At Imagine A Horse our trick training methods include moves that are gymnastic in nature, engage the horse’s mind, create a state of relaxation and build a lasting relationship. Any specialized move that a horse learns such as a spin, slide, crossing a bridge, retrieving a Frisbee or taking a Bow can be considered a trick. Trick Training is not an end point but rather the beginning of an educational journey that can lead to the creation of a high school horse, trail horse, or a dependable, adaptable companion horse.
Trick Training, utilizes lots of props including pedestals, weave poles, bridges, teeter totters , big (herding) balls, bean bags to sit on, Frisbees to retrieve and target boards. Horses can make powerful associations between objects (or props) and actions and when we add positive reinforcement including food treats, the results are extremely rapid and truly amazing. Horses love this type of education because it is easy for them to understand and its fun, not so much like work, but more like play. Most animal behaviorists agree that horses are the smartest of all domesticated animals and we believe that they are capable of much more than is ever asked of them. Trick Training can be a great way to maximize your horse’s personality and intelligence and desire to interact in a way that makes sense to him.
Knowing how to teach a few fundamental tricks could actually help to save your horse’s life or at the least make medical treatment easier. In the book about the race horse mare, Ruffian titled Burning from the Start, it is told how this famous race mare came to her untimely end because she was so hot and difficult to handle that successful treatment of a broken leg was impossible. What if Ruffian had been taught while still a foal to lie down and remain down quietly? Would it have taken away her desire to run and to win? We do not know the answer, but lying quietly would have allowed her to be treated when her life depended on it.
All breeds and ages are candidates. These disciplines come easily for personable horses that have playful tendencies and a desire to interact with humans. Horses that seem dull or uninterested in human interaction may not seem to be the first choice but many horses actually perk up considerably when introduced to these activities because the elements are so easy to understand and in turn easy for them to be successful. Horses that have a sense of humor make great candidates and so do Houdinis of the horse world that open gates or pick up objects to use as toys or to ask to be fed.
The props, equipment and preparation required are well worth the extra effort. We use pedestals, agility platforms, weave poles, bridges, teeter-totters and even bean bags to sit on. For directing, we like Horse Friendly whips that are designed to convey a touch cue between horse and handler but don’t sting! Large Horse-TUFF balls can be a great training aid to help to develop a horse’s herding instinct and sense of play.
We sometimes, with some horses, use food treats as a motivational tool but this may not be for all horses or all trainers. Horses usually respond well to food treats if the handler will use a cue when giving the reward. This means that there will be a verbal cue given to the horse each and every time that a treat is forthcoming. This is exactly what a clicker is used for in clicker training. If the cue or signal is not given, the horse does not expect a food treat. A good resource for learning how to use food treats both effectively and responsibly is our DVD titled “Using Treats as a Training Tool”.
Concepts and Cues are slightly different than pressure and release methods and where the higher education of the horse begins. These can be taught to a horse either after basic ground manners are established or simultaneously.
Learning Concepts and Cues helps to establish a sort of working dialogue between the horse and handler. We like to do this at liberty if the horse is at a place in his relationship with you that he can be schooled at liberty.
Pedestal is a place to rest, receive praise, be tall
Do horses understand concepts? You be the judge.
Good
No
Cookie Time
Try Again or Simply Again
Careful
Let me help
Verbal-like the clicker
Proximity
Physical
Focal
We always come from a place of trust and never a place of startle or Join Up
Practice makes perfect is a human concept not one that horses can understand
Perfect Practice makes perfect or in other words, Error Free Learning
Did you know…All species of animals trained by humans (excluding horses!) are trained using a place or mark? Big cats, birds, reptiles, elephants, and dogs (canine agility), all benefit from training that uses a pedestal or mark. We believe that horses benefit even more than other species with pedestal training because they are a flight animal. The pedestal gives a horse a piece of real estate that is his; a home base where he can take a break and receive praise. Pedestal work helps to develop physical dexterity, increase self-confidence, boldness and a sense of security.
The Trick becomes the reward
Liberty schooling is one horse or a troupe performing without any attachment (such as a lead or bridle) to the trainer. Liberty Schooling helps the horse to become responsible for his actions and responses. Liberty Training begins in a small square pen and the horse learns to walk with the handler, halt, make inside turns and go with the handler as in canine agility or in advanced classes he can be sent to and through obstacles.
Another variation of Liberty training is a horse that executes a solo pattern or even pairs and sets of pairs (of horses) such as seen in circus routines. Our (IAH) style of Liberty performances include numerous pedestals which are used to define the patterns and as a place for one or more horses to stay while others perform.
Tricks of Trust include the Obeisance or Circus Bow, the Bow, Kneel and Lay Down. These are all moves in which a horse learns to lower his eye and his body to that of the handler which puts him in a position of mental and physical compliance and requires great trust in his handler. In this case, compliance means that a horse is agreeable and willingly responds to our requests and acknowledges the human’s position as leader in his herd (of two). These moves from an agility aspect stretch and strengthen the entire top line of the horse.
Willing engagement is a giant step in creating a can do attitude that develops into a want to do work ethic. A horse cannot be forced to do tricks of engagement but rather he chooses to do them and engage because there is some motivational factor involved. In retrieving an object such as a Frisbee, flag, or cap a horse willingly chooses to engage in the activity with his handler whose job it has become to motivate the individual horse. Herding and retrieving the Big Ball is a move of engagement that many horses really enjoy because it brings out their herding instinct.
The Salute (Jambette), Crossing the Front Legs, the Rear, Hind Leg Walk, the Sit Up and Sit Down and gymnastic moves on pedestals including leaping from pedestal to pedestal, weaving poles are all good examples of Agility moves. We feel compelled to add that we teach the Rear only in association with a pedestal and we never encourage teaching it when mounted. By using the pedestal as a target for the Rear, the horse learns to move forward confidently. In other words, he is relaxed and collected while moving forward rather than retreating and rearing in fear, as in traditional methods of teaching this move.
Tricks of gait include amplifications of natural movement. The Spanish Walk, Circus March, the Three Step and the classical movements of Piaffe, Passage, Terre a Terre even the airs above the ground (Levade, Courbette and Mezair) are included. Yes, gaited horses can do the Spanish Walk! These are wonderful moves to increase strength, coordination and range of motion that carry over to under saddle work.
Pedestal training is a great starting point for most horses. When a horse is lunged on a working length line and asked to mount the pedestal and stand quietly, the trick quickly becomes the reward rather than the work.
For a horse that is flighty, pedestal work will help him learn to be grounded, literally and figuratively. For individuals that are already quiet and mannerly, revolving pedestals, multi-tiered pedestals and agility platforms provide challenging variations and learning opportunities both mental and physical.
There is really no wrong place to start! It is more a matter of personal preference and the aptitude of your horse(s). Both Equine Agility and Trick Training provide a great base education for young horses before they are physically mature enough to be saddle horses. Agility competitions are becoming popular as additions to breed shows and competitive trail rides and can provide fun and entertainment for family members that don’t wish to compete on the trail.
With a willing horse or two there is just no limit to the fun to be had with your horses. We dare you to just Imagine!
