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Buck BrannamanAmerican horse trainer and leading physician
Date of Birth: 29.01.1962
Country:  USA |
Content:
- Buck Brannaman: The Horse Whisperer
- Overcoming Childhood Trauma
- Motivational Speaker and Animal Advocate
- Rope-Tricking Prodigy
- Influence on "The Horse Whisperer"
- Healing Through Horses
- Personal Life and Legacy
Buck Brannaman: The Horse Whisperer
Early Life and InfluencesBuck Brannaman, born in 1962 in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, grew up in Montana and Idaho. Brannaman trained for many years under Ray Hunt, a pioneer of the natural horsemanship movement, and was also influenced by Tom and Bill Dorrance. Today, Brannaman teaches clinics worldwide, stating that their purpose "is really just to try to get the person to understand as much as I can help them understand about their horse."
Overcoming Childhood Trauma
Brannaman endured a difficult childhood marked by physical abuse at the hands of his father, leading him and his brother to spend several years in foster care. He found solace in horses and learned firsthand to see things from their perspective. Brannaman wrote:
"I’ve been around horses since I was 12, and I’ve been bit, kicked, bucked off, and run over. I tried every physical means to get a horse to stop doing what it was doing so I wouldn’t get hurt. I began to realize it would be a whole lot easier if I could figure out why the horse is doing what it’s doing."
He later applied these experiences to his career as a horse trainer, recognizing in troubled animals the same fear and reactive responses he remembered from his own childhood:
"Horses that have been abused are like abused children. They don’t trust anybody and they expect the worst. But patience, leadership, compassion, and firmness can help them overcome their past."[6]
Motivational Speaker and Animal Advocate
In recent years, Brannaman has become a motivational speaker for audiences beyond the equestrian world,[7] often drawing parallels between animal abuse and the mistreatment of children and other humans. "The principles are really about living," says Brannaman, "about living your life so you’re not fighting with your horse or other people."
Rope-Tricking Prodigy
Brannaman is also an accomplished rope performer and began performing rope tricks on television commercials as a six-year-old child. Brannaman’s roping skills have earned him two Guinness Book of World Records. Though Brannaman has said, "My father gave us a choice: practice rope tricks or get a whipping," he remains proud of his craft, offering roping and cattle-working clinics and maintaining a strong connection to the historical vaquero cowboy tradition of the Western United States.
Influence on "The Horse Whisperer"
Brannaman was a primary inspiration for the character of "Tom Booker" in Nicholas Evans' novel "The Horse Whisperer" and served as the film's chief horse consultant. While the book itself was a work of fiction, Evans himself has stated: "Others have made false claims to having inspired Tom Booker in The Horse Whisperer. The real inspiration was Buck Brannaman. His skill, his understanding, and his gentle, loving heart have been the light at the end of the tunnel for countless troubled creatures. Buck is the Zen master of the horse world." – Nicholas Evans
Healing Through Horses
The publicity surrounding the book and film, as well as Brannaman's approach of treating both troubled horses and troubled people with equal doses of compassion, have helped to foster other fields, such as equine-assisted therapy. In this context, Brannaman has noted: "Horses are incredibly forgiving. They fill in the places we can't fill in ourselves. They’ve given people a new hope, a new life. The horse really wants to please you, to get along."
Personal Life and Legacy
Brannaman resides with his wife, Mary, in Sheridan, Wyoming. He has three daughters.
A documentary film about Brannaman, titled "Buck" and directed by Cindy Meehl, won the U.S. Documentary Audience Award at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. It was subsequently acquired by IFC Films under their Sundance Selects label.
In addition to the documentary "Buck," a seven-DVD series titled "7 Clinics" has been released, which, along with his earlier DVD series, create an extensive library of his horsemanship knowledge.
