Does your horse line up for you at the mounting block and then stand patiently while you sort out your stirrups and girth? Many horses don’t, often because they haven’t been trained in a way that makes it clear to them what behaviour is wanted. Or perhaps they’ve been trained to do it differently. For example, racehorses start to move before the jockey is in the saddle. Or maybe they are finding their saddle or girth uncomfortable or perhaps don’t like what happens next. That being ridden causes them confusion or anxiety.

One thing I love about clicker training is that you can easily see that the training is in place. Then, if the horse doesn’t line up, you know there’s another issue you need to investigate.

I also do a lot of work at the mounting block as it is the bridge between working on the ground and in the saddle. You can make sure the connection you’ve built up on the ground stays really solid even while you’re riding. So I was delighted this week to see how well one of my students, Dawn, has progressed with training this to Bea. In the video you will see that Bea lines up beautifully and is very relaxed. We then went on to have a lovely ridden lesson. I love Bea’s understanding and willingness that she shows here, and wanted to share it with you.

“I can’t believe how much these small changes influenced Maurice!” said Rachael at the end of her riding lesson with me. Like many riders, Rachael finds it hard to release her hips and follow the horse’s movement. If you find this to be a problem too, or have a tight lower back, watch this extract from her lesson with me when we visited Portugal in February. With the right technique, it can be surprisingly easy to loosen up and make a better connection.

You can see the changes clearly in this short video. As Rachael changes, Maurice goes from being high headed, hollow backed and with a short stride to this lovely long, relaxed, lifted way of going.

I teach riding using techniques from tai chi, which I learned from James Shaw; French Classical riding from Phillipe Karl and motivation and clarity gained from teaching with a clicker.

A calm, relaxed, yet keen, horse is what we’re all searching for, but if you’ve had much to do with horses, you’ll know it’s not easy to get!! Horses are prey animals who are naturally quite spooky because running first and thinking later has kept them alive for thousands of years. How can we use our training skills to change this evolutionary pattern and help make them calmer and more likely to stop, think and turn to us in spooky situations?

As with any horse-related question, there are a huge number of variables because each horse and human is different, not to mention the variables in each day, session or moment. However, there are some basic techniques and behaviours that can really help build connection, calmness and focus…

Clarity Clarity Clarity
Clarity in training is the single biggest factor in helping build relaxation. Grey areas, muddled cues and bad click timing cause a lot of confusion, frustration and anxiety in horses. If your cues are clear and the horse understands what you’re asking for and knows how to respond, you’ll find that calmness and confidence become an intrinsic part of your training. There are some easy ways to clear up your training; when you click and treat your horse, say out loud what you’re going to ask for next. Video your training sessions and watch yourself for timing and cue clarity or get a friend to watch you train and see if they can tell what you’re asking for and what you’re clicking for. If they can’t, your horse probably won’t know either!

Feel
You can also help to build relaxation in your horse and the behaviours by choosing to click at moments in the behavour when the horse FEELS soft, calm and relaxed. If they bang or bite the target or have their ears back when they do it, you can simply re-present it and wait until the touch is softer and click that. This way you’re reinforcing the type of touch and the emotions that go with it as well as the more gross behaviour itself.
I have had amazing success with lots of horses only clicking when the behaviour feels calm, looking for softening eyes, deep breaths and a lowering head as well as those moments in leading, riding, lunging etc when everything is generally more chilled, soft and relaxed.

Cues as Secondary Reinforcers
For some horses (and humans!) this ‘feel’ approach doesn’t work so well because it can lack clarity and they get frustrated not knowing exactly what the click was for (clicking for emotion is obviously not as clear as clicking for behaviour, although the two are linked). In this instance, you’re better off using the emotional control techniques (there are step-by-step videos on this in Clix College) where you wait for signs of focus and relaxation before giving a cue for a behaviour the horse enjoys, so the cue is the reinforcer for relaxation and the click is for only a very precise behaviour.

