Behavior Modification Techniques
Lesson Seven
DISCRIMINATION
The stallion barn at
Joe was one of the most beautiful Quarter Horse ever registered but he
had a well deserved reputation for being B-A-D --bad! Fourble Joe had
savaged some of the best stallion men in
While working on his PhD at Texas A & M,
Jim McCall was employed as the stallion manager. It was part of his job to keep the stallions
in halter shape, show them to the mare owners and to handle the stallions in
the breeding shed.
To achieve these goals, it was necessary for McCall to catch Joe at
least once every day. They say that Necessity is the Mother of
Invention but it is also true that "that what doesn't kill you makes you
smarter".
Here is one of the many lessons in horse psychology that McCall learned
from Fourble Joe.
“Catching Joe was a dangerous job in
itself. At first I thought he was just a
temperamental old stud. Sometimes he
wouldn't come anywhere near me when I arrived at his "compound" so I
had to go into the paddock to catch him.
This was always dangerous to my very existence. As soon as Joe saw me, he would charge and
act like he was going to kill me.
Other times, however, Joe would meet
me at the gate waiting to be haltered.
When that happened, a rush of relief always ran over me.
After several weeks, I began to think
that there was a pattern to Joe's behavior.
Whenever I came to take Joe to the breeding barn to service a mare, he
would meet me at the gate. When I came
to get him to groom him, I had to go into the paddock to get him.
It puzzled me how he knew the
difference. At first I assumed that it must be the noise coming from the
breeding shed that foretold of the pending events. But when I changed the
breeding location, he still met me at the gate.
I had overlooked the telltale cue.
Whenever I was going to groom Joe, I always caught him in a nylon halter with a
cotton lead. When I planned to take him
to the breeding shed, I always came with a leather halter and a chain shank.
Fourble Joe
knew what I was going to do by the halter I carried. Obviously, he was always up for the trip to
the breeding shed but he didn't give a "hoot" about being groomed or
shown to mare owners.”
_______________________
Horses are quick to pick up on
signals that indicate a certain type of behavior that is expected. This can be
extremely irritating if you don't detect the signal or know how to manipulate
the underlying principles.
Signals that indicate that a certain type of behavior is expected are referred
to as stimulus controls. Horses are
quick to pick up on signals that indicate a certain type of behavior that is
expected. This can be extremely irritating if you don't detect the signal or
know how to manipulate the underlying principles.
Here is another story that points out how
sensitive horses are to signals which determine behavior.
Several years ago we were teaching horse training to two young ladies
using the same horse. In the beginning, there was fierce competition between
the two of them. Then, one of the students decided it was not necessary for
both of them to work so hard on the breaking and training. She would let the
other do the work. At the end of the summer, she would ride on exhibition day,
demonstrating the other's accomplishments. Of course, this created a great deal
of resistance from the other participant.
The only response we gave her was: "It will all wash out in the
end." Not well versed in horse
psychology, she didn't have a clue what we were talking about. She wheeled and fumed off.
The day of reckoning came. Each trainer had to ride his horse in a
sequence of events designed to demonstrate the level of accomplishment. The
hard working trainer rode first. The horse was putty in her hands. Whatever she
asked, the horse tried to achieve. By the end of the session, this horse was
leading the class.
The rival gloated in the wings. Soon she would be riding the same horse.
Being a better rider than her conscientious partner, she was sure she could win
the title of overall horse and rider team. With worlds of confidence she
stepped up on the horse and began the required exercises. From the first
moment, the work began to deteriorate. The horse lacked responsiveness. Flow
was nonexistent. When the rider asked for speed, her world fell apart. The
superbly trained horse ran off with her.
After the horse was stopped, tears began to pour out of the rider's
eyes. She jumped down and ran out in total disgrace.
Discrimination between riders happens frequently. Your horse may work
perfectly for you, but your friend cannot get him to do anything.
Professional trainers tear their hair out over just such situations.
