News and Information
As seen in ...
The SENTINEL
Feb./Mar. 2000
Natural Influences, by Julie Murphy,
Though her business name sounds backward, her philosophy is straightforward. Consider the horse's emotional state first, and everything else will fall into place in due time.
"I want people to know how good it can be," says Denise Lesnik. "There are a lot of people who don¹t understand, but really want to see the big picture. When I was in college earning my BS in Equine Studies, I focused more on the health care and stable management. Now I love the teaching part, because I have somewhere to take my students."
In spite of being an active 4-H'er from the age of nine; earning a degree in Equine Studies in which she also studied dressage and jumping with Col. Alfred Kitts, an AHSA and FEI level judge and Thoroughbred breeder; competing intercollegiately in the hunt seat division; and working on a racing Standardbred farm; Denise hadn't learned the lesson she needed.
For every student there is a teacher. Denise's best teacher has been her "free" horse, Sun Son.
"Sun Son was given to me as a five-year-old Thoroughbred stallion when he became too much for his owner to handle. Even though Sun Son was gelded, he attempted to buck me off every day for nine months. I did not realize it then, but he did not respect or trust human beings on the ground, let alone from his back. I thought that by staying on through all the bucks, rears and spins he would learn he could not throw me and would quit. He never improved over the nine months and clearly did not enjoy spending time with me."
"When I needed to move Sun Son to a new stable, and he proved untrailerable for me, my exposure to natural horsemanship
began. I was introduced to a new way of thinking, and began to study Parelli Natural Horsemanship. It seemed the more I learned,
the more I realized there was more to learn. I achieved their [PNH] level 2,
and spent two weeks during the summers of 1997 and 1998 attending the
Instructor's Course at the
Rounding out her experience, Denise has participated in clinics with Ray
Hunt, Dave Seay, Curt Pate, Jan Leitschuh, and Lee
Smith with whom she was fortunate to spend two weeks during August 1999 as she
traveled to
Denise says that Lee Smith is her biggest influence. "Lee has taught me that there's a better way. You don't have to get them in that trouble spot." She goes on to tell a story that happened while on the road with Lee in which they were groundworking young horses in a field. "There was this drainage ditch we were going to have to cross. I was worried that the horse
would maybe jump on top of me if I tried to lead him across. Everything I had been taught was to send the horse over. So, I was standing there, and I was going to send this horse over no matter what. He was getting nervous, but I was going to make it happen. Lee watched this for a while and came up to me and suggested that I just walk across with him. I was surprised. He
came right along with me. That day I really learned you don't have to make everything a big deal."
Denise says that her approach to teaching people also changed that day. "What I do with the horses depends in part on what the owner is going to be able to do with the horse when he goes home. There's no reason to get the person into a trouble spot either."
There is no "formula" to either the training Denise does with the horses, or the lessons she gives to their owners. "Every person, every horse, and every situation is different. I really gauge things individually based on both need and desire. Sometimes, all a person wants is groundwork done to address a particular problem. Other times, groundwork isn't an issue and
everything is done in the saddle. In lessons, groundwork is only done if it's really called for."
Denise credits her time at
"The really nice thing about training here out of Flannery Farms is that everything is right here. I have my own barn to work out of with plenty of stalls. There are both indoor and outdoor arenas, a round pen, lots of pasture and turnout, plus about one hundred acres for riding. We are hoping to put in a true obstacle course shortly," says Denise.
"It's great to be able to give young horses trail experience within the confines of the property. It also comes in handy for timid riders. We try to work and ride outside as much as possible. This gives both horses and riders exposure to lots of things. Even the decorative geese windsocks provide a little challenge for the horses."
As Denise doesn't have lesson horses, per se, she makes some house calls in addition to the training and lessons she provides from her home base.
The other thing Denise doesn't do is run a sale barn. "I really wanted to teach and train on my own because there is a real need to help people with their relationships with their horses. So many people can, and do, get into trouble because they are just willing to trust people. They'll call you up and just trust that you will sell a horse that will be good. They don't know
enough. And, even if you have a good horse, there are just some bad matches out there. I don't want to be wrapped up in selling horses and in selling packages," says Denise.
"What I really want people to know is that you can make some really big changes if you have some patience and take the time."
