Bob Blackwell Method of Practical Horsemanship

Background On Bob Blackwell: Instructor and Originator of the Bob Blackwell Method
of Practical Horsemanship for the Complete Horse or "Hoss Logic"

My whole life has been focused around horses from the time I was able to walk and tend the horses with my grandpa. Grandpa was a Blacksmith and trained horses and dogs. He was my first instructor and had the attitude that if anyone asked to do something who was willing to follow instructions and was physically able to accomplish the job, no matter what the age, grandpa was willing to teach what he knew. I shod my first mule at the age of 5 under my grandpa's supportive but demanding supervision. Since he was the only Blacksmith in the valley where I was raised, he taught me his methods of shoeing, treating foundered, injured, or ill horses, and training so that these skills would not be lost but would be perpetuated. When asked about his horsemanship methods, my grandpa would just smile and say, "It's just plain old 'Hoss Logic'."
Left: As a boy on our farm in PA
with my Irish Setter bird dog, Tara

My experience in teaching practical and safe horsemanship extends back to the 1950s when I first began instructing others in the knowledge that I had gained from my grandpa. My grandpa was not a harsh trainer. He trained horses and dogs and treated both with regard for their individuality. At the same time he demanded a respect from them which he achieved through earning it. Likewise, they, too, were expected to learn how to earn his praise and respect. His understanding but firm techniques are entrenched in my training method today. While in the Armed Services, in the US and Korea, I used my grandpa's methods to select and train guard dogs and achieved a 90% success rate, at a time when those before me had achieved only a 30% success rate. I also used this method with bird dogs and other working and hunting dogs.

After my stay in the service I used my G.I. grant toward furthering my education at the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School where I completed all but one year of my veterinary training before family obligations had to take precedent over continued education in this field. I also worked as a cowboy on ranches throughout the western states and completed the accredited courses at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA to become a licensed farrier. Both during and after my stay in the service I was a rodeo cowboy and made it to the National Finals in Las Vegas, NV, in the 1960s.

I learned much about training horse training while working as a real life cowboy on ranches in the West. I also learned that for traveling distances on these ranches gaited horses which were wild caught and tamed were often used and provided to the help on these ranches in the 50's. Many of the working stock horses at that time also had a "soft" gait. My first experience in working with both non-gaited and gaited horse breeds were gained while working as a cowboy.
I preferred the force free methods and apprenticed under, and worked with, the best of "natural" working trainers. These were the trainers which many of today's clinicians also studied under and got their start. Many have heard of the Dorrances, who I knew at the time and worked with, but another such "real cowboy" and horse handler not often mentioned by some of the younger horsemanship instructors, but very deserving of credit for his abilities as a "whisperer", was Billy Bishop.
Billy, noticing that I had light hands and a knack for understanding and using bits, put me in touch with Joaquin Camarillo so I could learn and perfect some more advanced riding skills and techniques. Joaquin was a well known trainer noted for his mastery of using a spade bit and instructing those who wished to learn this difficult technique without hurting the horse. Later, I became a riding instructor for many disciplines using the knowledge and training I received from my diversified instruction.

Pictured: Bob Blackwell with Delmar Smith of
Delmar Smith Kennels in Edmond, OK. I was licensed by the Racing Commission in several states as a race track farrier. As a farrier with veterinary training in the anatomy of horses I have worked with veterinarians across the country for over 30 years using legitimate, successful forms of corrective shoeing to correct foot related problems and disorders such as, laminitis, founder, foot and hoof fungi, etc. I have worked both independently and with other farriers, blacksmiths, and veterinarians to help produce effective treatments and cures for many race track injuries, stifle problems, etc.
I have also worked extensively with both large and small animal veterinarians in regards to routine, and some not so routine, health care procedures and in treating injured horses and sports dog injuries. In the late 60's I trained bird dogs with Delmar Smith and also worked with horses in the program for Bird Dog Field Trials.

I have instructed and trained apprentices in the proper skills of the farrier trade and approved them as farriers. Many of those who apprenticed under my instruction are working in this field today in several states. I have conducted clinics in hoof care and management, horse shoeing, etc. throughout the US. and in Australia and England where I toured with a wild west show and rode for the Queen of England. I have also shod "celebrity" horses. Among the famous horses I have shod are the Knotts Berry Farm horses, "She Kitty", Shriner's Rose Parade horses, "Joll Bars", to name a few. I have also had years of experience in shoeing gaited horses.
More recently my training in detecting foot and hoof injuries has led me to become a trained and licensed DQP and DQP trainer.

A DQP (Designated Qualified Person ) is a position created by the Horse Protection Act for the purpose of checking a horse's feet for compliance with this Act. I have been a DQP for 3 HIOs (Horse Industry Organizations) and DQP Coordinator for one which I helped to set up as an HIO.

I have been a judge for many breeds of horses, including Arabs, Quarter Horses, Appaloosas, and Missouri Fox Trotters, have judged multibreed shows, and taught multibreed clinics. Most recently I have been a judge in the Missouri Fox Trotting Horse Breed Association for 15 years and was among the first MFTHBA judges to be qualified for performance, model, and versatility.

Today I have used my diversified knowledge of anatomy, hoof care, shoeing, equitation, varied horsemanship disciplines, and knowledge of equine behavior to evaluate the total horse in the implementation of my own practical horsemanship methods and program. I also teach gaited horse shoeing clinics, round pen and other force free training styles, and problem solving clinics for the general public who wish to incorporate practical, supportive, and nurturing techniques in riding and training their own horses.
I care about the horses and the riders in my workshops and clinics and make a point of giving each of my participants my personal attention so that my instruction is supportive, and at the same time informative and entertaining for both participants and auditors.

By request I am now in the process of writing a book of my experiences made up of short stories which range from happy to sad, funny to thoughtful, reminiscent of a time long gone but hopeful for the future.

MAIN PAGE INTRODUCTION AUTOBIOGRAPHY FREE ARTICLE SHOEING EXPERIENCE CORRECTIVE SHOEING QUESTIONS & ANSWERS CLINICS & WORKSHOPS CONTACT

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