TESTIMONIALS

Undine, Federation National Certified Trainer with Honors (Stensbeck Plaque): Throughness of a horse is extremly important to me. I've missed that with other trainers. Instead, I always had to squeeze and pull too much.

Andrea and I both value the same principle, namely throughness. She lets the horse develop based on throughness and thus everything develops in a playful manner and we are making much greater progress in this stress free atmosphere. I greatly enjoy working with Andrea.

Barbel: I've known Andrea Bethge for 5 years. Back then I had just bought a gelding. Even thought this was my first own horse, I had

experienced a lot of trainers and lessons. Unfortunately, those wer extremly unproductive.

When I met Andrea, I had already heard about her method to bring horse and rider together as one unit and achieve a horse-concscious and harmonic companionship.
In my first lesson I witnessed her unbelievable approach to handling horses. She noticed the slightest mistakes and corrected them immediately. Even my horse felt completely comfortable in her presence and very soon started to show interest in working with me.

My horse just wasn't the same.
Through her method to bring horse and rider together it is possible to achieve extraordinary progress. Today we still learn a lot and I am very grateful that Andrea showed me how to communicate with my horse in a manner that is invisible to the viewer.

Karin: Andrea makes riding any horse look effortless. People like me usually try to rationalize problems with their horses: oh, it's the saddle, it's the bit, it's my horses difficult character, it must be his teeth. Let's see what the chiropractor has to say...

Andrea just rides and the horse is relaxed.

Birgit: I own two Arabians that I've had in training with Andrea Bethge for about 4 years.
It's be a tremendous fortune for me, and obviously for my horses as well, to have met Andrea Bethge. My horses' progress has been immense. A few towns over it would be possible to train with an Olympic rider, Canadian Leonie Bramall. I prefer Andrea! I have never, in my entire life, met anyone as versatile as her in her ways to influence horse and rider. It's even more extraordinary in my case since I have to deal with the hot-blooded Arabians.

I will travel tto the Sates at least once a year to participate in her clinics there and am already looking forward to the ones she will continue to teach in Germany so we don't feel abandoned.

Gisela: You are phenomenal!
When you ride, they are all relaxed and content.

Jana: I am fairly petite and my Hanoverian gelding is big with a large frame. For al long time I could only ride my "Francesco" after Andrea worked with him first.
However, after I learned enough from Andrea I was able to ride without her getting on first. Only now and then did she "fine tune" my horse. Other than that taking lessons with her was all I needed.
It took me a very long time to find atrainer that suited me and my horse. to be honest, I don't know what will become of us once we loose Andreas. Of course I still wish her the best of luck and success in the US.

Martina: I own a very sensitive and nervous Andalusian with which I couldn't get anywhere. I've had quite the Odyssey behind me trying to find a trainer for this particular breed of horse.
I was really close to giving up riding all together.
What was being offered at various places was by no stretch of the imagination what I considered horse- conscious riding. Especially at barns of "better" trainers the horses seemed to be degraded to being used as sports equipment.

By now I've been with Andrea for 4 years.
Flamenco has turned into a beautifully muscular horse and even yields in a manner I never thought possible. My own ridiing abilities, too, have increased by several levels thanks to Andrea's riding and unique lessons. Thank you, Andrea.

Frauke: I've  know Andrea as a dressage trainer for 4 years now. I have a dominating Hanoverian mare which I was unable to handle by myself. I asked Andrea to ride her for 3 months until I would get back into the saddle.
The following intensive and cometent lessons allowed me to make fast progress. My horse was rebuilt from the ground up and skillfully trained. With Andrea's compassionate character she can explain even the most complex lessons. She constantly praises even the smallest success which keeps the horse and the rider motivated.

I am very glad that we won't loose Ms. Bethge completely since she'll return twice a year to take us back under her wing.
I wish her only the best for the future.

Andrea: People once told me I lacked talent for riding horses. I've tried numerous trainers. I just never made it.
So, in 2004 I signed up to train with Andrea Bethge. She figured out both, my mare, Mona, and my own, problems within the first lesson.
We decided on the following plan of action:
Andrea would ride the horse for 6 months, correcting all the harm I've done with my wn riding (my words, not hers) followed by a combination of her riding the horse and me taking lessons.
Only one year later I went to my first horse show. Since working with Andrea Bethge I get along great with my horse. No one will ever understand how thrilled I am about this.
I wish her only the best for the future.

Achim: First of all, I don't know anyone who loves animals more than Andrea does. Andrea's teaching method suits me very well, especially considering that riding ist not easy for me due to my severe physical disability.
It seems exclusively due to Andrea and how she trained her horse that I am even able to ride at all. Her horses yield the rider's aids so naturally that riding indee seems "easy". Even the most difficult exercises become possible for someone with disabilities and that is what is most important.
To feel the movement of an animal as powerful as a horse underneath me significantly increased my own physical awareness.

Andrea: Ever since my back injury I've given up riding.
Nevertheless, I still spend time with horses. I didn't particularly enjoy watching other riders. Everywhere I looked I noticed little skill but a lot of doing: Training barns at which horses are tightly constrained in their stall. Trainers who compensate their incompetence with big talk and brute force.

So when my sister started training with Andrea Bethge and told me about the wonderful piaffes and clean 1-tempe lead changes I was skeptical. Nevertheless, I decided to check it out for myself. So one day I went with my sister, made myself comfortable along the sidelines and waited to see what this was all about. When Andrea came into the arena with her "Pari" It looked like she was not doing anything.
She just stood there with the reins in her hand and the horse stretching it's head towards the ground. After some relaxation she started the true workout and I have to admit, I've never seen anything like this. Complete harmony between horse and rider and no matter how hard I tried, I could baarely see any aids.

Everything looked so easy, so natural. Even during the hardest exercises it seemed horse and rider are communicating via telephathy. I was extremly impressed and had to admit that my sister did not exaggerate.
Trainers who base their work on harmony and trust are few and far between and thus very much understand that my sister will be very sad to Andrea go to the US.
I guess for me that means that I'll have to start over trying to find a rider who is pure joy just to watch.

Noa, 10 years old: I've been with my aunt Britta to a lot of different horse farms. But one farm I like best, namely Koppelhof. Even in the winter time horses get to go out to the pastures. I, too, am glad I got to know Andrea because she helps wen I have questions. Our horse is always well taken care of and we can always count on her.