Thanks for this comprehensive video. I was told because my horse "drops" most of time during his training that my treats were too high value. When I switched to hay, he stopped dropping which fully lines up with the philosophy of this video. I had thought he was relaxed even while dropping his penis, but evidently not fully. Thank you!
perfect! Yeah, dropping is so interesting. I got really fascinated by it a while back and was talking to everyone about it 🙈😆Definitely linked to high arousal, usually some kind of frustration or conflict, but also sometimes excitement. I made a video on it here if you haven't seen that yet: ua-cam.com/video/esjd24kYk3g/v-deo.html But, it sounds like you've worked things out for your horse which is fantastic!
This was really helpful! I've always wanted to try positive reinforcement on horses but never knew what treats to start with. However, the biggest obstacle in the way would be not owning the horses I'm around. How would I convince someone who's used traditional training techniques for years to switch to positive reinforcement?
Ah, this is a tricky one. It really depends who those people are. They might be more open if you start with hay as a reward as it's part of their horse's daily food anyway and is less likely to cause any over-excitement, which is good to start with (and what most people fear). From there, if they see it works, you might be able to take it further. Good luck!
you can mix them really easily to get the perfect balance. Try chopping some hay and mixing a small handfull of chaff, or very low-value nuts or hay cubes into it. You can also start the session with really low value, such as hay, and then add a tiny bit more of something tastier as you go through, which can work effectively as well. Hope that helps!
Thanks for this comprehensive video. I was told because my horse "drops" most of time during his training that my treats were too high value. When I switched to hay, he stopped dropping which fully lines up with the philosophy of this video. I had thought he was relaxed even while dropping his penis, but evidently not fully. Thank you!
perfect! Yeah, dropping is so interesting. I got really fascinated by it a while back and was talking to everyone about it 🙈😆Definitely linked to high arousal, usually some kind of frustration or conflict, but also sometimes excitement. I made a video on it here if you haven't seen that yet: ua-cam.com/video/esjd24kYk3g/v-deo.html But, it sounds like you've worked things out for your horse which is fantastic!
Thank you! I love your videos, always very helpful and very easy to understand. Happy new year
Thank you for the lovely feedback!
This was really helpful! I've always wanted to try positive reinforcement on horses but never knew what treats to start with. However, the biggest obstacle in the way would be not owning the horses I'm around. How would I convince someone who's used traditional training techniques for years to switch to positive reinforcement?
Ah, this is a tricky one. It really depends who those people are. They might be more open if you start with hay as a reward as it's part of their horse's daily food anyway and is less likely to cause any over-excitement, which is good to start with (and what most people fear). From there, if they see it works, you might be able to take it further. Good luck!
With the hay or grass pellets, can you feed handfuls of them dry or do they need to be soaked first?
great video!
Glad you enjoyed it
What about a horse who ignores hay, yet gets too aroused with anything higher value?
I found hay pellets were still low value but my horses preferred them over hay!
you can mix them really easily to get the perfect balance. Try chopping some hay and mixing a small handfull of chaff, or very low-value nuts or hay cubes into it. You can also start the session with really low value, such as hay, and then add a tiny bit more of something tastier as you go through, which can work effectively as well. Hope that helps!