Jody Hartstone explains that Equitation Science is an objective, evidence-based understanding of horses and horse training. It includes sciences such as ethology, learning theory, cognition and biomechanics. 

By understanding ethology we can understand a lot of the horses’ natural behaviours, such as separation anxiety and the flight response, and learning theory teaches us how we can modify this behavior. 

Equitation Science isn’t a method, it’s the lens through which we look at horse training to see what is effective and ineffective, and what might lead to welfare concerns. 

The International Society for Equitation Science (ISES) has developed 10 training principles that should underpin any training that you do with a horse.