Episode 199: The trickiest idea

Episode 199_ The trickiest idea.mp3
Stacy Westfall: [00:00:00] So is the horse all the time proper?

Announcer: [00:00:06] Podcasting from a little bit cabin on a hill. That is the Stacy Westfall podcast. Stacy’s aim is straightforward: to show you to grasp why horses do what they do, in addition to the motion steps for creating clear, assured communication together with your horses.

Stacy Westfall: [00:00:26] Hello, I’m Stacy Westfall, and I assist riders turn into assured, talk clearly and get higher outcomes with their horses. On this season of the podcast, I’ve been sharing with you a number of the ideas that I train to my college students inside my applications, and that is the trickiest one of all of them. Right here goes. If the horse provides you the, “incorrect reply,” it doesn’t essentially imply that you simply taught the lesson mistaken. This one could make you loopy or it’d make you micromanage, or it will probably even tempt folks into forcing issues to occur. As a result of the problem is that in educating the horse, we’re all the time getting suggestions from the horse. But when they provide the “incorrect reply,” it doesn’t essentially imply you taught the lesson mistaken. Let me use a really simplified instance. I’m even going to depart the horses for a second and go to my pet. I obtained a pet, a border collie. Her title is Shadow. I began taking on-line lessons and a number of in-person pet lessons, they usually all use constructive reinforcement. All of them began with educating sit and down as in lie down. All the instructors have been very adamant that you simply solely say the phrase as soon as, or in the event you’re utilizing hand sign, you solely give the hand sign as soon as. You then wait. With this very restricted vocabulary issues can nonetheless get complicated. And also you may assume that having solely two phrases would make issues straightforward, however two means there’s simply sufficient that there’s multiple selection that could possibly be appropriate. And two phrases signifies that there’s a really restricted variety of behavior patterns so it’s actually widespread to unintentionally repeat the identical sequence so far as, like, sit after which down after which sit after which down. However right here’s the primary level I need you to remove. If I cue the pet with the phrase sit and she or he provides me a special habits did I cue it incorrectly? If the one cue I’m supposed to offer is the phrase sit and I say the phrase sit, however the canine does one thing totally different are you able to hear the way it’s very clear that I didn’t cue it incorrectly? Now, I in all probability cued it accurately so what else might need induced the confusion? She is likely to be confused as a result of she’s making an attempt to work it out in her mind. Perhaps she thought she understood it, however she’s enthusiastic about down. So I say the phrase sit and she or he as an alternative goes down and I’m ready and she or he’s laying down, however considering she’s appropriate, despite the fact that she’s incorrect. So possibly it’s simply her mind understanding the method. Or possibly my behavior sample of the previous couple of days was saying sit and rewarding her after which saying down and rewarding her. And possibly she’s simply skipping straight to what seems to be like the top, which is all the things ends and down. This may be an instance of what I talked about in Episode 197, The Delayed Aspect Impact of Your Behavior Patterns. So principally what I need you to listen to in that is that once I’m educating the pet the phrases sit or down and the instructors all clearly say, don’t repeat it, then what we’re doing is we’re leaving room for the canine to guess and to supply some incorrect habits, to make some guesses, to make errors. After which when the canine will get it appropriate, the canine will get the reward. What I feel that completely illustrates is what I mentioned a second in the past. The problem in educating the horse is we’re all the time getting suggestions from the horse, however simply because they provide the inaccurate reply doesn’t essentially imply you taught the lesson mistaken. If the horse asks a query and also you assume that suggestions means you’re doing it mistaken, then you definitely may change what you’re doing. So just like the pet the horse is likely to be filling within the blanks with the very last thing that labored, or the horse is likely to be asking questions and also you may simply have to make clear. I feel one of many the reason why that is such a tough idea is as a result of there’s this concept that the horse or in my instance, the pet, is all the time proper.

Stacy Westfall: [00:05:46] So is the horse all the time proper? Sure. The horse’s observations and opinions are all the time 100% correct for him. So the behavior sample that the pet’s declaring may level again to me or possibly no. Perhaps it’s simply what occurs when studying a brand new idea. Perhaps it’s simply regular for them to ask some random inquiries to decipher what’s allowed. Do you keep in mind manner, manner again once I taught about Grandma’s guidelines? As a result of sure, children do that too. They discover whereas they’re studying, they usually discover the boundaries by asking questions that don’t all the time seem like they’re on matter. So is the horse all the time appropriate? Sure. Their observations, their opinion, their random concepts that appear to return out of nowhere are correct for them. Nevertheless it doesn’t essentially level again to an inaccuracy in us. Did I point out this will make you loopy considering? So once I take a look at this, possibly the best strategy to make it make sense is that in the event you take a look at this course of such as you’re making an attempt to study one other language. Like at present, you simply determined you’re going to study to talk German, assuming you don’t already communicate that. However now at present you’ve determined you’re going to study to talk horse and on the similar time, your horse can also be studying to grasp human. While you begin taking a look at it like languages being realized, it makes extra sense that there could be some guessing concerned and a few nuances to the conversations. It additionally makes extra sense why the elementary model of coaching the horse could be extra primary, like what we’re educating when children and even adults are studying language early on. It additionally is sensible that the language will get extra wealthy and magical when the data of the language itself is extra superior. The horse can specific itself extra. The canine can specific itself extra. The human can specific itself extra. And that deep richness of the language creates that dialog that’s far more wealthy than what occurs in elementary college. So it turns into this recreation of studying the horse and understanding what the horse is saying whereas permitting the horse to make errors and ask questions.

