The Philosophy Behind Clicker Training for Horses

People are very good at letting horses know when they’ve done the wrong thing. Conventional training methods rely on punishing the horse when he does not do what the rider wants. This is often referred to as “negative reinforcement”.

In fairness, negative reinforcement is not necessarily bad. An electric fence is a very strong form of negative reinforcement, but the electric fence may be protecting the horse from accidentally stepping out into heavy traffic and being injured or killed.

Slapping a baby’s hand when she reaches for a candle flame is less painful than a burn, and reinforces to the child, who is not yet capable of understanding speech, that touching the flame is a bad idea.

However, as far as training methods go, negative reinforcement is not very effective, and many people have an aversion to it.

Other types of training such as Natural Horsemanship offer release from pressure as a way of communicating to the horse. Release from pressure might not be exactly the same as negative reinforcement, but there is an element of avoidance involved. The horse learns to avoid pressure and to seek the comfort of release. Pressure can come from the leg, spur, whip, stick, lead rope, bit, or it can be the psychological pressure of your eyes and attention on the horse, or projecting energy towards the horse.

The huge downfall of these training methods is that they don’t tell the horse what you actually want. The horse learns what you don’t want and must guess what he thinks you want. Every wrong guess results in punishment or pressure. What a frustrating situation for horses and people!

What makes clicker training truly revolutionary is that it operates on the concept of “positive reinforcement”. Instead of punishing the horse for doing the wrong thing, or causing the horse to avoid pressure, with positive reinforcement you can demonstrate to the horse what you want and reward her for doing it. There is no more ambiguity and there are no more gray areas.

So how does positive reinforcement, or more specifically, clicker training work? It works by “marking” the moment the horse does the right thing, with a distinctive and consistent sound produced by a clicker and followed up with a reward.

To quote Andrea McCann, it’s “Pressing-down-on-that-box-thingy-to-make-a-noise-to-tell-the-horse-he-got-it-right-and-following-up-with-something-that-he-wants Training”.

Why can’t you praise the horse with pats and the words “good horse”? Let’s say you wanted to praise your horse for standing still while you mounted but by the time you dropped the reins to pat her, she may have moved two steps forward. You’ve missed your opportunity!

Maybe you wanted to praise your horse for a smooth trot / canter transition? You stop him to give the release and praise him. He doesn’t understand what exactly he did to earn your praise. Was it because he stopped? How confusing!

Another novel aspect of clicker training is the reward. Instead of saying “good horse” and giving the horse a pat, we give the horse a treat – which to the horse is way more valuable than a pat or words of praise. The reward becomes like a “paycheck” for the horse. The horse earns the reward by learning new behaviors and by performing them.

Like a human who works on commission, horses feel very highly motivated to learn and improve performance in order to receive their paycheck. Clicker trained horses learn to think for themselves instead of being prodded and pushed into performance. You cannot achieve this degree of dignity, respect and partnership using conventional training methods.

Clickers

All you need to clicker train is a clicker and some treats. There are a few different kinds of clickers. The most common kind is the rectangular box with metal clicker inside. You can get these clickers at most pet stores because clicker training is now the most popular method to train dogs. I’ve seen them at the PetSmart register for 99 cents.

You can also order clickers online. The best source is Karen Pryor’s website http://www.clickertraining.com/. Karen Pryor is the world’s leading authority on clicker training.

You definitely should plan to visit her site. There are many videos you can watch online. I even saw one where a clicker trainer taught an aquarium fish to swim through a hoop! Instead of a clicker, she used a laser pointer, and of course, flake food, to train the fish.

Karen has recently developed a second kind of clicker called the i-click. The i-click is smaller, quieter and can be used by disabled people unable to use a regular clicker. There is a version of the i-click called the Clicker + which attaches to a finger so you never have to search around or fumble for your clicker. This battery operated clicker can produce four different sounds in two volumes for increased options in developing cues.

You might even be able to get some fun and inexpensive clickers at your local Halloween store on sale after the holiday!

How do you hold or carry the clicker?

It won’t take long to figure out what works best for you. I use two clickers on carabiners attached to the belt loops on my jeans, one on each hip. That way no matter which hand I’m using to hold the lead rope or cue my horse, I can quickly connect with a clicker.

I have a friend who works at the Oakland Zoo and prefers to wear her clicker on a coil bracelet around her wrist. Other methods of carrying your clicker include on lanyards that you wear around your neck, or on retractable key chains.

Oh yes, and remember, only click once. Your horse may have done a super job and you may be very excited but you will reward your horse for a job well done in the second step – the treat part.

Treats

Appropriate treats include packaged horse treats in delicious flavors like apple, carrot, molasses, peppermint, licorice, alfalfa, and even oregano, as well as fresh fruit and vegetables cut into bite-sized pieces. In a pinch sugar cubes will work, but try to use foods that are healthy for your horse.

Keep a variety of treats on you while you train. It makes it more interesting for the horse to get different rewards.

When a horse does something exceptionally well, or you have a major breakthrough, give your horse a “jack pot”. A jack pot can be an extra special treat or a larger than normal amount of treats.

Many people, and I used to be one of these, don’t believe in giving treats to horses. Both of my horses were nippy to begin with, and the nippiness increased when I first started clicker training. Some people call this “mugging” for treats. Just ignore this behavior and continue training.

You’ll be surprised how quickly they realize they have the power to get their treats through performance, and they truly prefer earning their rewards to overpowering you and taking them.

Other Training Tools

While a clicker and treats are the fundamentals to clicker training, other tools can be very useful. If you follow a Natural Horsemanship program such as those developed by Pat and Linda Parelli, Frank Bell, Clinton Anderson or John Lyons, you’ll probably already have a carrot stick, flag or lasso. If you don’t have one, a dressage whip works well. Sometimes I use a small bamboo cane.

The point of a stick is not to hit the horse but to touch the horse. For instance, if you are standing at your horse’s head and want to affect his hindquarters, you need something to create an extension of your arm. When training a horse to lift or move her feet, it’s easier, and safer, to touch the foot with a stick than to bend over and touch it with your finger.

Props and Toys

Above all, clicker training is fun! Use common items like barrels, traffic cones, stumps, logs, railroad ties, tarps, door mats, and even the terrain to play with your horse. Big balls, flags, hats and handkerchiefs can all be used for play. Just be careful to select quality items that won’t break or hurt your horse. You can buy horse toys as well. Parelli makes a giant ball that’s fun to play with. There’s a guy in Tennessee who makes giant pedestals for your horse to stand on.

Games and Tricks

Personally, I refer to everything we do as a game or a trick. Too many people “work” their horses, and work themselves as well. It’s so much more fun to play!

If you follow a program like Parelli, you’ll already know a lot of games. Games are things like asking your horse to put his nose on something, to back-up cued by a subtle wiggle of your finger, jumping over obstacles, and learning dance steps.

Fun tricks to teach your horse include smile, Spanish Walk, standing on a pedestal, bowing, playing dead, rolling a ball, etc. You are only limited by your imagination.

Your horse will give you feedback on what she is best at and enjoys doing. You might even catch your horse doing something fun on his own in the pasture. If your clicker and treats are handy you can easily teach him to repeat it on cue.

One of the greatest gifts of clicker training is that you will become more creative while you’re having fun playing with your horse. As you learn to communicate with your horse, talking as well as listening, you will enjoy a true partnership with your horse – the one you always dreamed of!

As your skill at training your horse grows, you will find that your new positive approach applies to all aspects of your personal and professional life, resulting in better communication with people, more self-confidence, increased ingenuity, less stress, and a more meaningful life!