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8/31/05: "At 70 years of age, how can you possibly handle the schedule that we read about on your website? It would seem impossible that you can change continents, time zones, and even hemispheres with the pace that is evident on your website."

8/24/05: "How do you respond to being called 'controversial'?"

8/17/05: "Would you say that it is acceptable to geld horses in order to make them easier to handle?"

8/10/05: "Monty, what do you think? Do horses dream?"

8/3/05: "I have a retired Thoroughbred racehorse that has been out on a farm for three years with other horses. He is now getting back in form, but he can’t cope when I take the other horses away from him. He gets all worked up, and runs towards the fence like he is going to jump it just so he can be with them. Is there any way to sort this out? I have tried separating them little by little and he is getting a bit better, but I can't take my other horses out riding without the risk of this one hurting himself."

Answers

Question: "At 70 years of age, how can you possibly handle the schedule that we read about on your website? It would seem impossible that you can change continents, time zones, and even hemispheres with the pace that is evident on your website."

Answer: I have been very fortunate to study and become familiar with four natural substances which have allowed me to execute the schedule that would stop down most people in their 30's:

1. Melatonin
2. Coenzyme Q-10
3. Transfer Factor
4. Oligomeric Proanthocyanidins

Melatonin allows me to sleep five to six hours in what is termed REM sleep (the deepest kind). For me, sleep occurs about 30 minutes after putting a small tablet under my tongue. It contains 2.5mg of melatonin. This is a natural substance but one should check with a doctor to be sure you are free of any negative side-effects. I have experienced no negatives with my use of melatonin and have taken it every night of my life since 1991.

Coenzyme Q-10 (COQ10) this again is a natural substance, generally derived from fish. It has but one obligation, and that is to increase the oxygen in your bloodstream. I take 100mg per day after breakfast. COQ10 is size conscious, so Pat takes 60mg per day. Our bodies require oxygen to heal and to fend off invaders of one sort or another. Without oxygen, we are sitting targets for viruses and other organisms. In the presence of highly oxygenated blood, we have a much better defense mechanism.

Transfer Factor is a relatively new discovery. It is the heart and soul of colostrum. This means that the first milk of mammals (cows in this instance) is broken down so that only the factor for the enhancement of the immune system is present. The world will come to know that this element found in all female mammals for approximately 48 hours after giving birth, is one of the most important facets where enhancing our immune system is concerned. Most of the colostrum used in this process is derived from organic dairies in the beautiful grassy country of New Zealand. These dairy farms use no fertilizer, spray, or medicines connected with the cows who produce this colostrum. If a cow requires medication, she is removed from the program. The calves resulting from the births in question are fortunate that these dairy cows produce nearly 100 times the colostrum that they require. While their needs are met, there is ample colostrum available for the necessary processing to achieve Transfer Factor.

Oligomeric Proanthocyanidins are the result of decades of study worldwide. The object of the study was to obtain certain factors involving antioxidants. The first real success occurred in France and was the extraction of pine bark. Later, through a massive amount of work, the process was perfected with the seeds of red grapes. At this point in time 'OPCs' are being gathered from several other sources. Bilberry seeds, citrus, cranberry seeds, and other sources have been added to the list of botanical material from which OPC's can be gathered. I believe that the addition of this substance to the three above has resulted in a significant positive change in my life. I began the use of OPC's in September 2001, and I have the distinct impression that my ability to fend off illnesses has been greatly enhanced by its inclusion. I am of the opinion that the addition of OPC's has been responsible for an incredible improvement in my memory skills. I could give many examples, but suffice to say the improvement has been dramatic.

I have asked that a Journal article written by my wife Pat be included on this website. It outlines the fact that I have been executing a schedule for approximately 15 years now that would be considered overwhelming by virtually anyones standards. Among other things you will see that I have completed more than 1500 individual demonstration events without missing, cancelling, or even being late for one of the performances. I have experienced many trips where virtually my whole team would be negatively affected by a flu or cold bug of one sort or another, and while I felt the bug enter my system, I was normally able to kick it out within a matter of 2-5 hours. This experience has been profound.

