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The Resnick Method of Horsemanship

Founder, Carolyn Resnick
Co-Founder, and Master Trainer, Nancy Zintsmaster

The Resnick Method of Horsemanship was originally developed by Carolyn Resnick over 40 years ago and is based on her expertise and observation of wild horses. Carolyn immersed herself in studying horse behavior and realized during her years of studying wild horses, that she could communicate with them based on a language that was natural to them, how horses communicate with each other. 

From this communication she created The Waterhole Rituals,  a unique method of training horses at Liberty. In the 1970's Carolyn originated the term "Liberty Training".   Liberty Horse training is communicating with your horse without tack in a free and open environment. The Waterhole Rituals teaches how to lead and how to connect with the nature of the horse to bring out trust, respect, and the wiligness in a horse.  Being able to communicate in this manner brings well-being to your soul, and to the horses soul,  where you will discover your true nature. 

In 2017, The Resnick Method of Horsemanship launched The Resnick Method Liberty Training® Academy. Carolyn Resnick and Nancy Zintsmaster, co-created this academy to empower people who need help in connecting to the very heart of the horse, and to help people understand how to use horses as our guides for self realization; to address the whole being, mind, body, and spirit. It is our mission to help grow the new world consciousness that is now ready to receive this next step in valuing horses as teachers and healers, making the horse a true partner in our journey of self healing, personal growth and transformation.

Carolyn Resnick has dedicated her life to creating educational programs to bring awareness about horses and help people connect to their true self. 

About Carolyn Resnick

Carolyn Resnick's life with horses began in Indio, California in the 1940s. Riding alone in the desert as a child, she nurtured an intuitive bond with horses. In the beginning of what would become a lifelong passion for developing innovative horse training methods, created from her interactive studies with wild horses, Carolyn spent three summers of her childhood gradually becoming accepted into a community of wild horses, culminating her ability to ride a lead mare bareback and without a bridle, just from the bond that they shared. 

 

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As a young girl her interest in horses led to training and showing in both English and Western divisions. Her desire to create a championship performance from the willing spirit of the horse led her on a unique quest to gain knowledge of natural wild horse behaviour and communication systems.

Carolyn’s formal introduction to the wider equine community began in the early 1970s from her ranch, Stonehenge Arabians/Dances With Horses, a successful training and Arabian breeding center in Sonoma, California in operation for 25 years.

From her studies of wild horses, Carolyn formulated her own system of relating to horses she named The Carolyn Resnick Method/The Waterhole Rituals. She subsequently toured the United States for several years, giving clinics and exhibitions on her method. 

This method of horsemanship consists of seven Waterhole Rituals and they are based on social bonding rituals that are natural to horses, and are a concrete way to practice Liberty Training with your horse!

By learning how these Rituals function in a natural herd, and by practicing this method of horsemanship, students will learn how to communicate horses in a language innate to the horse. This communication encourages horses to see us as their leaders.

This knowledge enhances all interactions between humans and horses; feeding, leading, grooming, riding, training and show!

Carolyn has an online school teaching her programs, as well Dances with Horses Training Center in Escondido, California. Carolyn teaches her Method in partnership with Nancy Zintsmaster who owns and operates The Resnick Method, Dances With Horses training center in Arenal, Costa Rica.

Carolyn also serves on the advisory board of Return To Freedom American Wild Horse Sanctuary, in Lompoc, California, as an expert in wild horse behavior.

In 2005 Carolyn released her first book Naked Liberty, which was subtitled Memoirs of my childhood, Guided by passion, Educated by Wild Horses. The language of movement, communication and leadership through the ways of the horse. The book is printed in English, German and Italian.

About Nancy Zintsmaster

ABOUT NANCY

Nancy Zintsmaster is co owner, Certified Master Trainer, and Instructor of The Carolyn Resnick Method of Liberty Training™. Personally trained and certified by Carolyn Resnick, she is the only Master Trainer to carry this direct lineage, and is widely recognized for her depth of understanding of The Waterhole Rituals™ and the language of horses.

Nancy’s connection with horses began early and has shaped the course of her life. She spent years seeking something more with them, a level of communication and relationship she could feel but had not yet been shown. When she found The Carolyn Resnick Method, that search came into focus. Through her own experience, she came to understand how profound and precise true communication with a horse can be, and she committed herself to studying and preserving this work at its highest level.

Her teaching has taken her across the United States and Central America, where she leads clinics, retreats, and immersive trainings for students who want a deeper level of connection with horses. She has mentored hundreds of riders, professionals, and equine assisted practitioners, helping them develop relationships built on clarity, trust, and mutual understanding. Her work also includes co founding liberty training academies and creating online programs that support students around the world, along with guiding instructors in training who are learning to carry this work forward.

Nancy is known for her ability to read horses with accuracy and to translate what they are expressing in a way that people can understand and apply. Her teaching is grounded, direct, and deeply attentive to both horse and human, allowing students to develop skill while also shifting how they relate to the horse in front of them.

She is committed to raising the standard of how horses are understood and treated, and to helping people experience what becomes possible when communication is clear and consistent. The work she teaches is not about control, it is about building a relationship where the horse can recognize and respond to human leadership without confusion.

“The connection that I now have with my horses has helped me realize my true nature and has led me to the path I was meant to take in my life. This is something I believe is possible for all humans and horses.”

Through her teaching and leadership, Nancy continues to guide students toward relationships with horses that are willing, responsive, and grounded in true understanding.

 

Study one-on-one with Nancy Zintsmaster

Discover how to truly understand your horse’s mind, language, and needs. Through foundational Liberty Training® groundwork, you’ll gain the skills and confidence to build a safe, respectful, and joy-filled partnership, without force, pressure, or control. This personalized experience lays the groundwork for lasting trust and connection, both on the ground and beyond.

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