I am playing with this idea for a long time and I finally found the courage to take action!
Currently I am doing market research to see what equine clicker trainers really want from their online horse community.
My dream is to create a supporting learning environment where horse owners can learn everythingthey want to know, develop their skills and get feedback on their videos, have a place where they will be encouraged to try out new approaches and be cheered on if they reach their goals. (I am already looking forward to cheer these action takers on and support them on a daily basis, create video courses and more.) But…
do they want that?
What do you want?
What would you like to see in a membership?
Can you please help me? I came up with 12 short questions about what you would like to receive in a membership. It will only take a few minutes.
If you want to get to know me or have a question about clicker training your horse, you are stuck and want a tip to move on? Book your free discovery call. Plan your call in my calendar.
Sandra Poppema, B.Sc.
I help horse owners get the results in training they really, really want with joy and easy for both horse and human. I always aim for win-win!
Sign up for HippoLogic’s newsletter (it’s free and it comes with a gift) or visit HippoLogic’s website and join my online course Ultimate Horse Training Formula in which you learn the Key Lessons, Your Key to Success in Clicker Training.
Yes, this will be a very shitty topic. Sorry about that. The topic is… house-training my horse. In May 2015 I started house-training Kyra. I am a lazy horse owner, so I taught her some tricks to make my life easier.
I always, always reinforce Kyra with a treat if she poops or pees when she sees me. If I call her in the pasture and she doesn’t come to me, it usually means that she wants to relief herself first.
The beauty of clicker training is that I can use the bridge signal, the click (‘this is the behaviour I want to see more of, and your reward is on the way’) from a distance and then walk toward her of simply wait until she reaches me so I can give her a treat.
I also give a treat when she poops or pees in her stall before I take her out.
Time saving habit
I never have to clean up after her on in the hallway where I groom her. Kyra never has to poop or pee on the cement floor. That is also the reason why she almost never poops or pees under saddle, she already went. Win-win-win.
Other shitty goals
As you can read here, I taught Kyra to only use a specific area in the arena to poop in. The beauty of it is that she can clearly communicates when she has to ‘go’. She simply walks over to that corner and I wait until she has done her business.
She has learned to poop right next to the manure bucket, even when I am not around! This is due to the clicker training. She simply made a positive association with pooping in that corner.
This means I never have to walk around the arena looking for poop after a ride. I used to walk twice with the bedding fork between the manure and the bucket. It’s a good thing I don’t have to do this anymore, because I used to forget this. I used to think ‘I’ll do this later when I’ve brought Kyra back to the pasture,’ . Only to forget about it. Now scooping her poop takes me less than a minute.
Goal achieved? No…
No. Not yet… I would like her to poop in the manure bucket or wheelbarrow. Like I said: I am very lazy so this will save me another minute. Yay!
I must say I had to wait over a year for the opportunity to click Kyra while she was pooping and I had the opportunity to place the bucket or wheelbarrow right behind her in order to catch it.
I accomplished my shittiest goal!
This week was my lucky week: I captured the behaviour twice! Shitty mission accomplished! I even have this on video, believe it or not!
Kyra has now been positively reinforced twice to aim for the manure bucket/wheelbarrow. I hope I can ‘catch’ it again. With the wheelbarrow that is.
If you want to train your horse to be house-trained, I can help you. Just contact me. Every horse, barn and set up are different so is every training. This blog is how I did it and your situation probably need tailored adjustments to help you succeed.
This was my shittiest goal ever accomplished!
Sorry for the smelly subject. If you’re not blessed with a visual mind, here is the video.
Are you a compassionate horse owner who wants to build a strong friendship with your horse? Would you like to understand your horse better and help your horse to understand YOU better? Get access to many online clicker training courses and a fabulous, supportive R+ community in our HippoLogic Clicker Training Academy. Check out the link!
Not sure? Start with a free clicker training assessment to get taste of what it feels like to work with me. When you have a specific struggle that you want to overcome, don’t hesitate to contact me. In this assessment you’ll discover what’s holding you back from accomplishing the things you want with your horse. After our conversation you’ll know exactly what to do, in order to move forward towards your goals.
Giving is better than receiving. Here are some horse treat ideas for Valentine’s Day. These suggestions are healthy so you can use them for clicker training too.
Carrot hearts ~ Ingredient
Carrot
Directions
Cut a V-shaped notch along the length of the carrot with a pairing knife or the top of your peeler. Then slice the carrot into hearts. Adjust the shape a bit more if you like.
Apple hearts ~ Ingredient
Apple
Directions
Cut the apple into slices. Use a cookie cutter or a pairing knife to make heart shapes.
Special treat
If you want to make something really special, make your own horse treats.
Healthy Cinnamon Horse Cookies
The molasses is optional. If you don’t use molasses you can use an extract for flavouring, they are low-sugar treats.
Ingredients
1 ¾ cups uncooked (brown) rice / 6 cups cooked rice
1 cup ground stabilized flax
3 tablespoons cinnamon
½ cup flour
½ cup molasses (optional)
Directions
Pre-heat oven to 275 degrees Fahrenheit (135 degrees Celsius). Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Cook the rice and let cool down.
Mix all ingredients together. It will make a very sticky dough.
Wet your hands before making little balls of the dough. This is very time consuming. If you don’t have much time you can also roll the dough simply onto the 2 cookie sheets with a rolling pin. Make it half an inch thick. Pre-cut the cookies with a pizza cutter into little squares before baking.
Bake them for 60 minutes. Turn cookies and bake for another 60 minutes. They should be crisp and not squishy. Let them cool down for several hours to harden.
If baked properly and stored in freezer or fridge, they will keep for up to several weeks.
I hope there is no need to keep them stored for weeks. My horse Kyra loves these!
These healthy cinnamon horse cookies make excellent gifts, too.
Free discovery call with Sandra
If you want to get to know me or have questions about clicker training your horse, book your free Discovery Call. Book your free 30 minute call today.
Ultimate Horse Training Formula, Your Key to Succes
Would you like to use clicker training in your every day training, use it all situations and for all horses successfully?
If you are ready to get the results in clicker training you really, really want this is the course for you. Do you want…
A well-trained horse? Trained by you?
More knowledge and skills to train horses?
More confidence in your training skills?
Join HippoLogic’s online training program for clicker trainers the Ultimate Horse Training Formula. This program contains all tools and techniques professional trainers use. After this course you understand what you have to do before, during and after you are training a behaviour. You’ll improve your horse training skills and you’ll develop skills trainers need in order to be successful.
Sandra Poppema, B.Sc.
I help horse owners get the results in training they really, really want with joy and easy for both horse and human. I always aim for win-win!
Sign up for HippoLogic’s newsletter (it’s free and it comes with a gift) or visit HippoLogic’s website and join my online course Ultimate Horse Training Formula in which you learn the Key Lessons, Your Key to Success in Clicker Training.
I am playing with this idea for a long time and I finally found the courage to take action!
Bake them for 60 minutes. Turn cookies and bake for another 60 minutes. They should be crisp and not squishy. Let them cool down for several hours to harden.
HippoLogic -> Clickertraining.ca 
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