This time of year always makes me think of treats. Things I'll treat myself to such as a lie in, excess chocolate, more time to go riding and simply just hang out with my horses. There's also the treats I give to others, gifts on Christmas day, the croissants and mince pies I picked up when doing an ordinary grocery shop to surprise and cheer up my partner. Then there's the treats I get for my animals, I couldn't resist the snowflake pattern fluffy squeaky bone toy for my collie the other day. And I know that I'll be sucked in by festive horse treats. May be you will too.
If we are to indulge our horses this festive season we might as well make it a gift that lasts all year. Learning how to use food treats in training is a great way of increasing our horse's motivation and enjoyment. I was so chuffed yesterday to find that for the very first time since I've had him, my ex-racer Khatani didn't have a nervous poo at anytime while preparing for and going on our ride yesterday. Partly this is because he is generally more relaxed with us now, but that didn't happen all by itself. Part of Khatani's new regime is reward based training. Food rewards for learning new tasks like Spanish Walk, dropping his nose on the lunge, starting lateral work and taking a bow make him actively seek out interactions with me. I've also used food rewards in his re-education, like teaching him to anticipate food when he's rugged or girthed up. The new expectation has brought a new attitude and a marked tendency not to bite any more :-)
At a time of year where giving is so important, why not give a lot more to your horse and just see what he gives back?
Merry Christmas xx
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