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Mary Hunter and her horse Apollo


On this site I share stories of my animal training adventures, information about the science of animal training and behavior, and tips and advice to help you improve your training.

Join me as we explore the best training strategies for creating fast learning, effective communication, and enthusiastic, willing animals.

If you’re new to Stale Cheerios, I recommend that you start by visiting this page to learn more about Stale Cheerios and that you visit my Top Posts page.

~Mary Hunter

Recent posts from the StaleCheerios blog

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The PORTL Laboratory

By on April 21, 2023 in Teaching People

I have some exciting news today! During the last part of 2022 and the beginning of this year, Dr. Jesús Rosales-Ruiz and I were busy with a writing project. And, the article we were writing is now published! The article, which is titled “The PORTL Laboratory,” was published earlier this month in the journal Perspectives […]

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Let’s talk about slow learners

By on April 14, 2023 in Horse Training

Darley is an older Arabian. He was skin and bones when my friend first rescued him. But, he’s a happy horse now! I’ve been doing some clicker training with Darley, and he enjoys our training sessions.  However, at first, Darley wasn’t really catching on. Sometimes, he would do several behaviors in a row. Then, he […]

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Apollo’s choice: Grass or training? (video)

By on April 7, 2023 in Horse Training

Spring has arrived in north Texas and with spring comes spring grass! The arena at our barn has grass all along the edge.  Delicious, yummy grass.  Tempting grass….  Apollo and I have sometimes struggled with the spring grass in past years.  This year, we’ve been working on a new reinforcement system in the arena with […]

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B. F. Skinner and Errorless Learning

By on March 21, 2023 in Concepts and Terms

Happy Birthday, B. F. Skinner! Yesterday, March 20, was Dr. B. F. Skinner’s birthday. In honor of Dr. Skinner’s birthday, I shared the following quote on my Stale Cheerios Instagram account and Facebook page. Skinner writes: “The implication that learning occurs only when errors are made is false.” This quote comes from his 1968 book, […]

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