- Monty

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Question: "How do you respond to being called 'controversial?"

Answer: Probably most often the first thing I do is smile. The reason for the smile is most likely that I consider myself utterly non-controversial. It seems to me that if the practitioner of a particular discipline brings findings to the table and these findings are new, then they can be argued by two distinctly different means. One is academic and the other is practical. It seems very difficult to me to classify as controversial something that the founder has been actually demonstrating for decades.

I don't ask people to accept my concepts because I explain them in a certain way; nor do I request acceptance without extensive trial. I have now been demonstrating my findings to the public for more than twenty years. I suppose I could have asked the public to accept my principles over those twenty years with just five or ten horses as examples. The fact is, however, I have offered in open public forum demonstrations of my work with more than 5,500 horses.

If one should study history in general, it would be evident that new ideas come on line, and virtually all are considered controversial by many until reasonably proven. The status quo is nearly an immovable object and, in fact, as an academic, I am totally in favor of that. New ideas should have to jump through all reasonable hoops lest we follow bad ideas down counterproductive paths. One can site many examples whereby in the past the public accepted unproven concepts only to be negatively effected. It seems wrong, however, for us to steal from ourselves if we test and find a new idea effective over a substantial period of time and yet classify it as controversial.

Add to this mix that I am challenging an 8,000 year old discipline that has changed very little in all that time. I am suggesting that the traditional ways of breaking horses were far less than optimal and, in fact, frankly brutal. While I never say that I blame forerunners for their work, I often state that one must understand that it is the only way they have known. I consider my lot in life not to be judgmental, but to bring to the mix an alternative to what has gone before me. No one on the face of the earth can truthfully say that I have tried to force them to work with their horses by my methods. That would go against the very core of my principles.

Another ingredient that one must consider is that a few people who knew my father suggest that I have spoken of physical abuse in a gratuitous fashion. Some will say that they knew my father and that he was a nice man to them and incapable of brutality. Obviously, those people have not read his book or choose to ignore his own words. Most domestic violence is conducted without public knowledge. I work in this field extensively now and find that to be the case in the majority of situations. The fact is I have proof of permanent injuries that are unexplained in any other way. It happened.

In conclusion, I would ask the public to accept one factor before you label me controversial. I would simply request that I am observed with the realization that I don't tell the public what I believe is right. I show my work over and over again. If there is a true difference of opinion, I have no problem with that. But it is hurtful when words like controversial are laid at my feet while I am openly demonstrating my discipline.

- Monty

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Question: "Would you say that it is acceptable to geld horses in order to make them easier to handle?"

Answer: I am a firm believer that stallions should only be handled by trained professionals. When I use the term ‘trained professionals’, I am referring to professional horse people that are very experienced in practical hands-on work with stallions. It is my opinion that all entire male horses that will potentially be handled by amateurs should be castrated.

I have many strong reasons for making this recommendation, far too many to list here. Suffice to say that stallions should be castrated unless they are going to be controlled throughout their lives by these highly skilled individuals.

I have had some of my greatest successes in competition with geldings. Even though I have been a professional in the horse business virtually all of my life, I would now greatly prefer to ride and handle a gelding. They are effective in competition and in my opinion, have lost none of their zest for life.

-Monty

(Editor’s note: you can read about champion geldings such as Fiddle d’Or, Pepinics Dually, Shy Boy and Rough Frolic in Monty’s new book, The Horses In My Life)

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Question: "Monty, what do you think? Do horses dream?"

Answer: "Do horses dream?" is a question that has been bandied about for generations. Every dog owner is certain that dogs dream, so why not horses, too?

I was in Monterey, California at a horse show and Pat entered us in a mixed team roping. Since I didn’t own a decent rope horse at the time, Pat had borrowed two horses from her cousin. I asked what I was going ride in the open roping and she replied, "Old Sergeant!" Sergeant had been a darn good heel horse in his day and was about seventeen or eighteen at the time of this event. I liked Sergeant. It was a good choice.

