Are you interested in animal training?

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

Clicker training Clever Hans: The balance loop

By Mary Hunter on February 16, 2013 in Conferences and Clinics, Horse Training

This is part three of my notes from ORCA’s 2013 Art and Science of Animal Training Conference. For links to the rest of my notes (which will be posted over the next few weeks), please visit the Conference and Clinic Notes section of my site. Alexandra Kurland’s lecture was one of my favorite talks at […]

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What we share with animals and why it matters

By Mary Hunter on February 15, 2013 in Conferences and Clinics

This is part two of my notes from ORCA’s 2013 Art and Science of Animal Training Conference. For links to the rest of my notes, please visit the Conference and Clinic Notes section of my site. This year’s keynote speaker, Dr. Susan Schneider gave a wonderful talk that explored many of the biological and behavioral […]

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Understanding body language

By Mary Hunter on February 14, 2013 in Conferences and Clinics, Other Species

This is part one of my notes from ORCA’s 2013 Art and Science of Animal Training Conference. For links to the rest of my notes (which will be posted over the next few weeks),please visit the Conference and Clinic Notes section of my site. Phung Luu has been training animals for over two decades and […]

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Great conference quotes!

By Mary Hunter on February 4, 2013 in Conferences and Clinics

What a great weekend! I spent the weekend at the 5th annual Art and Science of Animal Training Conference. As a member of ORCA at the University of North Texas, I help out with the planning for the conference. So, it’s always fun to see how it turns out. This year’s conference was, once again, completely […]

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Positive ways to deal with unwanted behavior (video)

By Mary Hunter on January 20, 2013 in Concepts and Terms, Dog Training

The video below is a great example of how a person can use clicker training and positive reinforcement training techniques to deal with annoying, dangerous, or otherwise unwanted behavior. In this case, the dog had a habit of jumping up into the owner’s face when she would bend over. The owner does a great job […]

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ORCA’s awesome shaping workshop

By Mary Hunter on January 19, 2013 in Conferences and Clinics, Teaching People

Good clicker trainers understand and use the principle of shaping. Shaping means teaching a behavior in small approximations or steps. Good shaping can greatly speed up learning and reduce confusion and frustration by helping the animal be successful every step of the way. (To see shaping in action, check out this video of Georgie learning […]

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