Anyone done a clicker training course?

[b53]

Recently started clicker training with my bolshy cob, he is quite enthusiastic, but I'm afraid I could easily start to get it wrong. I have a book (which has a lot about training dolphins in it!) but don't find it very helpful, just wondered if anyone had done a course.

[Shadowlark]

My very first exposure to clicker training was training a chicken. We were away at summer camp for dog trainers if you will ;) Several fantastic speakers were there, and each had half a day or a day to work with us. By the end of the day we had to get our chicken to produce a predefined complex behavior thru catching/shapping cause let me tell you you really can't lure a chicken :D Anyway it was a hoot.

My advice if you are concerned about your methodology is find a local dog trainer who specializes, and get them out for a private lesson. The concepts and application are identical no matter what you are training dog, cat, horse, human or fish - you can use it on anyone anything.

[NoviceNic]

I am looking at doing clicker with my bolshy cob....:D I went onto Enlightened Equitation forum and asked for a local EE trainer to me. Heather Moffat herself replied plus others on their gave me recommendations. I have booked to see a EE trainer on saturday morning. Just going to watch her teach to see if she is my kind of trainer. Call me fussy..:p

Good Luck with your search..:)

[capalldubh]

Alexandra Kurland is one of the names in horse clicker training and does UK clinics - I know she is doing some this summer (as I just signed up for one).

You could check her website (http://theclickercenter.com/2004/clinics/index.php) to see if there's one near you :)

[Bay Mare]

Becky at Heather Moffett's place in Devon does clicker, I'm sure that they do courses down there!

[mayoguinness]

Nope afraid not. I'm not against it but would only ever use it as a last resort which I have before ;)

Good Luck :)

[Bay Mare]

Why would you only use it as a last resort? Just interested because I've seen a lot of good work done with the clicker. Becky Holden has really good results with it :)

[mayoguinness]

Well I like to try and train a horse without using food. Just a personal thing. Not that I havn't done clicker before but using food with a horse is always a last resort for me as I like to get them to do things because they want to and because I'm asking them to and they trust me not for food. However sometimes I think it can break habbits and can work well but its not really my thing ;)

[NoviceNic]

But you can use clicker training without the food. You just click and then give them loads of praise and fuss straightaway. :)

Oooohhh get me I sound like a NH pro....**rolls eyes**

[mayoguinness]

Yeah true but you normally start off with food and ten work down just to praise don't you?? lol ;)

[NoviceNic]

True - but surely the treat means they are more willing. I know Captain will respond well to clicker training as he loves treats. :rolleyes: Whether he starts to bite me or not is in my hands literally..;) I will not allow him to bite me. And will show my disgust.

[india]

I came across this clip on youtube, it shows clicker training being used on a rescued, abused mule - the result it achieved in a short space of time is amazing!!! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCtrtbdXkVw

[virtuallyhorses]

...using food with a horse is always a last resort for me as I like to get them to do things because they want to and because I'm asking them to and they trust me not for food.

:) What you mean is that you use negative reinforcement. Behaviour modification occurs through operant conditioning. So if you aren't using positive reinforcement then you are using one of the other consequences. Traditional and NH methods use negative reinforcement -also known as "pressure-release" and positive punishment.

Concepts such as 'because I ask' or because it trusts me are vague human concepts. Why they do what we ask, is because of how we train them. We apply consequences to behaviours every time we interact with animals and they learn what we want over time.

Yes, you can use clicker training without food rewards but remember that pats and praise only mean anything to your horse because they are associated with a primary reinforcer (food, water, air, sex or comfort - which is one that is hard to judge from moment to moment). You may like giving them, that doesn't mean your horse likes getting them or more importantly is willing to work for them. If you aren't using a primary reinforcer, then you are using a secondary reinforcer - so you may as well cut out the middle-man :)

Fear of 'the food' it is usually a sign of lack of understanding of operant conditioning. Sadly the research doesn't support the 'love and trust' theory of animal training. :) That's not to say that love, trust etc don't exist - but they aren't why an animal changes its behaviour. Animals learn through trial and error with the consequences that occur as a result of the behaviours they perform.

P.S. If you haven't guessed - I clicker train - WITH FOOD. I also teach and have written a book for beginners.

B53 there are many resources on the web that will get you going on the right track, including my own. PM me if you would like further information.

[Harry Hobbes]

Hear! Hear!

[mayoguinness]

Clicker works for sure - didn't say it doesn't. Some of the Aussie NH people I know use it, not really for getting the horses over stuff more for tricks etc. Yes it is negative reinforcement, so is putting a halter on, the horse won't move so you give it a tug, horse moves you stop the presure. Nothing wrong with that, proberly that the horse didn't know you were asking it to move forward so by putting the gentle presure on and relesing it, the horse learns what you want and no harm done. Positive reinforcement is when the horse knows what you want and offers it to you and you give a treat or a stroke for a reward. By simply putting a halter on and asking the horse to walk on, thats negative reinforcement and as I said before, nothing wrong with that to me as long as you do it gently, when I object is when you start using a lot of force with it for example, the horse won't walk on and doesn't respond to gentle voice or leg aids, so then you start using whips and spurs and putting pain and so much pressure that the horse can't resist. With a little negative reinforcement the horse can resist, with a lot its force, the horse does it because its in pain and proberly out of fear ;)