that they carry on the work between trainings or lessons and become an active partner in their horse's education, as well as their own.
“This also empowers each participant with the necessary knowledge to understand their horse's behavior when working on their own and offers consistency to the horse, an important element in horse training,” she said.
Along with all this, Lachance is a certified Equine Body Worker and does Healing and Animal Communication. She also offers an Evaluation service before buying a horse in order to find out the level of training and ability based on horse psychology and behavior, conformation, hidden vices, compatibility with the rider and market value price. Also, her out-of-the-box corporate workshops offer Team Building and Leadership skills while communing with nature.

Angelica's Story

Creatures All
by Barbra-Ann Lachance

There are many extraordinary stories about horses and humans finding one another in fantastic circumstances. I never dreamed that I would ever be at the centre of one such amazing account.
I started my own remedial training centre a few years ago. Based on horse psychology and behavior, the non-traditional technique I use for instruction seeks to educate humans on how horses communicate. I endeavor to explain their often misinterpreted behavior to humans. This journey has allowed me to share my program, which consists of learning life-skills through the way of the horse.
I learned early on that I would need an equine partner to help me grow and further develop my theories. Nikita came along quite unexpectedly and fit the bill perfectly. Her gentle ability to teach and her great sensitivity allowed me to learn rapidly and perfect my non-traditional methods. She helped me establish some important fundamentals in honoring a relationship with a horse and pushed me to believe in myself, the knowledge I have and the journey I am on. She showed tremendous patience with me and my uncertainties, for which I will forever be grateful.

Nikita and I became close friends and she is the model for my relationship riding logo. With her help, I was able to convince many horse owners that there is far more to horses than what they have learned up until now. Sadly, Nikita died tragically while giving birth on May 16 of this year. The image of her flat on her stomach, hind limbs in a frog-legged position, only able to push her foal half way out before he succumbed, stays in my mind to this day.

Right there and then, I decided to shut down my business and to stop working with horses. The thought of continuing without Nikita was simply unbearable. Suddenly, I felt I no longer had anything to teach. My mind went blank from the moment my "teacher" lay dead on the ground, taking with her everything I knew about horses.

But the thought of quitting didn't linger long, as a strong and compelling voice interrupted my grieving, telling me, "Are you going to quit after all I have taught you? People need to know and you need to tell them." I know, without a doubt, that that voice belonged to Nikita. She was right, I had a job to do, a purpose in life, and I had to go on, even without her.

So the journey to find another equine friend started. I knew of lots of horses, all of them very special and unique in their own way, but I had a feeling that they were not meant for this job and certainly not up to replacing Nikita. They either didn't pass their veterinarian pre-purchase examination, were no longer for sale, or someone beat me to them. Those that did show potential were always unavailable. I decided to pack it in... my next horse would just have to find me. The universe knew what I was trying to accomplish with horses and humans and I trusted the universe to send me my perfect equine partner. Meanwhile, I had horses to train, lessons to teach, a business to run.

Angelica came into my life three years ago, long before Nikita, when I was searching for the perfect horse to help in the establishment of my equine business. She was going on two at the time and had a loving personality. I was doing quite a bit of work where she was kept so we got to know each other pretty well. I think our favourite moment in a day was when I sat on the fence, just admiring Angi and her pasture mates. She would come up to me for some snuggles, stretching out her neck and sniffing my face. I would rest my head right on hers and we would often let out a sigh of contentment. For me, happiness meant spending a quiet moment with Angi, where neither one of us expected or demanded anything from the another. That is what I call true friendship.

It took me a while to realize at that time that she had all the qualities I was looking for in a "spokes-horse", even though she was very young. As a result of my procrastination, when I finally did make an offer to buy her, she was already spoken for. I gave up on owning her but luckily ended up with my fabulous mare Nikita instead.

Now, several years later, with Nikita gone, I got the phone call on a Sunday evening. The lady who now owned Angelica wondered if I might be able to find good homes for some of her horses. She knew I was familiar with Aztecas because I owned one that was becoming quite popular; even being featured on the front page of newspapers! What she didn't know was that I had tried to track her down when Nikita died to see if she would consider selling me Angelica. After all this time had passed, I learned she had kept my business card and, having contacted me, was happy to know that I would not only be able to help find homes for two of her Aztecas, but that I wanted one for myself!

I flipped through every possible card in my emotional Rolodex on my way to see Angelica again after all these years. I was both excited and frightened. I was imagining a future with her, even now, before I had placed my offer. But I was all too aware of the obstacles that might get in the way of owning her. I relived our earlier memories of cuddles on the fence, not knowing if she would still be the horse I knew many years ago. It's a good thing I wasn't driving the car, my mind was all over the place!

Angelica was just as beautiful and sweet as when I had seen her last. She was all grown up now, but there was a mischievous, playful look in her eyes. I slowly approached her and let her smell my hand, clothes, face and hair. She seemed to be searching the memories, trying to recall where she had encountered this human before. Her mane was long and dark, her body a greying dun color. Suddenly, nothing and no one else mattered; it was just her and I, enjoying a very special moment, rediscovering each other.

After establishing a few ground rules, Angelica proved to have the qualities I was looking for in an equine partner. Confidently, I rode her in a treeless saddle with only a halter and she was a perfect dream. I knew she had bucked off her trainer in the past and she could be challenging given the right circumstances, so I was careful about my demands and made sure I stayed respectful and realistic about our new found friendship. After I dismounted, her owner told me Angi hadn't been ridden in over a year! That wonderful horse showed me that she was willing to trust me. I was going to do the same.

I became very excited, imagining owning Angelica and again started dreaming what our future together could look like. I was still grieving Nikita and wasn't sure it was the right time to get involved in another relationship with a horse. I was up for a long time that night, thinking everything over and shocked by something my husband confessed. He had always been a quiet bystander in my business, drying my tears during my battles to save equines, encouraging my crazy dreams. But this time, he set aside his very manly ego and admitted to something which heretofore had been totally out of his belief system.

While I was getting Angelica saddled up, he had held on to her lead rope. At that very moment, she put her velvety nose on his chest and he heard her voice, loud and clear, asking him to convince me to take her home! When he admitted this to me, I knew without a doubt that she was right for me.

I strongly believe that when things are meant to be, everything happens as it should. The following day, I had an email message from Angelica's owner saying they accepted my offer and that she was mine!

I intentionally left out the best part of this story: Angelica is Nikita's daughter! The physical resemblances to her mother are striking, but as I am finding out, her temperament and personality are quite different. Nikita had a serious temperament, reminding me of a school's headmaster. Rarely did I find her to be playful. Angelica, on the other hand, can't keep things serious for too long. She's always finding ways to make me laugh through her curiosity and spontaneity. She is also teaching me a lot regarding horse/human relationships, as well as human/human relationships.

Angelica and I are presently getting to know each other. Through ground work, riding and play, we are establishing a strong relationship based on love, trust, respect and harmony. I see a lot of her mother's qualities in her, but she is very much her own horse.

Angelica will be an assistant-facilitator and will be used for demonstrations and clinics, taking over from her Mom. I really look forward to all the great adventures that await us. Suddenly, I have a huge smile on my face and excitement in my eyes. This adorable Spanish mare has given me back my wings to fly and together, we will soar the skies, encouraging others to do the same.