Clicker training has long been a controversial subject among horse owners. There are some that equate it with bribing the horse for obedience. They believe a horse should learn through the classical methods of pressure and release, and repetition. Giving treats for work will surely cause a pushy, disrespectful monster. Others say only the tree hugging, new-age hippies who don’t even ride their horses use it. It is a waste of time, only good for training a few tricks.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of owners with these strong opinions have never tried clicker training themselves. They have probably never even seen it done with a horse in person. They are truly selling themselves (and their horses) short by not giving this versatile training tool a try.
Let’s look at a few reasons why you should at least consider clicker training with your horse!
It’s Fun and Engaging for the Horse
Let’s face it, our horses don’t get much say in what we do with them. I am not suggesting that caring owners force their horses to work in cruel conditions, or with inadequate care. However, we do impose our will on them when we show up, take them out of their pasture or stall, and ride them. If we were to ask our horses whether they would like to come with us and work, or continue hanging out with their herd mates, most of us already know the answer. As a matter of fact, we have probably all had a horse answer that question by playing “catch me if you can” in the pasture. So how can clicker training make work more appealing to our horses?
When we go to work everyday, we do it as a means to an end. It’s expected that we are getting paid for our time. What if we showed up on time, worked hard to do what our boss wanted, but never got our paycheck? Even if we absolutely loved our job (as some horses do), it would become increasingly hard to stay motivated. At some point, you would start to resent this one sided arrangement. Our horses are no different.
Clicker training changes the game for your horse. Not only do they have an opportunity to earn a “paycheck” for their efforts, they get the chance to use their brain and figure out what you are asking. You become much more interesting to them. Once they understand how to earn their rewards, they become willing participants. I have seen profound changes in a horse’s attitude when he starts to see himself as your partner.
My Spotted Saddle Horse Gelding, Indy, was one of those horses. When he first came here two years ago, he was a dangerous and aggressive animal. ( In fact, I was his 4th owner in 5 years- he was given to me) Whatever he had experienced in his past had left a deep distrust in humans. He displayed strong defensive aggression, including charging, striking, rearing, kicking, biting, and bolting.
(This was his general attitude before we started clicker training!)
After I established I could protect my personal space without being abusive toward him, I tried something new. I taught him to target, and touch items with clicker training. Then I taught him to come to his name. Within a week, his attitude towards me, and people in general, changed! He began meeting me at the gate, ready to play this new game! I continue to play with clicker training with Indy, even doing it at liberty. This way he chooses whether or not to participate. He has become a safe riding horse that even my children can handle!
(And this is him now, meeting me at the gate to see if we can play. And it isn’t even feeding time!)
It’s Versatile
This is the best part of clicker training! Once you have the basics down, it can be used for almost anything. Some examples are training them to pick up their feet easily, load better, stand still for mounting, help them become less spooky, get cleaner transitions, lead changes, and more. The possibilities are endless.
My first experience with clicker training was several years ago. I had just bought my Rocky Mountain Gelding, and he had a dangerous habit. Any time you tried to mount, he jumped into a gait as soon as he felt your weight in the stirrup. Normally I would just circle him until he stopped then mount, but he was nervous and that seemed to make it worse. Since he was the typical “cowboy” trained horse, I decided to find a way to train a calm, relaxed mounting routine.
I read a book about clicker training a few years back, and how it was used by zoos to make physical examinations and general handling of their animals safer. I wondered if the same techniques could work with a horse? After some digging, I found a few books about using clicker training with horses.
After teaching him how to target and touch objects, I taught him to line up next to a mounting block. He did that well, but he still stepped off as soon as he felt weight. So I decided to teach him to lower his head on command. I would place my hand on his neck near his withers, and gently put downward pressure on his halter. When he moved his head down, I would click and treat. Once he had that behavior down, I asked him to lower his head after lining up at the mounting block. When he did, I clicked and rewarded him. All I had to do when I mounted was put my hand on his neck and he stood quietly with his head down until I asked him to walk off. Best of all, we accomplished this without force, and he learned how to be calm in the process. He still does this today.
It Makes You a Better Trainer
Training requires timing, feel, and patience. Whether you know it or not, every time you interact with your horse you are training. This means you are either sharpening or dulling the horse’s skills every time you handle him! The best trainers have naturally excellent feel and timing. That’s why they develop great horses quickly without unneeded force. Think Ray Hunt, Tom Dorrance, and Buck Brannaman. However, there is hope for the rest of us! With practice most owners can learn better timing. Clicker training can help.
Clicker training helps you to slow down and watch your horse. You have to watch closely, and click the behavior you want to reinforce. This means you must wait for your horse to figure out what you want. Timing is very important in clicker training. If you click too late, you reinforce the wrong behavior. Your horse will try different behaviors to see if that is the one you want. You must patiently wait until he stops offering other behaviors, and click the instant he does (or attempts to do) what you are asking. One short clicker session can easily offer 20 – 50 opportunities to sharpen our timing by clicking for appropriate responses.
Another wonderful benefit of clicker training is it’s ability to help us see each horse as an individual. Horses are different, just like people. Sometimes we know only one way to train a horse. The more you experiment with clicker training, the more you will learn about your individual horses, and their learning styles. My two geldings are totally different in the way they react to clicker training. Both enjoy it, but one is very reserved and only wants to play for a few minutes. The other one never wants to stop, and offers new behaviors on his own to see if he can earn a click!
It Can Be Done Anywhere
Is your horse currently on stall rest? Is it raining, snowing, too hot, or too muddy to ride? Are you recovering from an injury that prevents riding? Do you only have 15 minutes to spend with your horse that day?
If you are dealing with any of these situations, it’s the perfect time to try clicker training. You can do it in their stall, in the barn aisle, in the pasture, really anywhere you and your horse happen to be. A session can be only 5 minutes long if you want. It can help you solve behavioral problems on the ground, or simply strengthen your relationship with your horse. If your horse is on stall rest, it can help alleviate boredom while they heal.
You Don’t Have to Carry the Clicker Forever
I have heard several people protest the idea of clicker training because they don’t want to carry a clicker and treats every time they handle or ride their horse. I can certainly understand their concern, but the truth is you don’t have to! The clicker makes establishing the behavior quicker and easier for the horse, since it identifies a certain behavior as correct to him. He gets instant feedback (and his treat) confirming that was the behavior you wanted.
After the behavior is firmly established, however, you can replace the click with another word. I use a simple “Good boy!”. You can also start offering treats less often. Studies have shown that intermittent reinforcement is more effective long term than offering a reward every time they perform a task correctly. I very rarely give treats to my Rocky Mountain horse for his mounting skills now, but he still consistently offers the behavior.
So if you want to try clicker training here’s a list of books and tools that can get started:
This is the first one I ordered years ago. It is still one of my favorites! Here is the link :
Here is another good one:
Here is the link for it: http://amzn.to/2fBIkMM
This book combines classical training with clicker training, and has more exercises geared toward improving under saddle work, even focusing on dressage.
Here is the link : http://amzn.to/2fCm2dy
I also found this kit that comes with a clicker, treat pouch, and water bowl (it is designed for dogs, but you could use the bowl to teach targeting).
Here is the link for the kit: http://amzn.to/2fBKdsQ
