Thursday 4 July 2013

Click or Bust!

I am often asked if I do any other kind of training other than clicker training. Well, yes I do, since every interaction we have with a horse has the potential to influence his future behaviour and responses. And I don't always get it right.
I do like clicker training for several reasons: the click can tell a horse at the exact moment that what he just did was right, even if you are not right beside him to reward him; the horse gets a good feeling when he is trying to earn a click because dopamine is released from the brain just due to the expectation of a click; using clicker training can help you learn much better observational skills, and hence help your communication with your horse; and also the horse can tell you if he's just not getting it, so you can alter your training using no force or coercive methods to help your horse succeed. It is a different attitude to one which is prevalent. Sometimes you might find that the horse simply does not enjoy what it is you want them to do, so you may decide that rather than competing, you adjust your aspirations to hacking and schooling to a lower level at home. But wow, what a partnership, when you understand what makes your horse tick and are able to give it to him!
CLICKER SCEPTICISM
But I do find there is some resistance to clicker training from horsey people.
There are several arguments against clicker training. Some people think it teaches your horse to get nippy and misbehave around food. Well, one of the first lessons is to teach the horse how to behave politely around food. It can even be used to train a horse that bites to control his urge to bite and perform an alternative behaviour instead! And it is not bribery – bribery is when you show the horse a titbit and try to lure him to do what you want by holding the morsel just out of reach. With clicker training the horse knows that a treat will be forthcoming if he can just work out what he needs to do for the click! Of course we build in cues and break down complicated things into tiny steps so he is set up to succeed.
Another argument is that horses are not like dogs (for which clicker training has been used for many years) because they forage for food in a different way, well yes, in the wild perhaps, but even then I'm sure a horse would prefer an easy titbit rather than have to roam several miles to search for a morsel of grass. Yes, some horses are not really motivated by food, but then you find out what it is that does motivate them – the same as for dogs , who sometime prefer to chase a ball as a reward, some horses might prefer a scratch in a certain place or to play some more!
And another negative belief is that you have to go on rewarding correct behaviour ALL the time. Once the behaviour is established it rarely needs to be reinforced with the clicker. The behaviour becomes conditioned; i.e. the correct behaviour becomes second nature in response to a cue and does not need to be reinforced any more. As complicated behaviours are built up, even classical movements such as such as Spanish Walk, cues lead to behaviours which become cues in themselves, become behaviours and so on, and the click comes right at the end. It is built up piece by piece, but it is important to move on, once the horse gets it 80% of the time. I have worked with someone whose horses will still not pick up their feet for long enough for them to be picked out! Duration has never been trained in, so they have never got past that first stage, and it's worse now because the horses have learned NOT to pick up their feet properly. This is obviously a disadvantage when the farrier comes! So moving on to the next stage is VERY important.
There can be a negative side to clicker training if the horse gets frustrated or over motivated. In these cases it is important to see that it's not going right, have a break and reconsider. It may be that the steps you are trying to teach your horse are too big and need to be broken down further in order for him to achieve and get his 'click', or you may need to keep training sessions shorter, with lots of breaks for easy stuff, or away from training completely, so the horse does not become over aroused.
While it is difficult to get the timing right with clicker training, it is more difficult to correctly time the release in pressure-release training, which is negative reinforcement. In negative reinforcement the horse has to eliminate all the behaviours that are not wanted in order to find which one is right, and because it is uncomfortable when he gets it wrong, the horse may stop offering any behaviour at all, some become automatons, which may be what you want?
With clicker training the horse will offer all manner of (sometimes novel) behaviours in an attempt to find the correct answer, but because he is not corrected by coercive means his enthusiasm for training is never shut down which improves his mental attitude to training. Fortunately horses are generally very eager to please. They have no reason not to be, and this is why they were domesticated all those years ago. Clicker training makes the most of this aptitude without forcing them into submission.
It is not an easy option. There are lots of skills involved with clicker training: observation, reward delivery, body position, lead rope mechanics, timing, shaping the behaviour in small steps, knowing when to move on, and more. The result is a harmonious partnership, not only because the horse is a willing partner, but also because the process has taught you to be so much more observant about your horse. You can see when things are not quite right, and then you can act upon this new information before things really go wrong. And this is one reason why I think clicker training is growing in popularity in the horse world. We all strive for the best partnership we can have with our horses, and have started to question some techniques which even under the guise of natural methods can use force to gain results.

