Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling is not trying to 'train' the horse. He learns from the horse and the horse has a say (voice). Most 'trainers' think they are teaching the horse 'body language', for example, when in fact body language IS the horse's language and we must learn it to communicate with the horse. He sees the horse completely and honestly and allows the horse to see him. By acknowledging the differences both can then see they are the same. And from there they become "of like mind" and consensus is established. There is no master - there is no slave - one does not perform for the other - they are one .....of like mind. Training is not necessary - communicating is!

Seeing - is what Klaus does best. Horses only mirror us when we project a 'self image' - and it bounces off the horse as a reflection. Our human illness is that we think we have to create our self image. And then we 'project' it outwards. We think we are "not enough". Most other trainers USE the horse to enhance their 'self image' with trophies, power, dominance, beauty, etc. That self image is a mask that confuses and frightens the horse. The horse doesn't feel seen or acknowledged. The best/only thing they can do is reflect it back or 'die' (remain invisible - never be alive). The then try hard to learn the language of the human and do what they are taught. It always astounds me to see all the crazy things the horse learns to do FOR the human.
Klaus demonstrated the seeing best - I think - with the video clip of the lame stallion. It was breathtakingly clear when the stallion first realized the human saw HIM! THAT is the 'training' difference!

I PRAY for the day people will see the horse differently - the way Klaus sees the horse. The day people don't ask the horse to do things FOR them. The day horses are NOT TRAINED .........! The day people will ACCEPT the gift the horse has to offer ........

Well, I dont think this can be answered in a sentence, so here I go...

Klaus understands the horses, he has mastered body language, so when he sends a horse a message it is very clear. His mental state is so clear and calm, there is nothing else but himself and the horse.

When working with horses most trainers I have seen here in the US respond to violence with more violence, just increasing bad energy in a already bad situation.

When Klaus is presented with high strong horses, he remains calm no matter what; as seen in his stallion videos. I think Klaus is very unique in the way he can transfer his state of being to the horse and once that happens, horses relax with him.

I think Klaus is not a horse trainer, he is a body language expert and he understands the horse; the only word to describe the difference that comes to mind is horseman; Klaus is a true horseman, and most horses trainers are just that, they train.

The definition of training is giving instructions to improve the recipient's performance or to help him or her attain a requiered level of knowledge or skill.

In the horse world traning is more giving orders than instructions. I believe what Klaus does is beyond that definition, he works more on the people, getting people to understand what horses are trying to tell them and need, helping people see that horses will work with us if we understand how to work with them.

I always say my horses don't make mistakes, I make mistakes. And look for a way to correct them (my mistakes) so my horse understands what I am asking. Klaus is a horseman, most other people are just trainers.

"Klaus' approach to horses sees him embracing his 'authentic' self by discarding any 'beliefs', 'paradigms' and expectations and being totally present in the 'here and now'.

Klaus utilises his five sensory faculties:- sight, sound, smell, taste and touch as well as his higher facilities of intuition, imagination, perception, reason and memory to 'recognise' a horses' inner being and if necessary re-unite the horse with his 'true' inner self through the pillars of training - body language, time, distance, and space. Klaus understands and appreciates that each horse is unique and places absolutely no expectations on the horse, he simply witnesses what unfolds. This sets the horse free to be himself as well as progress.

Conventional training methods tend to be one dimensional(focusing on the physical)and can tend to have a one approach fits most attitude. This approach can work to a degree with very 'correctly' conformed and exceptionally emotionally balanced horses but often, unfortunately, only for a short period of time.

I feel the most profound difference lies in the application of Klaus's 'keys' of body language, recognition, time, distance and space. Klaus uses these 'keys' to enter via the front door into the horses' kingdom, to invite a conversation or dance that the horse is capable of whilst conventional methods can be quite confronting, conflicting and abrupt with a 'knocking down of the front door' and a demanding of participation from a horse that may or may not be physically or emotionally capable of. Klaus's approach to training affords the horse respect, dignity, choices, and freedom."

"In order to define the profound difference between Klaus and other horse trainers, one could first look at the similarities between the two. Both take physical action with the horse. Both use apparently similar equipment and at first glance many of the exercises used by both and their aims look similar. But the most fundamental similarity is that both Klaus and any other trainer are working with the same universal laws, often called karma, cause and effect, law of attraction and so on.

The profound difference between Klaus and a horse trainer then is in the individual's degree of concious knowledge of and alignment with those universal forces.

The horse (as with all of life) is an inescapable and accurate reflection of those interacting with him in any given moment. With this in mind, in order to determine a specific outcome with a horse it makes sense to pay very close attention to the action causing that outcome.