Hours of training produce a horse that is ready to walk into the show ring and
win. Delighted with the progress of his trainer, the owner arrives at the show
to ride. The trainer warms the horse up. His performance is flawless. The owner
climbs into the saddle just in time to enter the class - DISASTER! The horse blows cue after cue.
Embarrassed, the owner steams out of the arena.
Hot words fly. It is not the fault of the trainer. It is not the fault of the
horse. The problem is the stimulus controlling the behavior of the horse. In
this situation, our best guess is that the horse is reading one or two signals.
The most obvious signal is that the horse is discriminating between the
novice rider (the owner) and the trainer.
The owner's riding skills lack the precision and expectations of the
trainer. Therefore the horse will perform a different way. The solution to this
problem is for the owner and trainer to work closely together until the novice
rider can learn to ask for and demand the same performance.
The show ring, itself, oftentimes, can be the stimulus which tells an
old seasoned campaigner he can get away with unacceptable behavior. Since it is
difficult, and even considered embarrassing, to discipline a horse in the show
ring, many horses gradually come to realize that they can cheat. Things they
wouldn't dare do at home can be done in the show ring without fear of reprisal.
We have seen many attempts to correct this discrimination between the show
ring and the training pen and most of them lack effectiveness. It does no good
at all to whip the horse after the class.
Remember, immediacy is the key to correcting improper behavior.
Neither will it work to give the horse the opportunity to do it again
outside the ring. Even if the horse does make the mistake again, the correction
out of the ring will not permanently alter the behavior.
The only guaranteed cure is to reprimand the error at the time it is
being made. Sacrifice the class or arrange to have mock training shows, but do
not ever allow the horse to learn that different rules apply in the show ring.
We have discussed some of the ways stimulus control can disrupt
training. Discrimination, however, can
be a powerful training tool when used to our advantage.
Let's return to the 1960's in the stallion barn at Texas A & M. As soon as
McCall realized the "power" of the leather halter, he left that nylon
halter on the hook. With the leather
halter in his hands, Joe always met him at the gate.
Sometimes he took Joe to be groomed and sometimes he took Joe to be
bred. The unpredictable nature of
broodmares created the perfect training situation. Fourble Joe was being
rewarded on a variable ratio schedule.
Joe never knew which time they would be going to the breeding shed, so
he always met McCall at the gate in hopes that this time would be the time.
Stallion handlers frequently use discriminating stimulus to help curtail
the behavior of rowdy studs. Since leather halters and chain shanks are always
in order when handling stallions, the position of the chain can be the
discriminating stimulus. Under routine handling, it’s common to place the chain
either just through the halter, under the chin or over the nose (depending on
the nature of the beast).
When going to the breeding room, the chain moves to the best position
for controlling a 1,000-pound breeding machine that may resist direction. This position ranges from under the chin,
over the nose or through the mouth, again depending on the nature of the
stallion.
Specific tack also allows a horse to expect a certain movement or
action. Not only does an English saddle feel different from a Western saddle,
but the kinds of movements and maneuvers we expect while riding in each are
also different.
Bits are great discriminating signals. The very structure of individual
bits is designed to communicate with a horse in a specific way. Bits may apply
pressure to the bars, the corners of the mouth, the tongue, the roof of the
mouth, the chin, the poll or a combination of points.
The Racing Dee or Snaffle which uses light pressure on the bars and
corner of the mouth, is often used with racehorses who are asked to run into
the bit. By grabbing this bit, a fast moving horse can gain forward balance and
move faster into the pressure. The Snaffle is used basically in the same way
for jumping horses, while English Pleasure horses may be collected on it for
work on the flat.
The Spanish Spade works on a completely different principle. The action
of the spade uses all the possible bit pressure points. This bit allows great
control for the most sensitive well-schooled mouths and needs to be in the
hands of a rider with extremely sensitive hands.
If we want different performances from the same horse, changing bits for
events will help cue the horse for each performance. The more discriminating signals used the
better. A bit, a different saddle, a different kind of working arena, a
different rider or trainer - all these signals will enhance a horse's ability
to know what work is expected of him.