• About Join-Up ®
• FAQ
• Monty Roberts
• Career Highlights
• International Speaker
• Pat Roberts
• Flag Is Up Farms
• International Learning Center
• Join-Up International

Join-Up International Join-Up International is a 501(c)3, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting gentle, more effective alternatives to violence and force in both equine and human relationships (visit official site). Inspired by the concepts of world-renowned horse gentler and best-selling author Monty Roberts, the organization seeks to educate and train people throughout the world on Join-Up® principles. The foundation also provides support to those in need of trust-building, non-violent tools for daily living. Monty’s mission is to leave the world a better place than he found it for horses and for people, too. His unique and gentle method of using the horse’s own language to achieve breakthrough results is revolutionary, but not magical. This is a gift we all have; it can be practiced and developed. The principles can be applied to human relationships as well. Join-Up International seeks to foster the adoption of these skills among a greater audience, insuring their preservation for generations to come.

“Violence is never the answer.” ~ Monty Roberts

Individuals from all walks of life – business leaders, horse lovers, therapists, health professionals, prison administrators, youth-at-risk groups and many others find help and inspiration in the message of Join-Up, and seek to learn how to apply it in their own lives. Join-Up concepts have helped abused women and children, and their abusers, too, as well as special needs children, foster families, prison inmates and other groups.

If you would like more information, please call 1 (805) 688-3483 or email us.

“No one has the right to say ‘you do what I tell you, or I’ll hurt you.” – Monty Roberts

“I would ask you to allow the horses to do the talking; to believe Equus there can be no agenda to lie within the horses’ makeup.” – Monty Roberts

Violent & Traditional Horse “Breaking”

This traditionally violent horse “breaking” inspired Monty to develop Join-Up as a gentle, yet effective alternative. Today, Monty’s message transcends work with horses and inspires trust based, gentle methods for communicating with people too. [photos from Horse and Horseman Training by Marvin E. Roberts (Monty's father), 1957 - more below]

Shocking Horse Breaking Video

“This video clip may not be suitable for all viewers, this video should only be viewed with parental guidance. This footage contains images of violence towards horses. Our hope is that by sharing this with our audience, we will bring to light the violence towards horses that still occurs today and that there is a better way.“

Please Click Here to view the Traditional Horse Breaking Video

When Monty Roberts named the moment of partnership “Join~Up,” he decided it would become the foundation of all his work with horses and people. After this revelatory moment with the wild horses, Roberts returned home to his family’s riding school at the Salinas Rodeo Grounds in Salinas, California. There, he had grown up watching his father “break” horses using traditional methods involving pain, control, fear and coercion.

Testing his new insights into the nature of horses, Monty tried out some of his new ideas and was promptly punished for challenging his father’s traditional methods. Monty remained undeterred from his vision and later became a champion Western horseman, Thoroughbred trainer and advocate for violence-free horse training.

You can read Marvin Roberts’ (Monty’s father) disturbing book from 1957, on violent traditional horse breaking click here >>

Help Us Stop Violence Against Horses… Make A Donation

Join~Up International needs your support.

Join-Up International, a 501(c) 3 corporation, primarily supports the Monty Roberts International Learning Center, located at Flag Is Up Farms in Solvang, California. The MRILC is dedicated to teaching principles of non-violence and trust-building communication, using horses as a vehicle for this learning process. Support is needed for the care of the horses, outreach programs and scholarships. The Learning Center offers special events, classes, and in-depth courses throughout the year to horsemen and non-horsemen alike.

We welcome and invite both administrative volunteers and financial support. Contact us to learn more, or make a tax-deductible contribution today!

Call: 001 805-688-3483, or write

P.O. Box 246
Solvang, CA 93464