To Treat or Not to Treat

Giving horses treats and when to do so is a highly debated topic that many horse owners have different opinions about. Some people give their horses treats all the time or use it as an integral part of their training. Others don’t believe in feeding them at all! I often have clients ask me about feeding treats: When should they give them? How can they avoid the negative behaviors associated with feeding treats? Can they be used as a training tool?

Below, I am going to share a few key points and observations that I have observed about treats and the role they can play (positive or negative) in your partnership with your horse. I am also going to include some recommendations on how to use them in training situations.

• Use treats as a reward, NOT as bribery.
  In other words, don’t use the treat to “lure” or “persuade” your horse to do something. He should do what you ask of him out of respect, communication and acknowledgment of your leadership. If you are depending on treats to get a response or behavior from your horse, then you are probably lacking the respect and communication necessary to have a real, working partnership. However, using treats to reward your horse AFTER he respectfully does something you ask of him can be an excellent motivator! Here is an example of the difference between “bribing” vs. “rewarding” your horse:

Example: Catching A Horse in the Pasture
Bribery: Using treats to trick your horse into coming to you and also as a distraction while you sneak a halter on him before he can run away.
Reward: Spending the time to catch the horse and have him allow himself to be caught, and then giving him a treat after you have haltered him. Not only does this reward his good behavior, but it will make him more motivated to let you catch him next time.

• Keep in mind: What leader in the animal world relinquishes food?
  The number one lead horse in the herd hierarchy dictates which pile of hay she eats, pushes other horses away from food, makes everyone move out of her way when she wants to drink, etc. She calls the shots and makes it very clear especially when it comes to food - not because she’s mean, but because she’s the leader. It’s the same in other animal herds and groups also. Meanwhile, here we are acting like human Pez dispensers, wondering why our horses are getting increasingly disrespectful toward us and questioning our leadership. Try to avoid giving your horse treats constantly for no reason, because it will automatically make you seem like less of a leader in their eyes.

• If a horse is in a high-stress situation or extremely nervous and preoccupied about something, food does not work as a motivator because him feeling safe is the more important issue.
  Trying to use food to get a horse to do something when he is in this state of mind is a waste of time. When his safety is in question and his survival-flight instinct is kicking in, the last thing he is thinking about is a bite to eat! A common example of this happening is during trailer loading. A person is trying to load a horse in the trailer and the horse has either never been in one, or he is fearful and doesn’t want to go in, and the more they try to load him inside, the more worked up he gets. People then try to use grain or hay or treats to get him in the trailer. It’s like trying to use a Twinkie to motivate you to go into a room filled with spiders (or whatever your biggest fear is, that’s mine) - totally not worth it!

• Remember that you teach behavior that you reward.
  If your horse is doing a negative behavior and you give him a treat directly after it or during it, you are rewarding that behavior. Here is an example of this last point: I knew a horse owner who always gave her horses treats after riding when the horse was standing on the cross-ties. The horse, in anticipation of the treat, would start to fidget, paw, and throw his head in the air. The owner viewed it as the horse “asking” for his treat, and would immediately feed it to him. Eventually the fidgeting, pawing etc. became more and more constant and obnoxious. Why? Because she was directly rewarding and actually teaching those behaviors.

How Do You Incorporate Treats Into Your Training?

All trainers are different, but for me personally, treats do not play a large role in my training - it is based much more off of mutual respect, communication, and leadership. Until those three things are strongly established with a horse, I usually don’t feed them treats at all. However, there are certain training situations where I feel they can be helpful.

The aspect of training that I utilize treats in the most is trick training - teaching a horse to bow, lay down, sit, smile, etc. The reason why is to get them extra motivated to do the trick. The more the horse wants to do the trick, the better he will perform it. Treats can also help the horse catch on to “holding” the trick for longer periods of time. An example of this is when teaching a horse to sit: I will offer him a treat while he is in the sitting position to teach him to hold the position instead of just standing up. Again, it is not bribery, but an aid to get the horse to understand what you want.

Another instance that I use treats is when I am working with a horse that is extremely tense and stand-offish. In combination with groundwork, feeding treats at certain times when the horse is learning to relax can help him release some tension by chewing and moving his jaw. It can also help a horse that is nervous of people to feel more comfortable and less threatened. Feeding treats is not the key to fixing these issues, but can quicken the process of taking the fear of humans out of the horse.

A Good Rule for Success: Overall, a good rule of thumb is only feed your horse a treat if he is NOT looking for it or anticipating it. You want it to be a positive bonus, not an expectation. A true partnership is based on respect, communication, and leadership - not food.