Chewie is more settled in at the new barn. She seems more confident about her surroundings and about interacting with me. Whether we are training or just hanging out, I want my interactions with Chewie to be based in positive reinforcement. Since her arrival, I have been exploring what Chewie likes. Or, in other words, […]
Chewie is now in a pasture with a white donkey named Blanca, and an older appaloosa mare, Allie. After the move, Chewie decided quickly that Allie was most definitely her long-lost best friend. We’ve been having some bitterly cold weather here in north Texas. I’ve been checking on Chewie a couple of times a day, […]
On Tuesday, I lectured about animal training to an undergraduate introductory behavior analysis course. We had great fun discussing how positive reinforcement and an understanding of behavior analysis can help make training more efficient and more enjoyable for both the animal and trainer. Most of the students were not familiar with ideas such as clicker […]
I have a new horse! Chewie and I have just wrapped up our first week together. In this post, I want to introduce you to Chewie and tell you what we’ve been doing so far. Where did Chewie come from? I adopted Chewie from Habitat for Horses, a rescue group in Alvin, Texas. Baby Chewie […]
Karen Pryor passed away earlier this month. I encourage you to read this obituary that the New York Times wrote about Pryor; it is a well-written overview of her life and accomplishments. Dr. Jesús Rosales-Ruiz hugs Karen Pryor at the 2017 ASAT Conference. I met Karen several times at conferences, and I had the great […]
As some of you may already know from social media, I lost my Arabian gelding, Apollo, in mid-November. He was 20 years old. Horses are tough, resilient creatures. But, they can be quite fragile, too. Medical issues can escalate rapidly, even with the support of a great team of vets. Apollo’s passing was unexpected. I am […]
