A basic summary of clicker training, as we use it
Our way of training involves only gentle voluntary methods. We do not punish, use bits or whips, train in small areas (such as yard or round pen) and most training starts off with the horse being naked (no gear on at all). The horses always have the option of walking away and not training, and there is never any punishment. They have plenty of food, company, water, shade etc in the paddock, so they do not *need* to train in order to survive. Therefore, the training is completely voluntary for the horse. We only use positive reinforcement.
Clicker training
The ‘click’ can be a clicking sound made by a clicker, or as we do, saying the word ‘click’. As soon as we click, we give the horse a treat. A treat can be anything that the horse is willing to work for, such as food, scratches, play, running etc. The rule is 1 click = 1 treat (C/T). The click always comes first and then the horse gets a treat.
For example, if we want to train the horse to touch my hand with their nose – I hold my hand out close to the horse’s nose, they likely sniff it (most horses will), and I then C/T. The horse will quickly learn that touching my hand means that they will get a treat, that is, the behavior has been reinforced.
(insert photo of hand targeting)
Ways of achieving a behaviour
We use 3 main ways to “set up the horse to do a behavior”.
- Capturing – spend time with the horse, when they happen to do something that you want, C/T.
- Targeting – using a target, such as hand, target stick or foot target, to guide the horse to do a desired behavior. When the horse does the right thing, C/T. For example, I can move my hand to guide the horse to follow me. When the horse moves in the right direction C/T.
- Shaping – gradually click a behavior until it is shaped to the desired form. For example, if I want the horse to stand by a mounting block, I might start with clicking when the horse is anywhere near the mounting block. I then only click if the horse moves a little bit in the right direction, then I don’t click until it is pretty close to the mounting block, and then not until the horse is standing in the correct place at the mounting block.
(insert photos of shaping)
Progressing behaviour
Once a behavior is ‘fluent’ (that is, the horse gets it right at least 90% of the time), we start progressively making it harder, by, for example, moving my hand to a different position, moving my hand further away, asking the horse to keep its nose on the hand for longer.
Another way to progress the behavior is to teach the horse to touch a target, rather than a hand, or teaching the horse to touch something with another body part than the nose, such as neck or hoof.
(insert photo of foot targeting)
Another way for progressing a behavior is by varying how much the horse needs to do before getting the C/T, this is called variable reinforcement schedule. This means that, for example, if I am teaching the horse to walk with me, I might C/T after 1 step, then after 4 steps, then 2 steps etc.
Changing environment
Once the horse is fluent in a behavior, we also change the environment that we train in. For example, we may go down to the river reserve close by, train in a different paddock, out on a trek etc.
Just because a behavior is fluent at home, doesn’t mean that the horse will understand that it also applies in other environments. So every behavior needs to be trained in many different environments, with different distractions.
Adding cue
Once a behavior is truly fluent, we start adding cues. A cue can be a verbal signal, a touch or a hand cue. Please note that it is not a ‘command’, it is simply a cue that lets the horse know what behavior is likely to get the C/T. We start with just adding the cue as the horse is doing the behavior. For some cues, we may have to say it hundreds of times before the horse associate it with the behavior. Once the horse understands the point of the cue though, they are likely to understand quicker.
More information
Below are some resources that we like for understanding more about clicker training:
