We do not have internships available for 2007
Internships at The Natural Gait

Thank you for your interest in The Natural Gait’s internship program. Our commitment to you
is to offer the opportunity to advance your horsemanship knowledge. You will learn how to communicate with your horse in ways horses understand (i.e., communication that operates with respect not fear), how to interpret what your horse
is telling you, and how you can work together on common ground.

The heart of the intern program derived from our wanting to share a way of living, thinking, and
feeling about horses, natural horsemanship and how
it applies to everyday life. Before long,
you will discover that you will be spending
more time working on yourself than
on the horse.
Our internships are non-salaried positions;
however they include transportation during
your stay, room and board, riding lessons,
instruction, use of our horses and participation
in clinics hosted at The Natural Gait.
All you need to bring is an abundance
of enthusiasm and an iron strong desire
to better yourself as a horseperson.
You will get a lot of riding time and supervised
work with our horses. We will cover such topics
as horse behavior, useful groundwork,
riding skills, trailer loading, correcting
behavioral issues from the ground
and from the saddle, recognizing and
correcting ill fitting tack, and dealing
with horse health issues. Most importantly,
you will develop your power of observation
in recognizing and understanding the smallest
change or try a horse is offering.

Your daily duties will be assigned according
to prior experience. You can expect to spend time feeding horses, haying, basic vet care, and fencing,
trail grooming, helping with clinic preparation,
cleaning stalls, corrals and miscellaneous barn
chores. You may also be assisting (depending upon
your skill level) in TNG horsemanship clinics
with beginning riders, assisting with guided
trail rides, and performing some guest duties
which could include cleaning rooms and helping
with meals. You will participate in two riding
lessons per week but will have many more hours
in the saddle. You will also have the opportunity
to assist with horses in training depending on your comfort level and experience.

If you want an opportunity for growth in your horsemanship skills and are willing to devote
your time with us at The Natural Gait,
please request an application packet
by calling or e-mailing:
The Natural Gait Application .
Our toll free number is 877-776-2208
and the e-mail address is
ntrlgait@acegroup.cc

We look forward to meeting you!

Or Click Here for printable form.
We do not have any available internships for 2007

The following essays are from our 2005 interns.

Essay by Norm Solberg
Summer 2005

My last ride was magical. We rode lots of horses during our internship, but Grayson was my favorite. The last ride was in the arena, just the two of us.
He was willing to do everything I asked, and for someone like me without years of experience riding, this was special. He even picked up a lope each time
I gently asked.

The next two days are in Beaver Dam at a Buster McLaury clinic, and then I'll be on my way home.
It seems fitting, because I first came to The Natural Gait during a Buster McLaury clinic. I saw then
how a master horseman handles horses and have
been working to do what he was showing us.
He repeatedly would say,"See how little you
can do to get your horse to…
" I thought of those words every time I rode.

Being a 65 year old gynecologist, I'm not your
typical horse intern. When I learned there was a place like the Natural Gait where I could spend the summer riding horses every day and learning horsemanship it seemed like any boy's dream. I first learned about it
in spring 2004, but wasn't able to take off that summer. However I made arrangements to come in 2005, and fortunately they had a place for me.
I dream of having my own farm and my own horses some day soon, and what I have learned here will
help make that possible.

I had taken some riding lessons, read a lot and
watched videos, but I hadn't ridden very much
before coming here. The two interns who got here before me had been riding for years and were very good riders. So you might say I was kind of lost
for a while. I also seemed to be all thumbs.
I had never tied a rope halter before, and it took me
5 or 6 times before I got it tied right.

Sylvia our leader was always very supportive and helpful, never making me feel dumb for all the dumb things I did. With the help of Sylvia, Dawn and all the great clinics we had I gradually became a better rider. I still have a long way to go, but I'm on the way.

...continuation of Loren's essay

The Natural Gait is a place where animals are loved and are in abundance. There are dogs and cats, deer in the fields and woods, eagles,
hawks, hummingbirds, and more. This is God's country. There are rolling hills, fields, wooded areas, the Yellow River, and amazingly almost
no mosquitoes.

Donna and Howard are owners of the Natural Gait and are two of the nicest people you'll ever meet. They are horse lovers who have realized a dream here and made possible this incredible place and wonderful internship.

I have always dreamed of getting up in the morning and seeing horses in my backyard.
That happened every day here. I would start my day in the paddocks grooming the horses and mules and getting to know them.They each have their unique personalities. The work (fixing fences and gates, mucking paddocks, etc.) was never like work if the horses were around
sticking their noses into things. If it was something being done in their area, there
was sure to be a group around to help.

The clinics were a very special part of the intern experience. Buster McLaury, Julie Goodnight, Vaughn Knudsen, and Tom Nagel all gave
superb clinics, each one helping me become a better rider and horseman. These were supplemented by Dawn and Sylvia's clinics,
so we got lots of good teaching. They say the horses are your best teachers, but the people
made it a lot easier to learn from the horses.

I hope to always have horses in my life. I know that the things I have learned here will help
me be a better person for those horses.

Essay by Lora Wittenberg
Summer 2005

If someone had told me a year ago about the internship opportunity available at The Natural Gait I wouldn’t have believed them. An opportunity to live with such warm people, to learn from so many amazing clinicians, to spend the summer in a beautiful natural environment, and to be able to work with so many wonderful horses; is truly a once in a lifetime experience.

The timeI spent as an intern surpassed my every expectation, Howard, Donna, Sylvia
and Dawn all went above and beyond to make myself and the other interns feel at home.
When I left at the end of the summer, I truly
felt like I was part of another family. I feel
like I have grown more in my horsemanship
and as a person over this past summer then
I have at any other time in my life.

When I first came to The Natural Gait, I hadn’t ridden much for four years and had never ridden western.The first clinic I participated in was Busters’; I was amazed by his ability to notice
the small changes in a horse that would lead to large advances in training. In the horsemanship part of the clinic, I was overwhelmed; everything
was so different from saddleseat and I realized that I had a lot to learn.

My favorite memory from the summer would be riding with Sylvia and Annie though the cow pastures at sunset.The landscape was so beautiful and the three of us could relax and have fun after a long day of work. But everyday brought new fun and adventure at The Natural Gait: whether
it was waking up to a loose herd of horses, going kayaking in the yellow river, putting up hay, learning how to drive stick, or just riding the trails. I loved that we rode just about everyday, the trails are beautiful, and the horses were so much fun, I miss them all.

I will never forget the memories I made and the people I met while at Natural Gait. The experience opened my eye to a new and more effective way to approach an animal that I have loved and revered all my life. After seeing the benefits of Natural Horsemanship, it has inspired me to explore the benefits of a natural approach to animal medicine. It has always been my goal to become a veterinarian but now I feel that I have a purpose within that goal. I am very grateful to everyone at The Natural Gait and especially Donna and Howard for giving me the opportunity to grow in so many ways this summer.

Anne Shea was also a 2005 intern