Having aligned himself with 'life' and its laws, Klaus comes to the horse free from ego, fear, anger or the need for the horse to validate or compensate for him, all of which would inevitably cause a 'negative' reaction in the horse. He therefore acts with a clean slate so to speak, trusting, completely open to and able to recognise and work with simply what is here and what is necessary in the moment, rather than with preconceived ideas of what could or "should' be. From this expanded level of clarity and awareness he is able to create a very specific and powerful influence through very subtle and precise action, ('action' being defined even as thought or intention as well as physical movements etc), thereby producing maximum results with minimum effort and without ever having to go against the horse in any way.

In this kind of interaction the horse is released from the burden of human agendas and expectations to simply be who he is at the most expanded level possible, and from this place he acts from his natural desire to be with and co-operate with such an authentic leader. Once this basis of communication is established, from a spectator's viewpoint the difference becomes very obvious, as it becomes clear that no training or methods as such are necessary and the horse, knowing that he is better off being with such a human, chooses freely to be with the human rather than the human capturing and subduing the horse.

Of course this is very different from what we routinely see in human-horse relationships. The great majority of trainers do not explore their relationship with themselves and with life, and approach the horse from a need to be validated or completed by the horse and often with much fear due to the lack of connection with their own true nature. This attitude sometimes shows itself in overt domination and brutality, or very often in subtle and unconscious ways hidden under the best of intentions, but the horse will always reflect the total state of whoever is with him rather than what the trainer would like to show to the world about himself. The horse is incapable of covering for a human and so will always reveal the state of the human he finds himself with.

These trainers, operating under the same universal laws as Klaus but in an unconscious and muddied way, succeed in setting up a situation where the horse has no option but to behave in ways we call 'difficult', tense or they physically break down. The trainer looks outside himself to the horse for the cause instead of inside himself to what the horse is reflecting, and blames the horse for obstructing him in his goals. Because of this mistake in perception training methods of all types are employed to correct the apparent 'problem' and can easily be justified by the trainer since he has no awareness of himself as the creator of the situation.

The difference between Klaus and other horse trainers is perhaps then best defined by what he does NOT bring to the situation with a horse, and how he is then free alongside the horse, knowing the truth about himself and life, to align further with natural law to experience and expand in the energy of life, instead of trying to control and manipulate it."

Other methods are merely instruciton manuals with their directions and steps. They claim these ""manuels"" are the key. However all these ""manuels"" teach you is how to program a horse like a machine. This ""machine"" will eventually wear out and break.

You won't find any directions or steps with Klaus. Only ideas for you to ponder, perhaps to find you own way. To dig deep down inside yourself, to seek the truth, the find the answers. For what you will find is merely what your heart has been yearning for the whole time.

To put into words these moments of oneness with my horse, life, and nature may seem like an impossible task. But for someone out there who may be lost in the dark with other methods, maybe just saw the light. That is where the journey begins.

My journey is an awakening, a rebirth. My life with my horse, Brutus, is something out of a dream. There is no force, no anger, no punishment. Only harmony. My whole life with horses has always been about ""making him respect you"", but I was always ashamed of myself. I've read all the ""natural horsemanship"", even practiced it, but the fight continued. That was until I picked up ""Danicng with Horses"". Little did I know what I was about to embark on. After years of reading Klaus and watching videos, it is only now coming to life. My dance has only started.

I wish I could make this more simple, but I can't. For these words I have written come from the depth of my soul. These words are my truth, the truth Klaus has led me to find."

"The profound difference between Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling and other horse trainers lies in his ability to approach the horse in emptiness. He has no agenda and thus the horse responds to his integrity. He understands, and stands in, the Buddist sense of ""isness"" or ""beingness"". The horse feels free to connect with this safeness and then makes the choice on it's own terms to create a relationship with this man.

Other natural trainers, though they talk talk about loving the horse, being with the horse, leading the horse, even postively reinforcing the horses own choices, always have an agenda or underlying demand.

Klaus has found a way to allow the horse to feel respected, show it's own dignity and to be seen as an individual.

As Klaus says the magic is in nothingness."

In my words, the difference between Klaus and other trainers is that Klaus feels into the heart of the horse.

He meets the horse, by being able to approach the horse in a completely clear place, in stillness and with vulnerability... with complete honesty and without agenda.

Meeting the horse in this way allows Klaus to work from the exact place the horse needs to be able to move through his fear and abuse and create a truthful and trusting relationship, allowing the growth of both horse and human.

Other trainers work the body of the horse, generally with a goal in mind for their own benefit or for their clients benefit. Even when using 'gentle' or 'kind' methods they do not meet the horse and help him in his evolution.

Klaus works with the horse for the horse's evolution...and thus also our own. He understands not all people should really even be around horses, that horses look for us to help them in their evolution and that in our doing so we are working on our own awareness, evolution and growth.