Thursday 23 May 2013

The Power of 'Touch'

Teaching 'touch' helps overcome all sorts of obstacles
When Thunder and I were out for our walk yesterday, we travelled further along our usual route and found some puddles. Now for some reason (perhaps he's watch the 'Vicar of Dibley' or something), puddles hold some unknown terror and are not to be trusted.
Well this won't do, in this climate we are never going to get away with avoiding puddles all our life! Especially if they effectively block our forward progress. 
Hence we thank our lucky stars that we completed our foundation clicker training!
The foundation stages involve teaching the horse to be polite around food, backing up (respect of space), calm down (head lowering), and targetting. The targetting is the 'touch' cue, and becomes a conditioned response. In the absence of a cone I can use my hand as a fist, and the horse moves forward to touch it.
So we've stopped dead about 1m away from this insurmountable obstacle. Does this ring any bells with other things, like trailers, flapping tarpaulin, alien traffic cones, bulging wheelie bins? All I had to do was extend my arm a small distance from the front of his nose and say 'touch'. When he touched - good boy, click and treat. All of a sudden the foot is in the puddle, head goes down to investigate, click and treat, and off we went through the murky water. I have to admit the puddle was rushed rather, but we played around it for a while, then went home, and I still have all the toes on my feet in tact!

Thursday 7 March 2013

Initial Consultations Offered at 50% off

For a limited time, I am offering Initial Consultations at 50% while I compile my portfolio for the UK Society of Equine Behaviour Consultants. Please phone me on 07919 854854 no obligation, for a chat about your horse and the unwanted behaviour, be it loading, handling, ridden or anything else. It may be we can discuss a solution over the phone, which will cost you nothing. Advice may involve suggesting using other professionals such as vets or saddlers. Problems may be solved by a small change in husbandry. However, not all problems are simple, in fact most have many aspects which may be easy to overlook on their own, but together are causing the seen problem. Not one approach suits all horses, so the retraining programme will be tailored to you and your horse's needs. I will explain the theory behind any programme, which would be based on learning theory and positive reinforcement. 
Fees where an appointment is made for me to come and see you and your horse to assess the problem and offer advice with assistance where required are £100 £50 plus mileage (40p per mile from Harrietsham, Kent). Visits may take around 2 hours to compile the full history and discuss options. A full written report will be provided, and follow up.




Monday 10 September 2012

Loading Problem?

March 2013 - Good news, Charlie is now loading and calmly accepting the ramp going up. Owners are delighted and will be off to some shows with the children once the weather improves! It took time, but the approach means that Charlie no longer has an issue with loading; it's not been done under duress, but with patience turning the experience into a positive one for him.

Original Post:
Still working with Charlie the pony who used to go over backwards in his efforts not to step on board a trailer. He loads nicely now - even on his own as this video shows (do I look pleased with myself?), but it is the closing of the ramp that is holding us up now. It's like he's claustrophobic. Overcoming his fear of being enclosed will take longer. What is needed is a new behaviour for him to focus on. With patience and positive reinforcement he will learn that there is nothing to worry about.

http://youtu.be/RZekGc0cCFE

Thursday 26 July 2012

Another Success

Last weekend, I was asked to look at a fine 12.2hh pony who would not be loaded into a trailer. After an hour and a half - they had tried lunge lines, smacking, chain over the nose, luring with feed .... He was just being "stubborn".
I led the pony around and he didn't seem "stubborn". He followed me round and stopped started, and backed up pretty much on cue. He would walk on to the ramp, with a bit of persuasion and a promise of treats, but would refuse to budge. Moving his feet would not get him to move any further on to the trailer.
Funnily enough, when I crouched down he was more willing to put his front feet on the trailer because his head lowered - head lowering reduces the adrenaline - a horse has to be calm to put his head down to eat so can't have his body systems in two places, alert and calm, at one time. OK so that might help. Then I remembered some wise words about not looking at why a horse won't do something but look at what will enable him to do something. Looking at the trailer, I thought about the pony and what may be concerning him, perhaps the narrow space, perhaps the dark figure standing in the way of the light, maybe he had bashed himself turning to go down the exit ramp - perhaps the exit was the problem? So I opened up the compartment at the front of the trailer as well, crouched down, asked with a light cue down the lead rope for him to come forward, and blow me he walked through! All with no pressure on the lead rope at all - it was slack!
Just to prove it wasn't a fluke we did it again.
Now I've left the owners practicing, and slowing it all down, so that he will stop and eat his tea in the trailer.
Touch wood he will start associating the trailer with nicer memories and will be able to accompany the children to some lovely places.

Finished studies with distinction

After 3 years I've finished the FdSc in Applied Animal Behvaioural Science and Welfare. The last year was the best, but it was hard work and so I decided not to go on to do the top up year to gain the BSc quite yet. This would be a full-time year and I have too many other things going on.
I will however be developing my skills as a horse trainer - I want to work with rescue horses in particular, but any 'problems' would be welcome. I have enrolled on an Introductory course on Clicker Training with Amanda Martin of Smaart Horses. I used to be sceptical, but it all is beginning to fall into place.
Obviously it's not just training that is important with rehabilitation, but looking at what will enable a horse to respond in a better way; you need to look at history, routine, environment, and people involved as well.

New Member of the Family


I have taken on a new pony to keep Henry company when we move fields later this year. He's called Thunder (!), and is 14hh, possibly cob x arab, and two years old. In the picture he's the one further away. Thunder will also be my guinea pig as I learn more and more about clicker training. I'm not saying Henry is a lost cause, he's taken to the clicker very well, but Thunder is an almost blank canvas.