I received books about clicker training for Christmas – Alexandra Kurland’s Clicker Training for your Horse is excellent. Lots of sensible advice on using all quadrants of operant conditioning.
There is usually more than one solution to a problem, so the more tools we have in our tool box the better we are able to solve problems. Whether this is positive or negative reinforcement, or redirecting or counter conditioning we can decide what the best way is for our particular animal.
As my daughter has just acquired a foal all this information will be very useful. Many chapters are on foal and young horse handling.
So now after a festive family Christmas I will be off to the field to do more target training. Also I won’t chastise myself for using a little light negative reinforcement – using tactile cues e.g leg aids. What I don’t like is the escalation of pressure to elict behaviour, we now know there is a better way.
Ride With your Mind
Good lesson with Sally Ede (a Ride With Your Mind coach) working on my core strength so I can sit to Benny’s forward trot. Once I used my core to stabilise my position Benny was able to use his core and lift his back and round more. Used my Light Rider bridle too and he was very responsive to a very light hand. Used my seat bones to guide his forehand on the turns, much better than the leg forward. He is much more responsive, after last week, to the leg aids for the hindquarter turns too. Lots to work on for my stability but it will then mean I can sit to his trot to initiate the canter transitions. The Light Rider noseband seems to be just what I needed, instead of the rope halter or his Parelli Cradle bridle. This was us last week on our experience week at James Roberts Foundation Station.
Positive Horsemanship. 