Since When is Natural Horsemanship Natural?

I don't know when or why good old fashioned horsemanship was labeled "Natural Horsemanship," but this article touches on some problems I have with the "one size fits all" "step by step" approach to teaching and working with horses.

The link that got me thinking was this: http://www.writingofriding.com/in-the-media/a-problem-with-parelli/

First off, the horse community labels many things as natural techniques. But when push comes to shove, there is nothing natural about a natural farrier; wild horses don't get their feet trimmed. There is nothing natural about a bareback pad; wild horses don't wear any equipment, let alone something to support and assist a rider. There is nothing natural about a bitless bridle; wild horses steer themselves. There is nothing "natural" about horses letting us work with them and there is definitely nothing natural about them letting us ride them.

Secondly, while there are elements of every training program that are functional and dysfunctional, each horse is different and asks for different sequencing of techniques and sometimes even a whole different approach. Following a step by step protocol simply doesn't always work because some steps are simply not sequential. We cannot train our horses on conveyor belts.

Instead a dynamic understanding of WHY is how we should work with horses. The question we should be asking when we work with horses is "why do we do this" instead of "how do we do this." With a deeper understanding of the way horses work in terms of personality, behavior, and biomechanics the goals become clearer and the path to them becomes full of options and many opportunities for success.