HAZLETON, Iowa - Trainer Dennis Brouse stopped for a heart-to-heart with Indy.

The horse - and his owner - had a problem with authority. Namely, Indy had it and his human companion wanted it.

"Indy took the leadership in that relationship, and unfortunately it doesn't work when the horse is the leader of the human," Brouse said. "His owner was a short little thing, and he just pulled that poor lady around."

But with a little nudging from Brouse, both parties developed a healthier rapport. Their journey will be featured in the second season of "Saddle Up with Dennis Brouse," a 30-minute public television show that premieres in November.

In addition to featuring a horse tale, each installment highlights the attractions and history of a slice of Iowa. In Hazleton, that meant visiting the town's Amish shops.

"This is beautiful furniture - handcrafted with inlays," Brouse said, camera crew in tow at a country store. "Awww … I just love it."

Tour guide Roger Carson, the town's mayor, nodded proudly. "The quality is there," he said. "We have a lot of people who come from outside the area to get furniture up here."

"We pick a location because of a horse," explained Brouse, a Griswold native now living outside Omaha, Neb. "But our mission is also to attract the armchair traveler, so we do 'in and outs' like this one."

There's no question that it's the animal connection that attracted Brouse to the program. At the faintest hint of horse talk, his ears perk up. As a teen he learned to "break" mounts the old-fashioned way but now seeks to build trust between horse and owner.

"No horse whisperin', no nothin'," he said, leaning against the store's tall wooden counter. "It's just common sense, and we learn how to communicate."

"So, you talk to your horses, do ya?" asked the Amish store owner, a wry smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

"All the time," Brouse shot back, his smiling face suddenly serious. "They can actually learn language, and they know when you mean business."

As if on cue, Brouse receives his own command from Ellyne Lonergan. The producer lifts her hand in the air and points at her watch. It's time to move on to a harness shop just down the road.

"They keep me busy, but I love it," said Brouse, turning his cowboy boots toward the door. "It's a good gig."