Maria’s efforts to get Chloe to stop snorting and stomping and banging into the gate when she wants to eat are paying off. We are reminded once again that animals need to be taught how to succeed, not fail, and how easy it is – even when you know better – to reinforce the behavior you don’t like instead of the behavior you do like.

When Chloe saw us, she was eager to eat in the morning. She seemed agitated, pawing at the ground, chewing at the gate. It was too much, obnoxious and even a bit dangerous, the other day she stopped on Red and her big her leg. We were shouting at her to stop, or pushing her away from the gate.

We both realized at about the same time that we had slipped unthinkingly into one of the worst training mistakes- reinforcing the precise behavior you don’t want or like. Animals don’t often know the difference between good and bad attention. They just like attention, especially if food is somewhere in the picture.

Maria always gave the equines a treat in the morning, and then we brought out hay. So it was easy enough for Chloe – who is very smart – to conclude that this behavior would get her treats and food. We stopped offering treats and the minute she started prancing or snorting or banging into the gate, we turned away or stood stock still.

If she was quiet for a minute or two, she got a carrot. And then hay. We just ignored the bad behavior.

This took about three days and Chloe quickly figured out that the way to get what she wanted was to be patient and still. She paws the ground once or twice now, then goes still and watches us. You can almost see her piecing the new regiment together. She is calm when we enter the pasture. Another week or two and I think we will have it. We are the ones who need to behave, she is happy to.