For example, if your horse is staring at something in the distance, wait for him to look to you slightly, then give your cue such as presenting the target. Click your horse when he touches the target. The emotional calmness comes from him tuning into you slightly, but the very precise click comes as your horses touches the target. This means that you avoid confusion because your horse might turn to you slightly the first time, which is one sign on tuning in, but the next sign of focus and relaxation might be a deep breath and a head lower. These are both great signs of relaxation and focus, but they are different behaviours. Because the click is so precise, this can confuse some horses, but by giving a cue instead the click can remain for a definite behaviour.

Using cues as secondary reinforcers like this is something to be aware of throughout training sessions and makes a huge difference to the emotional state of your horse.

What worked yesterday isn’t working today!

Another major contributing factor to calmness in training is knowing what to ask for when. So, head-down is seen as a calming behaviour (and there are videos on how to teach it in Clix College), which it is when used in the right way at the right moments. At other times, you’ll need to ask for something else – forward movement, backing, standing on a mat, lateral flexions, targeting etc etc – again, this is so individual to the horse and the moment that training by rote simply doesn’t work. A great trainer knows which behaviour is most likely to work in each moment, and is ready to change tack at the tiniest inkling that it might not be the best way to go. That way, they rarely get big behaviours, because the conversation between them is happening way before it gets to that stage.

For example: you have a horse who’s seen something in the distance and is frozen, head up, nostrils going, ignoring the human (those times when your little horse becomes an 18hh dragon!). You start to ask for head down but feel the tension increase slightly as you move into the cue… ooops, that might not be best.. ok, “can you (the horse) move your weight back?”  Ask for the back-up, feel a slight softening in the horse as you ask for it – click! The horse is still not ready to take treat so instead of waiting limply trying to tempt horse to take the treat (another sign of tension), ask for another lean back, then a slight flexion towards you, then a tiny suggestion of head down – horse takes a breath and slightly brings focus back onto you while lowering the head a centremetre – click! This time the horse is there to take the treat and you’re a big step towards getting calmness and focus back.

You CAN learn feel!
The only way I know of of getting this feel without it being a natural skill is to practice practice practice, and be aware of yourself and what you’re asking for, what works, what doesn’t, always viewing what is actually happening with your horse (rather than disaster scenario imagining – really, your horse is JUST standing still, even if it’s tense, for example). This is not easy but I have trained myself quite well so I know it’s do-able – mental discipline! Simply (but not easily!) change your imagining to the picture you WANT rather than the one you’re worrying about.

“When your horse is at his worst, you must be at your best. Don’t panic together.”
Hans Senn
(Shawna Karrasch shared this quote on Facebook the other day and I thought it was perfect!)

The other thing which is a huge contributing factor to the results you get from cueing and clicking is HOW you give a cue. In the above scenario, it’s common that the handler gives a quicker, more tense head down cue than they would if the horse was calm, because you want to stop any unwanted behaviours and anxiety pops up. Breathing, and softly, gently and slowly giving the cue is far more likely to get he results you want. It’s counter-intuitive, so again, just practice lots and click yourself for every small try in the right direction!!

Practice what you need to improve… and click yourself!
So, all in all, once again, there is no simple answer – it’s a combination of it all. To be the most successful trainer, you have to train yourself in both sides – if you tend to focus more on behaviour, become more aware of the emotional climate in your training sessions. Do you feel calm, happy and confident with your horse? Does your horse feel soft, relaxed and happy? You can trying just shutting your eyes, taking some deep breaths and getting grounded in the moment to get a sense of atmosphere.
If you tend to work more on feel, you’ll maybe have to brush up the specifics of your cues and clicking to bring more clarity into the session. ask yourself what exactly is my cue for this behaviour? What exactly am I clicking for?