The two roping horses were delivered to the fairgrounds. They had been used on the ranch and, while one had shoes on that were adequate, Sergeant’s feet looked terrible. I asked Pat to make arrangements with the on-duty farrier to get some new shoes on him before the competition began the following day.

The farrier was Bill Whitney, an old friend who’d been our farrier for most of the post-war years on the Salinas Competition Grounds. Bill was quite old by this time, and he asked me if Sergeant was gentle. The horse had burrs in his mane and tail and his overall raunchy look suggested he might be a bit wild. I reassured Bill that I had roped on him dozens of times and there was no question that Sergeant was gentle. That was a given.

Bill suggested I should return in about an hour and a half. Pat and I called in at the horse show and rodeo office to go through the necessary check-in routine, had a hamburger and then moseyed back to collect Sergeant. As we walked up, we both realized that something was wrong. Bill’s assistant was walking briskly to greet us and he had a disconcerting look about him. I guess his eyes were open just a little too wide and his shoulders seemed to be a bit stiff.

"Bill’s gone to the doctor," he said. "Sergeant kicked him and they took him away in an ambulance."

"What?" I replied. "That’s not possible. Sergeant’s never kicked anybody in his life!"

The assistant told us that Sergeant had stood without incident while three shoes were easily fixed in place. In fact, he was so placid and calm it seemed like he’d fallen into a deep sleep while being shod. Then, when his leg was picked up for the last shoe, he suddenly exploded, blew hard through his nose, kicked out, pulled back and tried to run away all at the same time, and caught Bill on the leg. It was incomprehensible.

The assistant agreed to put on the last shoe and while he was doing it, Bill appeared. He had a slight limp and showed us that he was wearing a bandage under his jeans. We asked what he thought had happened. Fortunately, Bill had a big smile on his face.

"Monty, I disturbed that horse while he was dreaming about a lion, "he said. "There’s no doubt in my mind about it."

Sergeant never made a move while the last shoe was nailed on, and Pat and I were able to rope. Bill Whitney was okay to continue his shoeing for the balance of the show.

I’ve had many dreams about horses – Pat has often been woken by an arm landing across her face when I dream of being bucked off. As a child, I often dreamed of riding into the mountains, hiding away, escaping. Then I would watch myself getting stuck in the wrong place – dreams of panic and pursuit. When I was dealing with Barlet, I dreamed of being devoured by a horse.

But do horses dream? Who knows – I suppose the debate will continue until someone straps a machine on a horse that proves it one way or another. For me, I’d just like to continue thinking they do, but never knowing for sure.

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Question: "I have a retired Thoroughbred racehorse that has been out on a farm for three years with other horses. He is now getting back in form, but he can’t cope when I take the other horses away from him. He gets all worked up, and runs towards the fence like he is going to jump it just so he can be with them. Is there any way to sort this out? I have tried separating them little by little and he is getting a bit better, but I can't take my other horses out riding without the risk of this one hurting himself."

Answer: Don't leave him alone! My best advice is to take him to a neighbor’s place where they have a safe holding facility and leave him near other horses to begin the process of separation. If it is absolutely necessary to leave him alone, he must be left in the safest possible stable and do that only if there is no other alternative.

Separation anxiety is rapidly becoming one of the most important remedial problems of our time. I suppose with properties becoming smaller, and horses being kept in close proximity, this bonding process is becoming more and more pervasive. Horses are herd animals. They rely upon the presence of other familiar animals to feel safe. It might be a goat, or a sheep, it might even be a dog or a cat. People can even be a calming influence if the horse regards the person as a friend. There is a lesson in this somewhere.

In my textbook From My Hands to Yours it will expand on many details that I am not able to include in this Question and Answer format. Please read chapter 10, page 178 containing details on separation anxiety.

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