Applying The Principle Of Operant Conditioning In Training Horses

Clicker training is a great tool to compliment other training methods. All you require to start is a clicker, some treats, as well as a container for the rewards. One time you have them, your horse is now on its way to obedience. There's no set rules to follow when using the clicker training but the following will guide you to make use of this method to your advantage.

Using the idea of operant conditioning in psychology, an animal learns a sure behavior or a task when positive reinforcement follows the action that the trainer wishes the animal to repeat. Consequently, the undesirable behavior or actions done by the animal are not rewarded and ignored. Thus, giving rewards for getting things right make horses more enthusiastic and speedy to learn.

- Condition Your Horse With The Sound Of The Click.
Let your horse know that the sound click means that a reward is coming. Try to click your clicker for several times and reward your horse with a treat every time it hears the sound. Then after about 10-15 minutes, repeat the sequence of clicking followed by treating. There's horses that basically get accustomed to the method after sequences, but some horses may require more sessions.

- Don't Rush Your Horse.
It is important to think about that every horse differs in its readiness and ability to learn new tricks. It will be counterproductive to train for over 10-15 minutes. Try to maintain short sessions broken in to several days than having a long in a day.

- Use A Target.
Use a target for your horse to aim. Let this be the first task that your horse needs to accomplish when applying positive reinforcement. For example you can hang a plastic bottle and ask your horse to bump it using its head and reward it every time it does the right thing. Timing is important. Click each time the horse bumps the target then give a reward. Repeat it until the behavior is reinforced.

- Do The Next Step.
Once your horse learns to bump the target, move on to the next step. Let your horse follow the target then head bob it before giving a reward. This will check your earlier training and will tell whether you have properly conditioned the horse to answer the click. But keep in mind to wait and see and to conduct each session in short periods. You also require to think about that not all horses will learn in the same manner.