When Kelly Marks was six years old she was seriously injured after being thrown from a horse.

But she survived, and instead of rejecting the four-legged animal, she has gone on to become the protege of world-renowned 'horse whisperer' Monty Roberts.

Monty is regarded as a genius by many in the horse world. He spurns the conventional approach to training horses - by making them submissive - and gains the trust of the animals using Equus, a kind of body language that the horse can understand.

If all this sounds a bit airy-fairy, then watching Monty's video, Join Up, may just change your mind. The Californian, whose autobiography The Man Who Listens To Horses sells worldwide, uses gentle persuasion to build up trust with an unbroken horse and get it to accept a saddle, bridle and rider.

And the techniques impressed former jockey Kelly so much that she decided to follow in his footsteps. The 38-year-old, based at Willow Farm in Crawley, near Witney, is now the only woman in the world to achieve Monty's advanced professional certificate.

She said: "Several years ago I worked in a horse dealer's yard and saw some terrible sights. Electric pig prodders were used on the animals and they were terrified.

"I also saw dealers pinning horses to the ground and beating them with whips to make them submissive. The horses became both physically and emotionally battered. They sometimes had scabs around their eyes where they'd been knocked about." After meeting Monty in 1992, while he was working near Thame, Kelly set about learning from him and establishing courses in intelligent horse management at West Oxfordshire College.

"The courses are all about trying to get people to understand horses better and work together, instead of a 'them and us' situation.

"From the time a foal is born, it's important to handle it so it grows up to be comfortable with humans. At two or three years old they're put in a round pen to explore.

"If a foal misbehaves in the wild, the senior mare will push him away. It's the worst punishment she can give, as horses are very sociable animals. But when the foal starts approaching and bowing his head and ears, he's allowed back into the group.

"The moment we see those signals, we drop our eyes and lower our shoulders, the way the mare would. The horse will then come to you and we reward them by rubbing their faces. "Once that important bond has been established, the horse is usually quite happy to carry a rider. It's a wonderful sense of achievement."

Horse-lovers from as far afield as South America, New Zealand, Canada and Denmark are flocking to the unpretentious stables to learn about Monty's techniques.

"The main thing these students have in common is an open mind, otherwise there is no one type of person who comes on the courses. So far we've had a London broker, an 18-year-old girl from South Africa, a zoo keeper and a rock star," Kelly revealed.

The ten-week courses are so popular that eager students are having to join waiting lists. Once on board, they get theoretical and practical tuition and discuss aspects of horse psychology. They also get the chance to go into the pen and attempt a "round-up" with a young horse in full Monty style.

Kelly added: "Monty wanted the courses to be run here and West Oxfordshire College was the first place in the world to accept them. He makes a point of flying over from the States for each course.

"We want everyone to feel the breathtaking, spine-tingling emotions of truly communicating with that wonderful animal, the horse, on its own terms.

"Whether you ride or not, this language is about breaking down the barriers of communication between species, between people and within the realms of yourself. It's about opening yourself up to natural feelings long forgotten."

For information on courses or Monty's video, call Kelly on 01488 71300.

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