Dogs, horses, and rats. Birds, goldfish, cats. Dolphins, raccoons, and elephants. What animals can’t we train? In this section you’ll find lots of great training stories and tips. You will also get to meet many of the wonderful animals that I get to train. I hope that you’ll enjoy reading about my adventures (and misadventures) and that these articles and tales can provide you with insight that will help you with your own animals.
I’m out of town this week! I’m in Galveston, Texas, for the ABMA annual conference. ABMA stands for the Animal Behavior Management Alliance. The ABMA is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to enhancing animal care through training, enrichment, and other strategies that promote well-being. ABMA members are mainly individuals who work with exotic animals […]
Receiving consistent foot care is really important for a young horse’s physical health. Munching on some pellets while I trim a front hoof. When Chewie was at Habitat for Horses, the trainers at the rescue worked with her on picking up her feet, and their farrier was able to trim her feet on a regular […]
Recently, Chewie and I played with a tarp! As part of Chewie’s training, I have been gradually introducing her to new objects and new experiences. I wrote previously about some of our adventures with mats. Horses are often scared of tarps. They look funny. They feel funny when you step on them. They blow around […]
We haven’t done much training with food up to this point because Chewie wasn’t ready. Chewie needed time to settle when she first arrived and when she moved pastures a couple of weeks ago. I’ve also been gone some at conferences, and we dealt with a spell of nasty weather in February. Chewie is now […]
Happy birthday, Chewie! I’m not sure of Chewie’s exact age. But, the rescue knew she was a spring 2023 baby, and the vet guessed that her birthday could have been around April 1. So, April 1 is her “official” birthday on her Coggin’s certificate and other veterinary paperwork. And, that’s official enough for me. I […]
Chewie has been in heat for the past several days. What this means is that she is quite interested in flirting with the gelding in the next pasture. And, she is not overly interested in training games or enrichment games. She’s still happy to eat her breakfast when I visit in the morning, and we’ve […]
