FAIRHORSEMANSHIP

Official Tumblr of FairHorsemanship http://fairhorsemanship.com Subscribe to us on Youtube for videos: http://youtube.com/user/fairhorsemanship FairHorsemanship is an ethical method of education for horses and humans. We do not use harmful, painful or threatening tools such as bits, draw reins, spurs etc. Our training is mostly based on positive reinforcement.

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In a 2004 study it was found that group housed horses learned faster than singly housed horses and were less aggressive towards their handlers.

In the study, 20 young horses were handled for 10minutes 3times a week from the age of 6months old to 2years old learning basic training skills including leading, tying up, touching and giving feet. The training was organised in 43 stages. The first winter, the group housed horses passed more training stages than the horses housed singly (17 stages versus 14) and the same thing happened the second winter (27 stages versus 18). (Sondergaard and Ladewig, 2004)

The findings of the study demonstrate two of the benefits of avoiding keeping young horses isolated.

Other benefits of keeping horses in groups include: less risks of aggression toward other horses (Christensen et al, 2002a), decreased occurrence of stereotypies. (Henderson, 2007; Cooper & Albentosa, 2005; Bachmann, 2002; Nicol, 1999; McGreevy et al., 1995b), less activity and increased foraging time (Houpt and Houpt, 1989).

For info on humane, science-based horse training visit: www.fairhorsemanship.com

More horse fact in our "Horse fact of the day" facebook album: https://goo.gl/0uJuZE

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One of the most predominant type of learning is operant conditioning. Both human and non-human animals learn through operant conditioning. Operant conditioning (also known as instrumental learning) is a type of learning in which the individual’s behaviour is shaped by consequences. There are 4 quadrants of operant conditioning, positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, positive punishment and negative punishment.

In the equestrian world, people use operant conditioning all the time to ride and train horses. In traditional and natural horsemanship circles, negative reinforcement and positive punishment are principally used. But a growing amount of equine behaviourists, horse trainers and horse owners are starting to focus on using positive reinforcement more, this is the case of Fairhorsemanship.

The 4 quadrants of Operant Conditioning:

Positive reinforcement (+R) involves the addition of a pleasurable stimulus following a behaviour, making it more likely for this behaviour to occur again. For example, when the horse puts his head in the headcollar, the rider gives him a piece of carrot.

Negative reinforcement (-R) involves the removal (or avoidance) of an aversive stimulus following a behaviour, making it more likely for this behaviour to occur again. For example, a rider pulls on the reins to stop his horse, when the horse stops moving the rider stops pulling.

Positive punishment (+P) involves the addition of an aversive stimulus following a behaviour, making it less likely for this behaviour to occur again. For example, a horse move ahead of his handler, the handler gives a sharp jerk on the lead.

Negative punishment (-P) involves the removal of something desirable following a behaviour, making it less likely for this behaviour to occur again. For example, a rider is giving carrots to his horse, his horse starts nipping him to obtain more carrots, as a punishment, the owner moves out of reach of the horse.

Positive reinforcement can be used for about any behaviour, from teaching handling and healthcare procedures such as accepting a wormer and loading in a trailer to teaching riding skills such as stopping and jumping.

More articles on operant conditioning on our website: 1. http://www.fairhorsemanship.com/…/what-is-positive-reinfor…/ 2. http://www.fairhorsemanship.com/…/what-is-aversive-training/ 3. http://www.fairhorsemanship.com/…/safety-shouldn-t-have-to…/

You can also learn more on learning theory and operant conditioning by taking our “Horse Psychology Diploma Online Course”: http://www.fairhorsemanship.com/online-courses/ or joining one of our training day: http://www.fairhorsemanship.com/upcoming-events/

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You and your horse don't need whips (or whatever euphemism people use to describe whips. ;)) If you want to learn more about how whips works check out this article: http://goo.gl/V8RlZG This post was inspired by a quote from Dr. Ian Dunbar and Mighty Dog Graphics

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6 facts about motherhood and childhood for mares and foals. 1. Without human intervention 6months foals suckles from 8 to 10 times a day. Yet in the equestrian industry most foals are forcefully separated from their mothers around the age of 6months. 2. Without human intervention, horses wean their offspring at a much later age and very gradually. 3. Mother and foal bond persist up to 3years and remain strong even after the birth of the next foal. A close association is also formed between the yearling and the new foal. 4. Parental aggression towards young foals (either from stallion or mare) is abnormal and can be the result of lack of socialisation or stress. Both mares and stallions are very tolerant of their foals and yearlings; stallions can tolerate close observation and even sexual interaction from their foals/yearlings during mating. Stallions even have been observed waiting for foals to finish sexual sequences with the mare before breeding. 5. Foals use their mother as a safety base from which to explore the world. As they grow older and more confident, foals venture further away from their mother for longer period of time. First week old foals spend 94% of their time within 5m from their mothers and 8 months old foals spend 20% of their time within 5m from their mothers. (Tyler, 1972) 6. Early and abrupt weaning put the foal more at risk of developing stereotypies. A study conducted on 225 young thoroughbreds found that 35% of them developed stereotypies following weaning. (Water et al, 2002) If you are a mother or/and an animal lover please share to raise awareness against early and abrupt weaning of foals. Not only this practice is cruel and unnecessary but also counter productive to raising healthy, well-balanced animals. For more info on humane, science based horse training visits: www.fairhorsemanship.com For videos and posts on foals, mares and stallions management visit the Meadow Family Rescue & Rehab Other sources for this post: NAC equine behaviour qualification course stage 1. Broom & Fraser, 2015. Domestic Animal Behaviour, 5th edition. McDonnell, 2003. The Equid Ethogram: A Practical Field Guide to Horse Behavior.

