Horses are very much like toddlers. you know when they're happy, and you also know when they're mad. Consider what happens when you're out riding and you come to a fork in the trail. If you want to go one way and your horse wants to go the other, does your ride suddenly turn into a rodeo?
That's where trick training can help you. Tricks are fun to teach, and even more fun to show off. And, it turns out, they're also good training for your horse. Tricks help to teach him emotional control.
As you teach tricks and put them on cue, your horse will be learning the emotional control that will make him a safe riding horse. You'll also be learning about timing, and chunking lessons down into small steps. In other words, through trick training, you'll learn how to use the principles common to all good training.
The Clicker Plays Its Part
The tricks I'll share with you in this article are all based on target training. You'll see how one basic skill can be used to create many different, complex behaviors. The photos in this article also show how you can begin with target training and expand into tricks.
Tricks of the Trade
- Teach a horse to play, and the whole world becomes a much less scary place.
- Instead of getting mad or giving up, trick training can encourage extra "heart and try" in your horse.
- Target-based clicker training is the starting place for many tricks.
- By adding stimulus control to your tricks, you can turn nuisance behaviors into truly clever tricks.
Many of the target-based tricks are taught by withholding the click. Your horse will learn about variable reinforcement schedules. In other words, if something doesn't work after one or two tries, instead of getting mad or quitting, he learns that he should keep trying until he finds the right answer. Through trick training, you'll build extra heart and try into your horse.
Trick training also has another great value. Horses that have learned to play kick ball and open mailboxes are a lot harder to spook. Teach a horse to play, and the whole world becomes a much less scary place.
Target Training
Here's a quick review of the basic skills you'll use to teach these target-based tricks.
• For safety in your first lesson, put a barrier between you and your horse. Put him in a stall with a stall guard across the door. If a stall isn't available, use a small paddock.
• Hold a cone or some other object up in front of your horse. Horses tend to be curious about such things.
• Your horse will likely sniff the cone. The instant he touches it, click.
• Take the target down out of sight. Reach into your pocket and hand your horse a treat well away from your body.
• As soon as he's taken the food, hold the target back up for him to touch. Make sure it's within easy reach so he can be successful.
• If he tries to mug your pockets, step back out of range, but continue to hold the target out where he's likely to touch it.
• When he touches it, click and reinforce.
