Category: Critters Other Than Dogs ¤
  Author: Alexandra Kurland ¤
   Title: CT with Horses ¤

My apologies in advance for the length of this entry. 

Buster Cubes

	This Christmas I gave all my dog owning horse clients buster cubes. 
Since I've got everyone working with clickers I figured they were the
perfect operant conditioning gift.  Also, I admit I was curious.  After
all the talk about them on the list, I wanted to see what a buster cube
was.  Well, my clients gave them to their dogs, and the dogs loved
them.  The only problem was I still hadn't seen one in action, so I gave
my last buster cube to my horse.  Peregrine thinks it's great.  We used
his clicker training to get him started with it.  He understands that
the word "Touch" means touch your nose to whatever I hold in front of
you.  It took only a couple of minutes before he was rolling it around
the indoor arena.  The major problem was finding something to put in
it.  Chopped up carrots didn't work.  They get jammed.  Grain falls out,
but he can't eat it out of the sawdust footing in the arena.  I think
sugar cubes are going to be the answer.  When they started falling out
of the buster cube, he really got interested.  (If the manufacturer
reads this, how about making a larger one for horse size treats, and a
smaller one for cats?)

	The buster cube may help with a major problem we're having this winter,
and that's lack of turnout.  We're having such a wet, mild winter that
the paddocks aren't usable.  Our only turnout is the indoor, and for the
horses that gets boring real fast.  If I can give Peregrine a buster
cube to roll around, he'll be a much happier horse this winter. 

The BBC

	While we're on the subject of Peregrine, he earned himself some
bragging rights recently.  Early in Dec. a crew from the BBC was here
filming him.  They are doing a series on Animal Intelligence for the
Discovery Channel.  They originally contacted Karen, and she sent them
on to me to see the horse work.  When they first called in November,
Peregrine was just coming back into work from an almost nine month lay
up. 

	Peregrine's problems started last winter when we thought he had a minor
heel bruise.  My farrier made some changes in his shoeing, and things
seemed to get better, but only briefly.  In April he became very lame. 
The heel bruise turned out to be something much more serious.  The whole
structure of his front feet was collapsing.  Two summers prior to this
Peregrine had Potomac Horse Fever.  Apparently, the damage it did to his
feet was even more serious than we had guessed.   Given all we now know,
it speaks very highly of my farrier that he was able to keep him sound
for as long as he did.  

	Peregrine went through hoof wall reconstructions on all four feet and
spent the entire spring and summer on stall rest.  I did no training
with him, other than what I needed to soak and wrap his feet.   I
couldn't ask him for anything that involved motion because I was afraid
he'd overdo and hurt his feet.  In October, I finally got the all clear
to go ahead and start working him lightly.  We had two glorious weeks
before his next visit to the farrier.  The trim triggered another
flareup of the problem, and he was laid up for another month.  When the
producers from the BBC first called me, he was basically still on stall
rest.   I had no idea what, if anything, I'd have to show them.   When
they came to preview the work just before Thanksgiving, Peregrine had
had total of three ten minute rides.  I never knew from one day to the
next how his feet were going to feel.  When I brought him out of his
stall for them, I wasn't even sure if he'd be able to work.  Well, he
rose to the occassion and performed beautifully for them.  He and the
other horses we presented gave them a quick course in clicker training. 
By the end of the evening they were making plans to come back and film.

	I laid Peregrine up again after they left.  I just wasn't satisfied
with the way his feet felt.  I had my vet re-evaluate him, and we made
some additional changes.   Four days before the BBC film crew came, I
was finally able to put Peregrine back into work.  I felt like we were
racing a clock.  Would the new shoeing and the medications he was on
help enough so he could work for them?  Everyday I rode him for about
ten minutes on a loose rein to feel out his feet, and everyday he seemed
a little better.  On the fourth day I asked Peregrine for a few steps of
lateral work.  That was the sum total of our preparation for what was
probably the most important ride of his life.  The film crew came the
next morning.  I was hoping they'd start with Magnat, the other horse we
were presenting, but they had other plans.  They wanted to see
Peregrine.  So I brought him out to the ring, and asked him how he was
feeling.  He answered by going right to work.  He's been starved for
clicker training.  As soon as he realized that I was actually going to
let him do things, he just blossomed.  

