Desensitisation, the good and the bad (don’t get them mixed up) There seems to be a lot of confusion about Desensitization. People are either thinking it’s great to try to desensitize their horse, de-spook or bomb-proof their horse. OR there are people saying NOT to use Desensitization because it’s cruel and mean and it floods […]
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Building Trust I had a big breakthrough with Paddy, my mini donkey today, but I need to say “we” because it actually revolved around my partner David. I’d like to define “trust” first though. For Paddy and myself, it means I’m someone that brings him nice things, gives good butt scratches when he asks, doesn’t
Both Operant (Skinner) AND Classical (Pavlov) are “on our shoulders” Positive Reinforcement is one of the processes known as Operant Conditioning. It’s a way we learn by operating or behaving in our environment in a way that we try to gain things we like. When we do that and are successful, we enjoy that or
Both Operant (Skinner) AND Classical (Pavlov) are “on our shoulders” Read More »
Clicker Training Mythbusting “They can just walk away if they want to.” Who has heard this statement? I have, many times and it always gives me pause. I find with equines, that they don’t usually leave to enjoy their alternative food, which I always recommend having nearby when training. There’s a funny saying we use
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What kind of foods? One of the most popular questions on clicker training groups is – what treats do you use? What ensues is a barrage of helpful advice about things people feed their horses, which range from Cheerios, peppermints and sugar cubes, to grapes, carrot coins and chamomile flowers, eek! One thing I always
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What does a happy horse look like? Some of you may have heard of the 3 Fs or the Five Freedoms, maybe even some of you have heard of the Five Domains, if you’ve followed my page for a while. The problem with the Five Freedoms is that it focuses on the absence of negative
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Donkey Training Process Oct 2020 I took on the care of 2 neglected donkeys Dorothy and Seymour, in January 2020. It’s now October, 2020. They both had a number of serious health issues that needed tending, some have been resolved in the short term and some are long term projects. They both seem to have
Donkey Training Progress Oct 2020 Read More »
Protected Contact The concept of training in Protected Contact (PC) is unique to Positive Reinforcement (R+) Training. PC means training with a barrier between the trainer and the animal and originated in zoos and wildlife parks, where a keeper’s safety was paramount. It’s essential for beginner horses and humans, but also for more experienced trainers
Is your horse a rescue? I’ve been tossing this subject around in my head for quite a while now. It’s a delicate subject, as there’s a fine line between a couple of different factors. One, is trying to avoid blame and shame, because I really don’t find that helpful or productive and we simply don’t
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Horse Training, get creative and change something Have you ever made a definitive statement about your horse? “My horse is not food motivated” “My horse doesn’t like being hosed down” “I have a spooky/aggressive/dominant/submissive horse” I’ve talked previously about how labelling our animals is not helpful in our training or how to solve problems. But
Horse Training, get creative and change something Read More »
