Navigation

Are you interested in animal training?

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

Mountain Coatis and Training Mechanics

Mountain Coatis and Training Mechanics

By on September 25, 2009 in Other Species

I played just a bit this afternoon with the Mountain Coati at the Heard Museum. Coatis, which are close relatives of the raccoon, are found in South America and some parts of South Texas. This coati was a gregarious, agreeable sort of fellow, similar to most raccoons that I’ve met. We mainly worked on a […]

Continue Reading | 0
Tootie Targets

Tootie Targets

By on September 24, 2009 in Horse Training

Eighteen month old Tootie is super smart, but also a super mugger when it comes to treats. I stopped working with him last Spring because I didn’t really have the skills to keep up with him (or his teeth!). We recently had our first clicker session in months. I kept him behind a barrier so […]

Continue Reading | 3

Are You a Splitter or a Lumper?

By on September 22, 2009 in Concepts and Terms, Horse Training

Horse clicker trainer Alexandra Kurland often speaks of splitters and lumpers. These are funny words, but they refer to an often serious training problem! Most behaviors can be broken down into many smaller pieces and approximations. When we break our goal down into tiny chunks and build gradually to a target behavior, we’re being a […]

Continue Reading | 7
Training a 35 Pound Rodent? Oh My!

Training a 35 Pound Rodent? Oh My!

By on September 18, 2009 in Other Species

I’ve started volunteering at the Heard Museum with ORCA (a lab in UNT’s behavior analysis department that focuses on animal training).  One of the species we worked with on my first trip to the Heard was the Patagonian cavy, a 35 pound  South American rodent. I’ll admit, before going out there, I really had no […]

Continue Reading | 5
Rosie Meets the Bareback Pad

Rosie Meets the Bareback Pad

By on August 31, 2009 in Horse Training

This weekend was Rosie’s first encounter with a bareback pad. We’ve played with a saddle pad several times and she’s done a great job, so I felt she was ready for the next step. The bareback pad turned out to be a non-event, which was what I had hoped would happen. Even though I know […]

Continue Reading | 7