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Where Interspecies Relationships Thrive
Holwer offers immersive experiences designed to explore learning, trust, and connection through relationships with animals and nature.
Set in Hudson, Quebec, this retreat brings together dogs, horses, wolves, and people in environments that encourage observation, emotional awareness, and meaningful interaction.
Grounded in Social Cognitive Animal Training (SCAT), TLC approaches learning as a relational process shaped by environment, social connection, and lived experience.
Rather than focusing on performance or control, participants are invited to slow down, observe, and develop relationships with animals through trust, presence, and non-judgmental connection.
Each retreat creates space for reflection, personal growth, and grounding through guided interactions and experiential learning.
Whether working alongside horses, training wolves, or connecting with dogs, participants are encouraged to develop greater awareness of themselves, others, and the environments they inhabit.
Canine ⊕ Equine
Wolf Option
The canine option is grounded in the belief that the wolf is a skilled co-facilitators of emotional growth and building relationships.
These sessions invite you into a shared learning space where you interact directly with trained wolves through structured, intentional activities rooted in trust and cooperation.
You will learn to understand canine body language, adjust your own behaviour.
You will learn to use social cognitive animal training techniques to build relationships and secure attachments.
The process of guiding a wolf through learning tasks encourages patience, emotional awareness, consistency, and problem-solving.
As you work alongside the wolves, you begin to recognize how your own actions, emotions, and communication, influence relationships.
Wolves have a unique ability to create connection without judgment, offering a steady and supportive presence within their environment.
Canis lupus respond honestly and immediately to emotion, tension, and uncertainty, offering real-time feedback.
With the support of experienced facilitators, you will slow down, appreciate the present, and savour the simpler things in life.
Through guided observation and interaction, building relationships becomes a shared process in which you and the wolf influence one another.
The goal is to create moments of connection, trust, and mutual respect that encourage confidence, resilience, and empathy.
Horse Option
The equine option offers a relationship-based learning environment where you engage in personal development through groundwork with horses.
Horses are not ridden in this program, allowing the focus to remain on presence, communication, and interaction on the ground.
This work is grounded in social cognitive learning theory and reinforcement-based practices.
Horses are highly sensitive animals who respond to posture, tone, and subtle shifts in human emotion and attention, creating a clear and immediate feedback loop.
When you enter the horse’s space, it responds based on your clarity, consistency, and emotional state.
Approaches marked by tension or uncertainty may result in distance, while calm and grounded presence often encourages connection and engagement.
Groundwork may include simple, structured activities such as haltering, leading, or walking alongside the horse.
As confidence develops, you may be guided through more complex exercises that require coordination, awareness, and mutual responsiveness.
Through these interactions, you will explore how their internal state influences their behaviour and communication.
Over time, you will develop greater self-awareness, patience, and regulation strategies, which naturally extends into relationships.
Howler Retreat Structure
Ten Day Retreat
Coming soon
Social Cognitive Animal Training
Social cognitive animal training (SCAT) is a science-based approach that honours how animals naturally learn through observation, attachment, cognitive processing, and their environment.
Participants can expect safe, respectful sessions where curiosity is welcomed, fear is minimised, and trust is intentionally cultivated.
Through guided interactions and mindful reflection, you’ll deepen your understanding of yourself while discovering how non-human minds think, solve problems, and build relationships.
Interspecies connection becomes a gateway to self-healing by mirroring our nervous system, reflecting our projections, and inviting us into authentic relationships rooted in clarity and trust.
Whether you are exploring personal growth, strengthening emotional resilience, or reconnecting with the natural world, these experiences are designed to be transformative, empowering you to communicate clearly, regulate confidently, and lead with grounded presence.
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