04/10/2026
Is your horse learning what (you think) you're teaching?
When I raise the topic of consequences during lessons, workshops, and clinics, people usually think they have them all figured out: reward (reinforce) behaviours we want; ignore or punish behaviours we don't want. In theory and hypothetical situations it's usually very clear which we need to do. But... when we really sit with what we think we're teaching and compare it to what horses are actually learning in particular situations it's clear that it's more nuanced, and that the behaviour we're intent on reinforcing or punishing is often not the same as the behaviour the horse finds we're addressing.
Let's take a look at a classic dog teaching vs learning situation: a dog is barking wildly at something at the gate. Irritated, its owner calls it. The dog joyfully comes as instructed. Deciding to teach it not to bark at the gate in the future, its owner gives it a good smack when it comes within range. The behaviour the person thinks they're making less likely in the future is the barking. However, the dog is actually learning not to come when called, because its return to the owner was punished. Timing is critical. To reduce barking, but maintain a good recall, the better course of action would have been to buzz an e-collar while the dog was barking, and to give the dog a treat when the dog returned.
In operant conditioning, punishment is any unpleasant consequence that immediately follows a behaviour in order to decrease or suppress the likelihood of that behaviour happening in the future.
Importantly, there are three aspects to a consequence that make it punishment:
GOAL: to make a behaviour less likely to happen in the future;
METHOD: an unpleasant consequence (it makes the individual feel something unpleasant such as pain, fear, anxiety, stress, frustration, confusion, physical exertion, and so forth); and
TIMING: it happens immediately after or during an unwanted behaviour.
Most people get caught up with the goal. They're intent on making a particular behaviour less likely in the future. They know that unpleasant consequences are one of the tools for the job, and go about applying some of the most obvious... smacking (pain), growling (fear), work (exertion).
The problem with thinking that punishment is only these sorts of things is that they are not the only way we can punish, and often - like the well-meaning dog owner - what we think we're teaching is not what the horse is learning.
Any time a horse is feeling pain, fear, anxiety, stress, physical exertion, confusion, or frustration, it is being punished whether we are intending to punish them or not - and whether we are aware of it or not.
Some examples (there are plenty more!) of a horse experiencing unpleasant emotions include a horse:
- being asked to do something they don't feel capable of (going out alone on a trail, doing a jump that is too challenging, being expected to do too long or strenuous a session, doing a movement they don't know how to or are incapable of, etc);
- being asked to do something that is confusing or frustrating (they don't understand the question or know how to get the answer right, etc.);
- being taken somewhere where they feel afraid (away from their buddies, alone on a trail, towards the scary part of the arena, in a trailer, to a show, etc.);
- being ridden or handled by someone (nervous, unbalanced, aggressive, etc.) who makes them feel afraid, confused, or frustrated; and
- being ridden in tack or equipment (saddle, bit, bridle, girth, lunging aid, etc.) that hurts or maintains pressure no matter what they do.
Punishment makes a behaviour less likely in the future. So, a horse that's asked to do something they don't feel capable of will be less inclined to do it in the future, not more. A horse that's taken somewhere they feel afraid will be less likely to want to go there in the future. A horse that's ridden or handled by someone who makes them feel afraid will be less likely to want to be ridden or handled by that person - or in general - in the future. A horse who's ridden in tack or equipment that hurts will be less likely to want to be ridden in the future.
As a mom to a 2 year old, I often think of our mission to instill a love for water and swimming. I'm not going to take my child, kicking and screaming, into a rough ocean. Because that would mean I'm punishing him for going into the water. Instead, I'm going to make the whole thing enjoyable, fun even. Get him used to safely getting in and out of the pool first. Get him comfortable with the water. Get him confident. Then start encouraging him to do "more". If I did drag him kicking and screaming into any type of water, you can bet your life he's going to be terrified of water - and not trust me around water in the future.
You get the picture.
If we want our horses (and dogs, children, and so forth) to want to do certain things in the future, then we have to make sure that we're not inadvertently punishing them for doing the things that we want them to want to do.
We do this by making sure we don't:
- ask them to do anything they don't feel capable of;
- make them confused or frustrated;
- take them somewhere where they feel afraid;
- ride or handle them in a way that makes them feel anything unpleasant.
"But how am I supposed to make progress then?!" you cry, "Growth happens outside of comfort zones!"
I get it. We all have goals and deadlines and none of us have time to wait for our horses to feel capable or braver, etc. But punishment is not the answer. It only makes them distrust us, which usually makes things worse.
The answer lies in awareness, lowered expectations (not forever, I promise) and reinforcement. We first need to be acutely aware of how our horses are feeling every moment we're with them, and ensuring we avoid making them feel anything unpleasant. You'll note I didn't say "ensuring we don't make them feel anything unpleasant". In my mind, that is the ideal we're aiming for, but it's usually unrealistic because we can't always predict how our horses will feel about things.
The key is, if a horse shows signs that it's uncomfortable, we need to adjust what we're doing to help them find comfort again. This means paying attention to their subtle communication. A raised head. A change in breathing. Wide, unblinking eyes. A shift in attention. Hesitation. Attempts to leave a situation. If we miss these quiet whispers, the horse has no choice but to move on to shying, bucking, rearing, kicking, napping and so forth.
One of the most common things I see with horses - and something I used to do a lot - was not let a nervous horse move away from the thing it feels nervous about. If that was a trail, they had to keep going. If it was a plastic bag, we had to get closer and closer. Heck, tie the thing onto the horse to show them it's not going to eat them. I was taught that if the horse was allowed to move away, the horse was being rewarded and would learn that it could move away, and would do that in the future.
But this couldn't be less true.
Regrettably, this approach is practiced by millions of well-meaning horse people around the world. They think they're teaching their horses to be braver, but their horses are actually learning that:
- people are horrible leaders who can't be trusted, and
- their discomfort doesn't matter, so to grin and bear it (until they can't anymore, and "suddenly" we have dangerous behaviour).
If a horse feels nervous about something, we need to help them find comfort and safety again at the first sign of worry. This might mean retreating or going a different route. It might mean getting off and leading them past what they're worried about. It might mean asking less, breaking an exercise down into its parts, checking tack fit, etc.
Because, if we don't do these things, and they hold onto their worry, they're essentially being punished for facing the scary thing - which will make them less likely to want to face scary things in the future.
You can copy and paste this into any other situation.
It is well-known amongst trainers worth their salt that studies have shown punishment to be the least effective and most damaging training method. Punishment should always be used lightly and only as a last resort.
What we really want to do, is contain unpleasant feelings insofar as we can (ensure tack fits correctly, make sure we're not confusing or asking too much, don't overface) and reinforce the smallest try of the behaviour we want. Recognise when they go towards something they don't want to, and reinforce them for doing that. Reinforcement doesn't have to be the addition of something pleasant (like food). It can simply be the removal of something unpleasant (like pain, fear, fatigue, etc). Getting away from a scary thing does NOT teach the horse that it doesn't need to deal with scary things (again, intention vs reality). It teaches the horse that it's safe with us, that we care about how they feel, and it helps them emotionally regulate. Ultimately, the neural pathways responsible for returning to relaxation after stress get stronger, and the horse gets more confident and safer as a result.
Real learning and real behaviour change comes about when we change the underlying emotions.
If you found this helpful, you definitely want to check out my course on how horses learn, which dives into not only operant conditioning but also how horses experience the world, the impact of equine brain structure and the nervous system on learning, and several practical examples. Coming soon!
Photo courtesy of the phenomenal Katie-Lee Wisdom
