You will be using both verbal and physical cues, when you are teaching your horse tricks. A cue is just a signal you use to let your horse know that you want them to do something. Each cue needs to be clear and distinct from other cues otherwise your horse can become confused.
A verbal cue is saying something like "back" or "touch".
A physical cue is something the horse can see or feel. For example you may point at your horse's hindquarters and this is the cue for him to move his hindquarters away. Or you might touch him on his shoulder and this is a cue for your horse to bow.
Humans use cues all the time. For example if I say hi and extend my hand toward you, then you know I want to shake your hand and you will (usually) extend your hand and shake mine. That is a cue. I don't have to say "shake my hand". You recognise the cue (me extending my hand toward you) and you know what I am asking.
Physical cues work better than verbal cues
Physical cues tend to work better than verbal cues or commands when you are teaching your horse tricks. In the horse world there are no words. Horses are used to interpreting minor changes in the body language of other horses in the herd. A cue can be very subtle once a horse learns to recognise it.
Cues need to be very distinct if you want to teach your horse lots of tricks
If you only want to teach your horse a few tricks then you might only need to use a few physical and verbal cues. However if you want to teach your horse lots of different tricks then you really need to think about which cues you are going to use. Even though horses are very good at distinguishing between subtle body movements, in the beginning if your cues are too similar it will confuse your horse.
For example when I first taught Trigger to say Yes, I would point at the front of his head. Then I decided to teach him 'to be ashamed', which is where he will put his head under my arm. The cues I decided to use for this were to wave my finger in front of him, while saying "Shame on you". Trigger saw a finger in front of his face and got a bit confused and started to say Yes.
I needed to make the 'ashamed' cue a lot more distinct when I first started teaching it to him. I decided to put my left hand on my hip, as if I was mad with him and really waggle my finger and whole arm back and forth in front of his face. By making my cue very obvious he then understood the difference. As he became better at the trick I could make the cues more and more subtle and now I only need to put my hand on my hip and gently waggle my finger back and forth.
You can even make up your own verbal cues
Also put some thought into the verbal cues you will be using. Some words can sound very similar to a horse. For example "Walk" and "Whoa". Saying the cue in a different tone or speed can differentiate it from another cue. Such as "WALK!" and "whhhooooaaaa". It also isn't necessary to use a real word as a cue. You can even make up cue words (as long as you remember the word) to keep the verbal cues distinct.
Where will you be when your horse performs the trick?
Think also about where you will be when you want your horse to perform his trick. If you want to teach your horse to bow with you in the saddle, there is no point in teaching him using a cue that requires you to be on the ground. Unless you are very flexible!
Once your horse has learnt a trick really well your cues can become very subtle, but in the beginning make them very distinct from each other. Spend a bit of time planning how you are going to teach each horse trick and also which cues you will use. This will make it easier and quicker to teach your horse each new trick and prevent them from becoming confused.
Jain Brand (and Trigger) http://www.horsetricks101.com
Horse Tricks 101 - Easy step by step guide to help you teach your horse some simple tricks. Horse Trick Training is a fun way to build a special bond with your horse.
Once you and your horse learn the basics of trick training you can teach your horse just about anything! It's easy, fun and only takes 10 minutes a day.
Download your FREE Horse Trick Training Pack at: http://www.horsetricks101.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jain_Brand