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An animated video explaining positive reinforcement and clicker training to the average horse owner.

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“when a horse has worms”

All these are from a German book, ‘Das Rossarzneibuch‘, by Walter von. Nitzschwitz. According to AMVA’s website the book “ described treatments for wounds a horse might sustain during battle and was published in 1583″.

“when a horse’s body is pierced by arrows”

“when a horse has an intestinal blockage”

“When a horse has scratches (fungal and bacterial dermatitis of the pasterns)“

(Thanks to quichehound for bringing these to my attention)

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Pretty neat.

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NEW ARTICLE: Why "kick him on" is not an appropriate way to deal with a fearful horse:http://goo.gl/FhGbST Learn more about horses' fears and what NOT to do. Special thanks to Fed Up Fred for allowing us to use his cartoon :)

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How you think about your horse will affect how you deal with the undesirable behaviours and therefore will affect the results. Punishment is not the most efficient way to deal with unwanted behaviours and have many drawbacks. When your horse is displaying undesirable behaviours first check the physical health and mental health of your horse; Is the horse in pain? Is your management appropriate and fulfil his key needs? Then turn to humane, science-based horse training methods that fit your situation such as habituation, positive reinforcement, counter-conditioning etc. http://fairhorsemanship.com/

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As a general rule it is best to train little but often; 5 to 20minutes of training is enough. One of the reasons behind this is attention span. One study found that the average continuous attention span of horses was 11.8 seconds, with older horses having a longer attention span than young horses. In humans, the continuous attention span was estimated to be 12 seconds in 2000 but a more recent study have found that our attention span has fallen to only 8 seconds with the increase of digital media. This is less than a goldfish.In animal training the handler focus is more important than the one of the animal; if the trainer fails to reinforce an animal attempt at doing the right thing then it can cause frustration or make the animal disinterested. This is even more of a problem if the trainer is using negative reinforcement (aka pressure/release) and positive punishment.When training an animal it is essential (and only fair) to give the animal all your attention and not make random breaks to check your phone, listen to the music using your headphone or talk to another rider. Your animal may be still trying to do what you asked!It’s also important to remember that in the case of negative reinforcement based training breaks bring relief to the animal because the training in unpleasant. But in the case of positive reinforcement based training breaks are likely to be perceived as negative punishment. Therefore if you want to take a break do not do so randomly, use a discriminative stimulus that indicates the end of the session. (such as placing some treats on the ground)For more info on humane, science-based horse training visit: http://fairhorsemanship.com/ References for horses (http://goo.gl/gFeuxT) and humans (http://goo.gl/KDTQAp) continuous attention span.

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Inspired by a post by theloveddog.com To better understand reinforcement and punishment you can read our article on aversive based training here: http://goo.gl/rvSQOO

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NEW article on playing with the horse fundamental need for safety in training: http://goo.gl/0nxMYw (feat.Fed Up Fred) "My belief is that because we exclusively use horses for recreational purposes, not to cure cancer or solve world hunger (even if some riders act like they do), we shouldn’t be so comfortable in routinely, and primarily using negative reinforcement. Horses should have the right to feel safe during training; their performances should not be motivated by fear, discomfort and/or pain."

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This infographic illustrates what horses naturally do in 24hours. Does your management fulfil your horse needs?

Unfortunately most management methods are based on humans convenience rather than on horses needs. Even the most dedicated horse owner may need to compromise if he keeps his horse on a livery yard; Just do the best you can. Always aim to provide a management as horse-appropriate as possible and try to fill the gaps by findings enrichment ideas.

Stable enrichment ideas: https://youtu.be/-Kg4XBqrk4w Enrichment games for horse: https://youtu.be/RKcRduDKb_E For more info on humane, science-based horse training visit:http://fairhorsemanship.com/

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hi, i'm currently volunteering at a stables which caters for the disabled, a horse there called sally is afraid of people and gets defensive, if you like, if people go into her stable to fill her water up or replace her haynet, etc. she's been there for a shorter time than some horses but they're fine with people going into their stables. we think that she was treated badly before she came to us, could you give me any advice on how to teach her that i'm (or anyone else) not a threat?

Hi,You need to look at something called “counter conditioning” (I advice to google the terms for more info) also use it with “systematic desensitisation”. I have an article, (unfortunately not specific to your situation) that you may find useful: http://www.fairhorsemanship.com/articles/fatq-how-do-i-help-my-horse-overcome-his-fear-anxiety-or-phobia/

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Contrary to popular belief horses are not colour blind. But unlike most humans that have a trichromatic vision and therefore have 3 different cones in the retina, horses only have two different cones in the retina. This is called a dichromatic vision and means that horses see in blues, yellows and greys tones.

Friday, the Supreme Court finally made marriage a right for all humans in the US.  The above picture shows how horses see the rainbow flag with their dichromatic vision. This victory is important for non-human animals too, as how can society change the way it treat other species if it cannot even respect it’s own?

http://fairhorsemanship.com (Feel free to use this picture on your personal page but please do not remove credit.)