Clicker Training

[DizzyDoughnut]

After having my old boy put down last year and my little pony last week, For the 1st time in nearly 20 years I've found myself with only 1 low maintenance easy to look after pony. Suddenly I have loads of free time and no idea what to do with it ? He's a bit depressed and quiet after losing his friend so I thought we might have a go at clicker training to give us something to do.

I've watched videos and read about it but other than getting him to touch a target which we've got the hang of now what else should we do, I need a goal but have no idea what the goal should be. Has anyone got any ideas of something fun we could aim for?

 

[I'm Dun]

spanish walk?

 

[pistolpete]

So much. I play fetch. Liberty walking. Park between poles. Walk sideways. Lower head to floor. Carrot stretching on command. Turn on the forehand leg yield. You can teach them colour differentiation. Loads! I’ve stopped as my boy is injured but he loved it. I used to use chaff as treats can be too reinforcing. There’s a podcast by Shawna Karrasch called clicker 101.

 

[skint1]

I do a kind of half-arsed version of this with my ID mare. Most of it came about by accident or through a practical purpose before it occurred to me that it was a thing that could be applied in many situations.

It started when I needed her to do carrot stretches as part of rehab. This turned into doing a kind of bow, which doesn’t really have a purpose other than doing the actual stretch I guess. Most recently I’ve got her to stand still at a certain point of her stable or field gateway so I can change rugs, I’d like to eventually extend that to mounting block if ever she’s ridden again.

I am always impressed how quickly she learns stuff and how well she remembers whatever cue, she seems to really enjoy learning stuff and of course treats, one of the main things I learned was not to reward if you’ve not asked for the behaviour.

I’d like to learn more about Dressage in Hand and Liberty work, I like Adventures with Jenku, and Warwick Schiller is quite interesting but there’s loads out there to learn from. I’m going to check out pistolPete’s podcast recommendation!

 

[daydreamer]

I use it for carrot stretches by using a pair of old socks as a target. With my old boy I used to take him in the school and get him moving around by throwing a target onto the ground a short way away and he had to walk to it, touch it then walk back to me. We never got more than a few metres away but it was good exercise for us both and fun! I also ended up using it to reward standing square in hand when doing walk/halt transitions in hand to try and improve his posture. I also used it for training the "one pole challenge" where they straddle a single pole. He retired away to grass livery last summer and then was PTS in November and writing this has made me remember how much I miss just spending time faffing about with him.

 

[SpotsandBays]

A lady at my yard made a “stick” using a gardening cane and popped a tennis ball on the end. Horse touched the ball, click, reward. She could then do stretches etc with said horse, (without the need to be too close) which is pretty cool for carrot stretches!

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

Thank you, Pistolpete I'm going to try and find that podcast, and then we'll give fetch a go. Hopefully, he'll like doing it, he likes picking stuff up, normally something that you really don't want to spill everywhere.

I'd like to do some liberty work with him it's just figuring out where to start and what I'd like to actually be able to do by the end. Whatever we do we'll be starting slow with walking, he's prone to getting giddy quite easily ?

Daydreamer so sorry about your boy, it sounds like you had a lot of fun together! xx

 

[canteron]

I taught my retired horse to laugh at jokes ...... he got more recognition for that than all the rosettes we won!!!!

 

[TRECtastic]

I've taught milo to 'wave' with clicker training
We play at bits and pieces in the field ?

 

[Leah3horses]

I backed my youngster, tackless, just using clicker training...and my two , previously feral, rescue minis do tricks., they can count to 30 with front hooves, give kisses, bow, 'speak', walk to heel at liberty, run free in 50 acres and recall like a shot... ..you can use CT to teach anything and everything, the only limit is imagination! Shawna Korrasch is the best R+ trainer in the world, great recommendation.
Also look at Connection Training, Buck You,. Elaine Heney, Fed Up Fred, The Click That Teaches , Ben Hart... enjoy!

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

Aw Milo is brilliant!
I'm going to have to start making a list of things I want to do. I think that's part of my problem, there's so much that we could do that it's almost like too much choice and I don't know where to start. The recall sounds very handy for winter when I'm looking for him in the dark, he mostly comes when I call him but always picks the most cold, wet or windy night to do his best to blend into a bush.

Is there a recommended kind of treat, he's a welsh pony who's watching his waistline so I'd ideally like to find something low in sugars etc
Off to look up everyone's recommendations. ?

 

[coblets]

Everything mentioned above, also teaching them to get an injection at liberty or to open mouth to check their teeth.

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

Well tonight didn't go as planned, I thought we'd just work loose in the field, the pony agreed for about 30 seconds then his girlfriend in the next field looked at him and he went farting across the field and abandoned me for a better offer, because obviously girls just can't resist an idiot being jet propelled across the field by his own farts.

 

[mariew]

I inadvertedly taught mine that anything to do with a clicker meant it wasn't scary even though the horse thought it was to start. That worked great in later life for so many things. Lots of moving her around and touching scary stuff whilst free in the school. Flapping umbrellas etc.