Calmness and relaxation are corner stones in training and can be tricky to achieve because there’s a lot to it! However, with awareness and perseverance, you can help your horse become calmer, safer and more focused generally, as well as during scary or spooky situations. Clicker training is such an effective tool for teaching this!

Just back from another fab clicker training trip to Portugal and this one was even better because some Clix College members came, too!

Big thanks to Sophie for organising and hosting it and also to everyone who I met and worked with – you made it a fantastic week
Keep an eye out for the Portugal Riding Vlog – coming soon!

It’s an excerpt from a presentation I did on how I’d been training the Zonkeys at the Snow White – A Pony Tale Premiere.

If you haven’t seen them yet click here to watch: Zonkey Training Part 1 and Zonkey Training Part 2.

A tale of love, passion, attempted murder, drama and HORSES! LOTS of horses!

This quirky take on the original tale involves all my own 7 horses in place of the dwarves and the brilliant Rebecca Townsend and Rosie Howard joined us with their incredible trick-trained horses, too! I think many of you will recognise Robert Blane, our handsome prince, too and the lovely Helen who did a great job as Snow White

Watch it NOW!

And for a proper laugh, take a look at the out takes!

If you missed last year’s Pony Tale, click here to watch Cinderella!

Snow White – A Pony Tale is premiering this weekend so we’re all gearing up for that right now!
Here’s a sneak preview of the oh-so-famous apple scene, (although with a slight twist on the usual version…) with a sneaky peek at some behind-the-scenes training.
All Snow White’s 7 horses in the film (all my horses!) were completely trained using clicker training and tricks can be a fun way of teaching useful behaviours, as Helen and Freckles demonstrate beautifully….

And, in case you haven’t seen the trailer for Snow White yet, here it is:

To be a great horse trainer requires self awareness, honesty and perception. You must hold together the dreams of where you’d like to be (this gives you your goals and aspirations), the knowledge of where you’ve come from (this is your reward! know what you’ve already achieved and be proud of it) while at the same time being present to where you are NOW.

Part of being able to enjoy being in the present with your horse, is to learn to enjoy learning. Clicker training is perfect for this because it enables us to train ourselves, as well as our horses,  in a way which is fun, motivating and rewarding. Everything you do which gives you an opportunity to teach yourself will help your horse training, as it puts you into the position of being both learner and teacher. Pay attention to your strong points, your weaknesses and, most importantly, how it feels to be the learner when you are the teacher. This will give you insight and empathy into the emotions your horse displays in training sessions.

Here are some examples of my own recent learnings of new behaviours and what they’ve taught me about myself as a horse trainer:

Watch my new Charleston steps! They’re not perfect but it was a great learning experience!
You can also click HERE to see a Youtube video of what it’s supposed to look like!

1. Learning to Charleston
I’ve done a lot of dance over the years. It’s something I’m very comfortable with and I love learning it. Last week, I went to my first ever Charleston class. We did 2 types of Charleston, one version from the 1930′s which was similar in style to the lindyhop I’ve done before, and one version from the 1920′s, which was a completely new and difficult way of moving for me.
Now, I was in a class, so I was being shown the steps, but that was as far as the input went, so it was up to me to create my own learning experience. Particularly in the 1920′s Charleston, I struggled to pick up the steps. This could easily have led to frustration and embarrasment. However, I allowed myself to go back to an easier version if I was struggling too much and, partly because of my previous dance experience, I was simply happy to be there, trying to get pick it up.
How does this relate to horse training?
I certainly made progress in the class, but my steps certainly aren’t perfect either. This doesn’t bother me, I had a great experience and it was filled with positive emotions! This is exactly the kind of training session I love having with my horses. It relies on me being the kind of teacher who allows the horse to go back to an easier behaviour if they’re struggling too much and doesn’t expect perfection straight away – reward the tries much and often and enjoy the process!

2. Learning the Cello

My ONE tag-point when learning the cello!
You can also click HERE to see a youtube video of what it’s supposed to sound like! (it gets a lot more complicated – that’s a LOT of tag points!!!)

