Equiosity

We discuss the basics of teaching great foot care manners.

Susan Kayne, founder of the thoroughbred rescue Unbridled Thoroughbreds, begins by talking about what can be done to help ex-race horses and other unwanted horses. She goes on to describe the initial training involved in re-homing off-the-track-thoroughbreds.

Susan Kayne, the founder of Unbridled Thoroughbreds, an organization that rescues off-the-track thoroughbreds talks about her work. This interview is a bit of a change from usual focus on training theory, but as you’ll hear in part 2 of this interview, an understanding of horses, behavior, and training is a must when you are working with many of the horses that end up in horse rescues. In Part 1 S...

As we continue our discussion with Manda Scott, the podcast begins with the question - what do you do with your manure pile? It isn't just how do you get rid of unsightly piles around your barn. How do you use it to regenerate your fields? It's a win-win situation. Healthier pastures are good for your horses and for the planet.

Manda Scott takes us through the basics of maintaining healthy, sustainable pastures. We can not only grow healthier pastures for our horses, we can sequester carbon to help the planet. It's a win-win.

Horses are grazing animals. But for far too many horses the grass they are eating is making them sick. Why? What can we do about it? And how is this related to the climate change crisis? Find out in this interview with Manda Scott, veterinarian, author, and climate crisis activist. Then join us on facebook at Horses for Future and learn more about how you can make a difference for the health of yo...

We conclude our conversation with Anja Beran with a discussion of the current system in Germany for performance testing young warmbloods and the problems that creates.

Sound horses - that's what we all want. The question is does your riding contribute to keeping your horses sound? That means so much more than fit. It means are you riding in such a way that your horse will be stay sound well into his twenties? Anja talks about classical dressage and the role that it plays in developing a horse's balance for the good of the horse. This is followed by a discussion...

This episode begins a very special series. In July I attended Anja Beran’s Annual International Workshop. I was accompanied by eight other clicker trainers. At the end of the week Anja sat down with us for an evening of questions. I began by asking Anja for her definition of classical dressage. From there the conversation ranged over a variety of questions, including one from Heather Binns on the...

We've been visiting with Becky Chapman, a classical dressage riding instructor, biomechanics coach, and clicker trainer. Last week Becky shared with you the story of Mack. We should have warned you in advance that tissues would be needed. From triumphs to tragedy our horses take us on quite the journey. But as Becky said so beautifully, better to feel the sorrow than never to have known our belove...

Becky Chapman is a biomechanics coach and classical dressage trainer. She runs a training facility in Suffolk, in the UK. All the horses in her yard are clicker trained. Last week you heard about Becky’s simulator. It’s a wonderful machine. I remember during one of my visits Becky and I spent a morning exploring the single-rein riding techniques that I teach. It was fascinating to see what the com...

This is Part Three of our conversation with Becky Chapman. Becky is a classical dressage riding instructor and biomechanics coach. She is also a clicker trainer. Becky has been sharing the journey which brought her to clicker training. Last week you heard the story of Gazelle, a mare who introduced herself to Becky by rearing up and falling over sideways. Becky still bought her and tried to turn h...

In June Alexandra Kurland was visiting with Becky Chapman. Becky runs a training facility in Suffolk, in the UK. One evening they sat down together for what turned into a long and fascinating conversation. In Episode 1 Becky shared her early steps into the horse world. We stopped just as she was about to introduce us to Gazelle, and the drama that came with her. This episode jumps back in where we...

Becky Chapman is a classical riding instructor and biomechanics coach. And she is also a clicker trainer. In June she joined us for a three hour conversation that ranged over many topics. We've divided it into five episodes. In Episode 1 Becky shares with us how she got started with horses. Becky is a great story teller. Her background is one that is shared by many of us who have always loved hors...

We’re continuing on with our conversation with Ann Edie. Ann is blind. She uses a miniature horse named Panda as her guide. Last week we stopped at a point where we were asking Ann about the transition from command based to cue based training. This isn’t something that is unique to using a guide horse. If you have come to clicker training from traditional training where you have been told you have...

We’re continuing on with our conversation with Ann Edie. Ann is blind. She uses a miniature horse named Panda as her guide. Last week Ann and I talked about why we were interested in training a guide horse. Panda’s training has turned her into a super "tour guide". She's so good at her job Ann is learning much more about the neighborhood she lives in. That’s where we stopped, so that’s where we’ll...

Last week we began a conversation with Ann Edie. Ann is blind. Instead of a dog, she uses a miniature horse named. We’ve been talking a lot about cues in the recent podcasts. There is no better way to illustrate the concepts we’ve been exploring than to talk about Panda’s training and the job she does for Ann. As we normally do, we’ve divided our conversation up into smaller segments. This is part...

Panda is a miniature horse with an unusual job. She's a guide for her blind owner. We’ve been talking a lot about cues in the recent podcasts. I can think of no better way to illustrate the concepts we’ve been exploring than to talk about Panda’s training and the job she does for her owner, Ann Edie. This is part one of our conversation with Ann. We begin with some history and the contrast between...

What is a desperation click? Find out in this week’s conversation.

This week’s episode focuses on antecedents. What are some of the factors that influence the behavior you are seeing? How can you set your learners up for success? Whether you are trying to solve a behavior problem, or you’re teaching a new skill, what comes before offers a lot of fertile ground for behavior change.

In the second half of this conversation we continue with the theme of cues evolve. Cues should evolve because the behaviors they are associated with are also evolving. What does that mean? Is anticipation a problem or is it a good thing? How do we stabilize cues? What is the "What Happens If . . . " game? Find out in this week's episode.

After our recent podcasts with Sarah Owings, Dominique and I had another long conversation about cues. Dominique was particularly interested in some comments I made at the end of the last podcast with Sarah about anticipation and the get ready, get set, go way in which cues evolve. We began by talking about how you can either push against some natural tendencies or learn to use them. An example wa...

We’ve come to the last installment of our conversation with Sarah Owings. In the previous episodes we looked at two different ways of thinking about building cues. In one the handler works hard to remove any body language hints. In the other the handler acknowledges that animals are super observant so she lets the cues evolve out of the shaping process. We ended the previous episode with this stat...

Part Three of our conversation with Sarah Owings continues our discussion of cues - how our ideas have changed over time in how we teach them.

This is Part Two of our conversation with Sarah Owings. Sarah is a dog trainer. It may seem odd that in a podcast about all things equine, we are talking about dogs, but there is a lot of value in looking at what people are doing with other species. I learned a long time ago that the way to expand a field is not from within, but by bringing in fresh ideas from outside. So I love going to the Click...