About Dylan Johnson
A Horseman Shaped by the Desert
From the stages of Las Vegas to the ranches of North Phoenix — Dylan's life with horses has never been about performance. It's always been about partnership.
Tournament of Kings, Las Vegas
Live equestrian performance — high-pressure, high-distraction environments nightly
Yellowstone TV Series (Contracted)
On-set horse work for one of television's most horse-intensive productions
Natural Horsemanship
Trust-first methodology refined over years of professional and personal horse work
North Phoenix, Arizona
Based locally — serving the greater Phoenix equestrian community
A Horse Named Sedona
Dylan didn't set out to become a horse trainer. He set out to save one horse. Sedona was a rescue — underfed, mistrustful, and written off by more than a few people who should have known better. Dylan saw something different.
The work it took to earn Sedona's trust — the patience, the setbacks, the slow accumulation of small moments — became the foundation of everything Dylan does today. He learned that horses don't lie. They tell you exactly what they need. You just have to learn how to listen.
Las Vegas & the Tournament of Kings
Dylan spent years as a professional horseman at the Tournament of Kings in Las Vegas — one of the most demanding live equestrian performance environments in the country. Night after night, in front of thousands of people, with pyrotechnics, music, and chaos, his horses had to be genuinely calm. Not trained to tolerate it. Actually calm.
That experience sharpened his understanding of what real desensitization looks like — and what it doesn't. A horse that performs under pressure isn't suppressed. It's confident.
Yellowstone (Almost)
Dylan was contracted to provide horse work on the set of the Yellowstone TV series — a project that would have brought a different kind of challenge: horses hitting marks, holding positions, and staying steady around cameras, crew, and unpredictable production schedules. The opportunity never came to fruition; filming was canceled due to COVID. But the preparation work that went into it — conditioning horses for high-pressure, unpredictable environments — deepened Dylan's appreciation for horses that are truly well-prepared, not just well-behaved on a good day.
The Way Dylan Works
Every horse Dylan works with gets the same starting point: respect. Not dominance. Not submission. Respect — the kind that goes both ways.
Horses communicate constantly
Pinned ears, a swishing tail, a subtle shift of weight — horses are always talking. Dylan's job is to hear it before it becomes a problem.
Pressure and release, not force
Horses learn through the release of pressure, not the application of it. Dylan uses the minimum pressure needed to get a response, then releases immediately. That's how trust is built.
The owner is part of the equation
A horse that behaves for Dylan but not for you isn't a trained horse — it's a borrowed one. Dylan coaches owners alongside their horses so the progress is real and lasting.
Every horse is different
There's no program, no timeline, no checklist. Dylan works at the horse's pace. Some horses need a week. Some need a year. The horse decides.
Ready to Work Together?
Whether you're looking for riding lessons, help with a problem horse, or want to enter a Funkhana — Dylan would love to hear from you.