Equiosity

Dominique and I spent an afternoon catching up and going through topics she’s been collecting from my new book, Modern Horse Training, and the on-line clinics. In Part 1 the focus was on working both sides of your horse. We’re often told that we have to work both sides equally during a training session. As always, it is go to people for opinions and horses for answers. What answers have the horses given us? And what strategies can we use to help a horse become comfortable and well balanced on both sides. That was the focus of Part 1. We stopped as Dominique changed the topic to piaffe.

This is a world divides topic. Some people will be perking up, eager to learn more, others will be groaning thinking this episode won’t have anything in it for them. But wait. Before you turn us off, consider this. Maybe you don’t think of yourself as a dressage rider. You don’t dream of teaching your horse to piaffe. In fact, if you’re a trail rider, to you piaffe may mean a horse who jigs all the way back to the barn. And that’s really the point. What we’re going to be talking about is changing energy levels and emotional states. In this podcast we’re going to be exploring the transition from being settled and calm to full of the kind of energy that can be channeled into performance.

We’ll be talking about the role that cues, behavior chains and base behaviors play in developing a horse who can remain deeply settled and relaxed even while he is performing at a very high level.

Periodically Dominique get together for a catch up conversation. Dominique has been going through my new book, Modern Horse Training, and my on-line clinics. From those resources she’s been collecting topics that are interesting to explore.

But first we begin with a short follow up to the episodes we did with Joe Layng on reinforcement schedules. We talk about the role clean loops play in developing behavior. What is the difference between clean and fully developed?

Then we move on and talk about strategies for working both sides of your horse. We begin by examining the premise of is it necessary to work both sides when you train. What does that mean? And how do you get to the point where your horse is comfortable and capable being worked on both the left and right side.

This is the fourth installment of our conversation with Dr. Joe Layng about schedules of reinforcement. In this episode we begin with the distinction Joe is making between contingencies and dependencies, and a program versus a schedule. This takes us to this question: Given this distinction between shaping and maintaining, at what point does an exploration of schedules become relevant? As you stabilize behaviors, how much variability do you need to maintain? How does all of this relate to the loopy training teaching strategy? One of the main takeaways from the conversation is how sensitive all organisms are to their environment. Their environment includes changes to the schedules of reinforcement.

This is the third installment of our conversation with Dr. Joe Layng about schedules of reinforcement. In this episode we’ll be talking more directly about shaping. Joe introduces some more terms into the discussion, including ratio strain. He makes distinctions between a program and a schedule, and between contingencies and dependencies. And he highlights the role that extinction plays in shaping.

This is part 2 of our conversation with Dr Joe Layng about schedules of reinforcement. Last week Joe got us started by describing the four basic types of schedules you are likely to encounter.

Fixed Interval schedules and variable Interval schedules are both time based.

Fix ratio and variable ratio schedules refer to the number of responses.

In this episode Joe moves beyond the basics of schedules to show us how complex the application and interpretation of schedules can become. He looks at how drugs interact with different schedules to either increase or decrease responses. The teaser is the effect may not be what you would expect.

Joe talks about the effect of schedules on social behavior - how you can change an animal’s behavior from cooperative to aggressive depending upon the schedule the animal is on.

It’s a head spinning conversation in part because there are so many ways to manipulate schedules. One of the main takeaways is how sensitive behavior is to the environment.

As Joe says in the episode: “What the study of schedules under controlled conditions shows us is how precisely the environment comes to control behavior. They show us how sensitive behavior is to these different environmental arrangements. The behavior you get depends on how you set it up the environment. You can get almost anything you want. It depends upon how you set it up. “

That’s an extraordinarily hopeful statement. So instead of feeling stuck with behavior you don’t like, Joe is offering us a different way of thinking about behavior. It isn’t fixed in the genes. It isn’t even fixed in previous history. Change the environment and rats that are social may become aggressive and aggressive rats may suddenly lend a helping paw pressing a lever. It’s all in the schedules. That can be either very frightening or very hopeful depending upon your perspective.

