h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Today, I was trained by a horse.

I've been loaning this particular horse since November. Usually, we have a lesson on Wednesday nights, but today, the instructor cancelled. I went out anyway to do groundwork (the horse is a bit pushy and lacks respect for personal space, so we're working on it) but it was a miserable, wet night so we went back inside after ten minutes.

Instead, I put him in his stall, and we played a game called "clicker training". Unfortunately, in the course of that game he discovered my great weakness. He's a very hungry horse, but usually, I'm too greedy to give him any of the foodstuffs he's sure I have secreted about my person. But today, he noticed that all he has to do is touch his nose to a little orange traffic cone and I'll give him a treat, whether I want to or not!

Of course, I tried to cheat by hiding it among other cones so he had to touch them all, or putting it in hard to reach places, but he wasn't fooled. Next, I'll try putting it in the dark, scary trailer, but I'm sure he's too smart for me and will figure that one out as well...

Who knows, he might even work out that I have this compulsion to feed small black horses when they stand still to be mounted, or back up when I tell them to, or a whole host of other things... Hope not, the carrots will get expensive

I thought this was going to be a 2legs journal when I saw the title!

Clicking the 2legs?!!

That sounds like a thread that would have to be yikesed

err.... no comment...

Mala, you surprise me.

I was convinced this was a 2legs journal...

OTOH, can't you feed the apples, leftover bread or cornflakes? The latter was the favorite of Nan and Gramp's neighbour's But he was a nutty carriage horse...

I thought maybe it was this:

www.bogost.com/games/cow_clicker.shtml

That's definitely a dog pretending to be a horse. I recognise it!

Huh, I thought it was that #danceponydance thing for the ad for some phone company (3 is it?). I called my pony Big Mack.

Ponys don't look like ponys when they're filmed.... This is why all horses, in cowboy films/westurns, are actuallyed played by cattle, in costume... Strangely enough, though, cattle never look like cattle either, so they get played by horses, simularly in costume
I don't think I've ridden a horse (or pony), since I was about 13 or 14

My uncle the used to play the behind of an ass

I'd love to do that... oh... ahh... "played* the behind of an ass"... not "playing behind an ass"... My bads...

It's amazing how quickly horses pick up on cues -- with the help of another rider, I once trained a horse to verbal cues on the longe in 10 minutes, and it wasn't because I'm a brilliant trainer. The horse just figured it all out that quickly.

I do know I learn much quicker when given chocolate for each thing learnt

The photo you posted on FB shows what a beautiful animal he is, glossy coated! Good luck with him.

I know nothing of riding whatsoever, but still feel a little pang of jealousy

Beautiful horse are always beautiful horses I always like seeing the horses near my Dad's when I'm back there, and we go for a walk... and they come up tto the fence... rarely feed them, which of course your not meant to do, but they always seem to like attention... well, apart from the ones that have bit me, but that was not their fault, I probably didn't pick up on any visual queues that they weren't wanting me to touch their main or 'pet' them They always look so* cold when its wet and wintery though When I stay at William's, there is a field just behind his house, and there is a horse in it... I sometimes hear it during the night which is kinda weird William says I can't* have a horse/pony.... though I think he's weakening over the goat... mmmm... home made goats cheese and duck and hen eggs of course

I've never really considered that horses can be 'click' trained; I guess it is simular to the click training for dogs? has anyone ever managed to train a cat to do anything?

I clicker trained my cat to sit up and beg for a treat.

But I think it's much more impressive to train large animals. I'm afraid of animals that are larger than me. So, well done, Mala!

Hmmm, speaking of danceponydance, this horse's name is Jackson, so I should probably teach him to moonwalk.

Don't the horses in the dressage do a kind of moonwalking routeen somethines?

Unfortunately, at the moment, riding him is more like "Thriller"

Well don't go making* the pony give you an nasty injury again... I'm still annoyed I never got to see the either Suffolk or Norfolk Punch/shire hourse that a person I knew, yearas ago had... they're so* huge... She used it for environmentally friendly land clearance; clearing fallen trees etc out of woodland, for various people