Dr. Nicola Jolly: Dog Training and Horse Behaviour

08/05/2024

Found this bronze beauty on a sunny walk through the heathland. A good reminder to stay alert while dog walking.

22/07/2023

Habituation is the scientific term for the way animals get used to new or startling sights and sounds with repeated exposure.
You can see Mum is completely relaxed with us (people and dogs) passing, whilst the foal initially startled and tucks up - tail tight, head raised and seeking mum - then looks straight at us, whilst keeping a safe distance.
Born out in the New Forest these little ones quickly learn to accept people, cars, bikes, dogs, machinery, setting them up to be calm in many environments.

22/06/2023

I had the pleasure of meeting Sue Dyson for a day of CPD on Monday.

I can't recommend highly enough that owners and riders trust themselves when their horse doesn't feel right. Horses try so hard to fit in with us, if they stop performing or struggle to learm a particular movement, something is probably wrong.

Learn to see the signs of pain before the head bob starts and stop further damage to your horse. www.EquitopiaCenter.com Equitopia's new course features wor...

20/06/2023

Can we tell how our horses feel from their faces?

I'm delighted to see Claire Ricci-Bonot's research on facial expressions of emotion in horses out. I was the second coder and went on to use the videos for my own MSc Thesis, so am particularly excited to see it out. It's also the first paper I am aware of to explore the concept of disappointment in horses. Huge congratulations to Claire Ricci-Bonot and Daniel Mills.

https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0168159123001387-gr6_lrg.jpg

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159123001387

10/02/2022

Exploring the world - Parsnip's first meeting with a mirror. Engaging her SEEKING system by touching novel objects helps build her confidence beyond her own field.

19/09/2021

Now for something a bit different! ELEPHANTS
I got to know Floriane and Michael when visiting Nepal. This video shows just how effectively you can gain confidence and cooperation using positive reinforcement.

11/09/2021

A lovely walk in the Forest yesterday, usually the ponies only briefly look up before returning to grazing, but this one watched me the whole way round. She was relaxed and soft in her expression, but definitely vigilant. This combination of relaxation and interest makes for the most beautiful photos.

31/08/2021

A few favourite photos to brighten the day.

31/08/2021

The ABTC are part of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare (APGAW) who have created the Rabbit Roundabout, clearly setting out all the needs for pet rabbits. Please share far and wide.

02/08/2021

Another success story! Bu reacted to leg clipping and injections, even under sedation, to the extent her veterinary treatment was affected. Just 4 days after our session, she is clipping confidently and 6 days later calm for the vet to give her hock injections. Well done Holly and Bu.

Get in touch if you would like help with handling, preparing for treatment or fears and phobias.

28/07/2021

Luz Chirivía and Verena combining 'stay' with habitation to rattling pans. Developing this strong stay, even with distractions, sets Chirivía up for being tied up or stabled successfully with minimal frustration. She will know what is expected, helping her to stand quietly whatever is going on around her.

04/07/2021

Cass came for a training session a couple of months ago to gain confidence having his feet washed. He had been afraid of the water, so we used counter-conditioning to help change his attitude. His owner just sent this update on her dog who now LOVES the water. What a fantastic job she's done!

22/06/2021

Box rest tip 2: Provide regular and varied forage and browsing materials.

Horses graze and browse for around 16 hours a day and eat 2% of their bodyweight daily for maintenance. For TJ, a small 13hh pony this is just over 7kg. In stables they are dependent on us for all their food. This can cause anxiety, hunger and potentially pain and cribbing if they are then standing for several hours with nothing to eat between our visits. They can also have their independence taken away, in terms of when and what they eat. For health, a sudden change in diet is a risk factor for colic and after 4 hours without food acid builds up in the guts increasing risk of gastric ulcers.