Stacy Westfall: [00:08:34] While you take a look at one thing like steering, one thing so simple as asking the horse if you’re driving it to show to the left, in the event you take a look at elementary college, it’s actually widespread that the left rein means bend to the left and transfer your toes to the left. After which for the extra superior for the opposite finish of the spectrum and I don’t care whether or not you place this within the Western world for neck reining or in dressage the place they inform you inside leg to outdoors rein, principally they’re each speaking about neck reining. And if you’re speaking about neck reining, it’s the alternative. As a substitute of the within rein, the left rein means go left now to go left, the neck rein, the proper ring goes on and the proper ring means bend to the left and go to the left. Are you able to see how someplace between elementary college and highschool, higher highschool, the horses must study to have the ability to decipher many extra layers of language? The query for you is, will you attempt to keep in elementary college to keep away from the messy center and simply hope that your horse doesn’t get bored and ask too many questions? As a result of the issue with elementary college is that left rein means bend left and go left till the day that you simply pull on the left rein and the horse realizes, you already know, simply because I’ve been my head to the left doesn’t imply my toes must go to the left. Hmm. Let me strive that out. That’s how I hit a whole lot of barrels once I was barrel racing as a teen and some timber with my knees once I was path driving. As a result of ultimately a number of the primary stuff, the horses discover the holes in it. Or generally what is going to occur is as you method that subsequent stage together with your horse, you’ll discover increasingly more folks recommending that you simply method the extra superior issues from a correction or punishment mentality. So leap again to the pet. So as an alternative of permitting there to be this trying to find sit or down, you may think about how straightforward it might be to easily pressure the pet into that physique place. You may also think about that there’s a distinction in what the canine learns after they discover the proper reply versus when they’re pressured into the proper reply. So the query turns into, are you interested by committing to study a brand new language? I like the element of the language. I like how the horses really feel after they get an opportunity to follow, when issues turn into repeatable and turn into constant and you’ll see the arrogance that the horse has in giving the reply. For my part, that is the tactic that results in the very best doable relationship.

Stacy Westfall: [00:11:40] So at this level you is likely to be considering, what ought to a rider do if they’re confronted with this problem? I’m going to advocate that you simply do the identical factor that I did once I was searching for somebody to show me about my pet that may ultimately turn into my canine. I regarded for an teacher or a program that might train in a mode that I might perceive. I checked out a whole lot of totally different canine coaching programs on-line earlier than I picked the one which I did, and I picked it after I had been listening to her podcast for some time. Inside her program, I’m dedicated to training the fundamentals. There’s a quote that I memorized years in the past that claims Mastery of the fundamentals equals success, and mastering the fundamentals is usually a problem for folks not as a result of they’ll’t do it, however as a result of they wish to transfer quicker by means of the method. And I completely get it. Once more, I’m educating my pet to do issues and I can really feel the temptation in me to wish to rush forward. I’m educating my pet to do a activate the forehand proper now, and I really feel the temptation to make use of it once I go away the home. However in the home, it’s not totally strong. And as soon as I’m going out the entrance door and there are bunnies and horses and cats and all types of issues, the pet will not be going to succeed if I put her in that scenario and I ask her to do one thing that she’s not tremendous strong on in all of the rooms of my home. And for these of you who’re actually curious, I’ll put hyperlinks to the canine podcast and this system that I’m utilizing within the present notes over on my web site. However on the finish of the day, it seems that if you’d like a relationship with a horse, with a canine, with an individual, then you definitely’re gonna must study a language, which is ideal as a result of I’ve all the time needed to talk horse, which is why I’ve spent so a few years dedicating myself to understanding what they’re speaking. And fascinatingly sufficient, the horses appear to search out us two legged creatures fascinating additionally, once we go about it, in a manner, inviting them in to a communication with us. If you want assist making use of any of the ideas that you simply’ve been listening to right here on the podcast to your personal driving, I’d invite you to return be part of me in my on-line program. I simply did one other video evaluate at present for an entire bunch of various college students that have been on. They have been approaching reside asking questions. We have been watching their movies and it’s so rewarding to see the understanding taking place within the college students and their horses and the visible journey of all of the movies that we now have to show it month after month. While you be part of, you’ll have fast entry to all of my driving programs and the chance to hitch me on reside calls 4 instances a month. You may ask your questions in written type or reside on the calls. You may submit movies to be reviewed. You may watch different college students working by means of the method, and it’s all danger free as a result of it has a 30-day money-back assure. Due to all of you for listening and I’ll speak to you once more within the subsequent episode.

Announcer: [00:15:24] Should you get pleasure from listening to Stacy’s podcast, please go to stacywestfall.com for articles, movies, and ideas that will help you and your horse succeed.