	We started with some liberty work.  I put out a series of cones down
the center line of our 120 foot arena.  Peregrine walked down the line
touching each one.  It's straight forward clicker training, but a very
non-horsey thing to do.  At the end of the line we turned together.   I
walked back to the other end of the arena, and Peregrine cantered along
shoulder to shoulder beside me.  It's a very pretty sight and requires a
lot of self control from the horse.  Since we were filming, the camera
crew wanted to shoot this from several different angles.  Could they
stand next to me while Peregrine cantered with us?  Could we come from
this angle, or that direction.  I just kept saying I didn't know, I'd 
have to ask Peregrine.  He just kept giving them whatever they needed. 
I was so proud of him.  He was just amazing.  

	We were in the ring for over three hours!  He just kept giving and
giving.  Whatever they needed, however many times they needed it, he
could do it.  I have three favorite moments from the day.  The first
came after a short coffee break.  We had left Peregrine in the arena, so
he was waiting for us when we came back in.  There were six of us in the
group, myself,  three producers, and the two man camera crew.  We were
walking back towards the center of the arena discussing what we were
going to do next.  Peregrine joined us and walked along in the center of
the group,  totally accepted, and totally at ease with all the strange
people and equipment.  It's a common enough sight to have a dog tagging
along with a group of people, but it was odd seeing a horse doing the
same thing. 

	One of the other highpoints of the day came a few minutes later.  The
producers wanted to see the kinds of training conversations you can have
via the clicker.  I started to ask Peregrine if he would show them some
spanish walk.  It's something he tends to offer a lot.  If you bring him
into the ring and ignore him, that's usually one of the first behaviors
he'll try.  It's his version of "kicking the coke machine" to get the
vending machine (me) to work.  Spanish walk is a very pretty movement
and a very useful training tool for imporving the balance.  The horse
walks normally behind, but in front they lift their legs up and straight
out, like a military goose step.  At liberty Peregrine understands the
front end gesture well, but we still have to work on engaging the hind
legs.  

	I cued Peregrine for Spanish walk, and he gave me a nice line of it. 
Then he hesitated.  He looked over at me, and very deliberately shifted
his balance and started to piaffe!  It took me totally by surprise. 
I've only once or twice before succeeded in getting him to mobilize at
liberty, and then I wasn't able to get it again.    What he showed the
camera lacked height and energy, but the pattern was a clean piaffe.  He
got all his favorite treats for that one.  When I asked for it
directly,  he repeated it!   Talk about a great time to go beyond your
training.   I was so proud of him.

	My other favorite moment came later when I was riding him.  He felt
like heaven.  He was so happy to be working.  I took him through a few
basic exercises, and then I just forgot about the cameras and all the
people watching and enjoyed my horse.  I hope the camera captured how
much fun we were both having.

	All that happened a month ago.  The long session didn't seem to hurt
Peregrine's feet.  He's been able to stay in steady work, and he just
had his shoes reset without it triggering any more lameness.   I've been
adding some new pieces to his training, and the piaffe at liberty is now
part of his normal routine.

	I can't say enough good things about clicker training.   Two things
continue to delight me.  One, how much Peregrine has learned with the
clicker, and second, how willing he is to work.  I am still astounded
that I could lay him up for nine months, and have him come out and
perform the way he did.  If anyone who is new to clicker training is
wondering: does this stuff really work?, I can answer them.  Absolutely,
and without question.

Alexandra Kurland
kurlanda@crisny.org
http://www.crisny.org/users/kurlanda