* If you're lucky enough to have a horse who can eat freely, provide ad lib hay or haylage
* If your horse gains weight quickly, or has a laminitis risk (eg. Natives, EMS/Cushing's or being treated with Steroids) you can provide barley or oat straw for bulk and give them sticks, twigs and logs to chew on. Soaking hay will reduce the sugars.
*Increase your daily visits, divide portions and ask for help. Could you pop down at lunch time or ask a friend to feed when they ride allowing you to go later so hay lasts through the night.
*Positioning forage in different parts of the stable can encourage breaks in eating when one net is finished before starting the next.
*Provide variety: different brands or sources of hay/haylage made from different grasses (rye, timothy, alfalfa, meadow hay).
*Bring your horse greenery: explore the hedgerows for things your horse loves but typically eats in smaller quantities, so they last longer e.g. branches and leaves (hazel, hawthorn, birch, oak) or shrubbery and herbaceous plants (cleavers, gorse, cow parsley)
*Cut some grass from your usual pasture to fill a haynet/bag, feeding within 2 hours to avoid fermentation. This helps transition their diet, providing what they are used to and a natural range of plants, such as clover, plantain and dandelions alongside grasses. These plants are often 90% water supporting gut mobility and giving much more bulk for the same calories.

20/06/2021

Box rest can mean suddenly separating your horse from their herd to spend all day alone in the stable. As highly social creatures this can cause panic, frustration or a depressed mood. Traditional stables with full length walls and horses in rows often mean the horse can only see others by putting their head over the door and can never reach them.

Here TJ is stabled in the grazing area of Jay (the bay), the slip rail front gives full head and neck contact. Having lived together for 10 years they are good friends. Jay always chooses to rest with him, and he comes to the front to be with her, even though his hay is further back.

Adjusting your set up so horses can touch, can really improve relaxation and contentment during box rest. This could mean giving other horses access to the yard area, putting a companion in with them or creating windows, bars or half-height divisions between stables so neighbours can easily see and interact with each other.

17/06/2021

BOX REST can be a really difficult time for both horses and their humans.
Over the next weeks I'll be posting updates and enrichment ideas to help horses cope.

02/06/2021

This week I'm helping Luz Chirivía accept her new fly sprays. We've done several sessions spraying water, but the overpowering smell is a challenge. By spraying the outside of this grazing muzzle and placing treats inside she is acclimatising to the strong scent. She does so in her own time, giving her the confidence of being in control.

29/05/2021

Training your dog to relax on a mat or blanket can help them settle when you're out and about. Thank you Ash for this lovely demo and looking at the camera!

24/05/2021

Happy 10th birthday Billie! Play, family, friends...and of course a few treats!

11/05/2021

Did you know that animals often prefer food they have to work for over food which is freely available? It seems that seeking out, finding, catching and extracting the food is rewarding, not just eating it. The technical term is 'contra-freeloading'.

I love to improve Billie's feeding by giving a portion of her dinner in a treat ball, as a scatter feed or, her favourite, for training. Food toys are also a great way of keeping your dog occupied when you can't offer them your attention.

03/05/2021

A good thing we both have suitable coats for this weather!

27/04/2021

Horses are really motivated to touch and interact with each other as you can see in this video.

Horses which live alone will push a lever up to 40 times for even nose to nose contact with another (Sondergaard et al. 2011) and providing nose to nose contact even through bars is possibly the most effective 'cure' for weaving in a stable (LeSimple 2019).

23/04/2021

At the watering hole

31/03/2021

Are you going back to work as lock down eases? What about your dog?

What can you do now to help your dog prepare for the change?

04/03/2021

With Spring round the corner it's time to think about preparing your horse for fly defences. For this girl it's a full Boett rug. You can see us working on calmness as the the neck goes on over her head...covering eyes and ears in the process. If you'll be using fly rugs, masks or sprays, now is the time to start training for them, giving yourself time to progress at your horse's pace for relaxed and easy management later.

02/03/2021

Teaching the next generation to play amicably with their sticks when one wants to build and the other pull it apart! Morgan is already learning how much more effective it is to redirect and give your dog something positive to do.

18/10/2020

Key point from this week's lectures: 'It is only positive (or negative) REINFORCEMENT, if it actually makes the behaviour more likely to happen again.'

All sorts of things can be reinforcing, food (of course), but also play, scratches, going home, scents, temperature.

05/10/2020

First day on MSc Clinical Animal Behaviour today. Fantastic to meet so many students with a wealth of experience.