We’re beginning a four part series on schedules of reinforcement with Dr Joe Layng. Dr. Layng is a behavior analyst with over fifty years of experience in the experimental and applied analysis of behavior. His most recent book is “Nonlinear Contingency Analysis: Going Beyond Cognition and Behavior in Clinical Practice. I could go on with a long list of Joe’s professional credentials, but instead I’ll say that Joe was one of the regular presenters at the Art and Science of Animal Training conference. That’s where I first met him. Joe’s talks were always for me the highlight of the conference in part because he prompted me to look at familiar concepts through a different lens.

I always think of Joe as better than google. During any conversation he’ll rattle off at least half a dozen references that need to be explored. You’ll discover very quickly what I mean by that in the first part of this episode. Joe has our guest before. We’ve talked about contingency adduction, the effect of schedules on social behavior, and one of my favorite topics to discuss with Joe, degrees of freedom. If those topics sound too academic for your tastes, don’t worry. Joe is a wonderful story teller.

In every conversation Joe has left us with a teaser. In this case he begins with a teaser. Our plan was to talk about reinforcement schedules, but Joe jumped in chatting about a topic he’s been exploring recently - that of private experiences.

Typically, I edit out the conversations we have when we first sign into zoom and we’re getting ourselves organized. In this case Joe’s comments were too much fun not to share. So yes, we are going to talk about schedules of reinforcement in this episode, but first we’re going to indulge in a journey down a couple of interesting rabbit holes.

This is the second half of an afternoon conversation.

Dominique has been collecting some topics to discuss from the coaching sessions that are part of my on-line clinics, from the new book, Modern Horse Training, and from conversations she’s seen on the internet. We cover four or five big topics so I have divided the conversation into two parts. In Part 1 we began with a discussion of tying. From there we looked at leading and the importance of signaling your intent so you don’t end up playing a game of red light-green light with your horse.

In part 2 we’ll be looking at another useful metaphor, that of filmstrips and how they can be used to teach patterns both on the ground and under saddle. Then we’ll talk about working with injured horses, and we’ll finish up with how you can use the snap on your lead rope like a toggle switch to create very nuanced tactile cues. We’ll look in particular at how to ask your horse to back up so you aren’t pushing into your horse.

We’re starting a new conversation. Dominique has been collecting some topics to discuss from the coaching sessions that are part of my on-line clinics, from the new book, Modern Horse Training, and from conversations she’s seen on the internet. We cover four or five big topics so I have divided the conversation into two parts. We’ll begin with a discussion of tying. On the internet Dominique ran across what turned into a very heated discussion about whether or not you should tie your horse. From there we look at leading and the importance of signaling your intent so you don’t end up playing a game of red light-green light with your horse.

In part 2 we’ll be looking at another useful metaphor, that of filmstrips and how they can be used to teach patterns both on the ground and under saddle. Then we’ll talk about working with injured horses, and we’ll finish up with how you can use the snap on your lead rope like a toggle switch to create very nuanced tactile cues. We’ll look in particular how to ask your horse to back up so you aren’t pushing into your horse.

This is part 3 of a conversation about my new book: Modern Horse Training. In our previous conversation, Dominique started at the end of the book to talk about riding. Now we’re back at the beginning of the book. Dominique picked out three elements that stood out for her that contribute to what is meant by modern horse training. In Part 1 we talked about constructional training - what that means and the clarity it brings to training. A second element is of course loopy training. In Part 2 we talked about what it means to flip the funnel.

Another element that stood out for Dominique was the inclusion of extinction in discussions of the four quadrants of operant conditioning. That brought us to it is okay for our horses to say NO. In this episode we consider more of the elements that contribute to our use today of positive reinforcement training. What it brings us to is one of the great benefits of this work - it is so accessible. That’s true for both the horse and the handler. It doesn’t matter what skill level you bring to the work, there’s a starting point that will work for you. It doesn’t matter what training puzzles your horse presents, there is a starting point for that horse, as well. Accessibility is a hugely important element of this work. We share stories that illustrate what this means.

In this conversation about “Modern Horse Training” we’re back at the beginning of the book. Dominique has been thinking about what has been added to our understanding of clicker training since she first began to look at it 15 years ago. The answer is a lot.

For Dominique three elements stood out in the beginning of the book. The first was the addition of constructional training. That was the focus of Part 1 of our conversation. Now we’re looking at shaping and what happens when you flip the funnel.