My musical boyfriend bought himself a cello just before Christmas, so I asked him to show me how to play something. I played around a little on the cello on my own first, just trying to be able to bow each string individually etc, before asking him to show me how to play what he’d just been playing. It was the beginning of a Bach piece, fairly simple to start with.
The difficulty about a cello is that it doesn’t have frets (like a guitar), so you have to place your fingers in the right place so the notes are correct by ear . This was tough at first and I needed a lot of input from my boyfriend to say when I was in the right place.
The first 2 bars I learned were fairly simple, but the second two required a finger change, which I just couldn’t get! I kept forgetting to put my third finger down and I started to get very frustrated! I was aware that my feelings around learning the cello were very different to learning dance – I wanted to be perfect NOW, I felt like a failure if I wasn’t, I got frustrated easily and there was a bit of embarrassment in there, too. (Who’s felt like that in horse training? )
Phew! So, instead of letting that build, or giving up, I got my clicker head on (‘TAG teaching’ for humans). I picked ONE thing (and one thing only!) to pay attention to – this was getting my third finger on the string at the right time. Everything else went by the wayside, it didn’t matter if it sounded bad or I bowed wrongly or whatever, the key to achiveing this step was my finger. As soon as I made this change I started to enjoy it again. It became manageable, achievable and I felt GOOD because I was achieving things!
How does this relate to horse training?
This emphasized the golden rule of BREAKING BEHAVIOURS DOWN. A common fault is to ask for too much at once, which leads to a loss of clarity, the horse becomes unable to succeed and starts to show frustrated or stressy behaviours and often leaves the game. Having experienced that on the cello through my own bad teaching before I rectified it, it’s a lesson that will stick with me!
(As an aside, you can also go too slow… it can be just as frustrating to be asking for tiny steps when the horse understands the whole behaviour.  As ever, in horse training, it’s all about the balance!)

3. Learning to Jump on my Snowboard
The wonderful snowfall we had meant only one thing last weekend – get the snowboards out (yes, I was supposed to be doing my tax return but nevermind!). My boyfriend and I are both fairly competent boarders so simply going down the hill lost interest quickly. So, we built a jump.
Now, I don’t have a good history with snowboarding jumps… my boyfriend is both fearless and competent and therefore very good. Last year, we went on holiday with 3 guys. Although I was one of the better ones on the piste, they all had snowboard and skateboard park experience and wanted to play in the snowparks. Although I should have been able to do it because of my skill level, my fear got

Hurrah! I got AIR!! Watch this video to see my before’s and afters through breaking it down and losing the fear!

in the way completely and I fell onto icy piste in front of everyone watching again and again and again… As you might expect this didn’t help! I ended up feeling more scared, very embarrassed and highly demoralised.

Learning to jump in my own field in a secluded part of the Yorkshire Dales felt like a good idea. However, I was still so nervous that I fell on the approach to the jump every time. RIGHT, time for some clicker techniques.
Rule 1 with fear (whether it’s you or the horse): don’t overface the learner. I started off almost next to the jump and went sideways across the hill very slowly.
Rule 2 with fear: build it slowly. Only once this was getting boring did I start higher up – only 1 metre mind! I started to go more downhill which meant faster, too.
Rule 3 with fear: don’t make it continually harder. I rewarded myself now and again with going back a stage and feeling highly competent at that level. This is so important in horse training, too!
I set myself  a target of 20 jumps and to see how far I got in that time. I was very pleased with my progress! I made much more and faster progress going slowly than I did trying to get the whole behaviour at once. Another valuable lesson in patience there. That reminds me of one of my own quotes – “go slower to get there faster!”

I’m sure everyone has experiences they can relate to their horse training, whether it’s learning to drive (sooo many things to pick up at once!), or maybe a New Year’s resolution has prompted you to start something new… I’m really fascinated by it all, so please do share your experiences below!