Last week, I wrote about introducing Chewie to a fly mask. This week, Chewie and I have continued to practice putting on and taking off the fly mask.

In this week’s post, I wanted to share a video with you of our current fly mask routine, as well as some big ideas that I have been thinking about.

In the video, you will see the predictable routine that we have established and that I now use each time I put on the mask. You’ll see that Chewie starts the routine by coming over and touching the mask. Then, she earns several clicks and treats throughout the routine.

Watch on YouTube: Chewie’s Fly Mask Routine

Here are some big lessons that have helped us establish a successful routine with the fly mask.

Big idea #1: Predictable routines create more opportunities for “yes” and “no”

We’ve established a predictable routine with the fly mask. I always start the sequence in the same way. And, I use the same steps each time, in the same order.

Having a predictable routine makes it easier for me to see when Chewie is saying “yes” and when she is saying “no.” Of course, Chewie can’t actually talk to me, but she communicates very clearly through her behavior!

As part of this routine, Chewie has two opportunities to approach me. At the very beginning, she starts the routine by coming over and touching the fly mask with her nose. Then, after the first click and treat, I walk several steps forward, giving her a second chance to approach me.

At both of these points in the routine, I’m checking to see if she willingly and eagerly approaches.

In addition, Chewie is loose in the barn (no halter or lead rope) and the gate is open. So, she can leave at any time, if she wants.

Having a predictable routine helps me notice signs that Chewie may be concerned or unhappy, such as hesitating to approach me, turning her head away, backing up, or tense body language.

Big idea #2: What adjustments can make our interactions even smoother?

I video almost all of my training sessions. Watching the videos allows me to assess what’s working well, what is almost working, and what’s not working.

When we first started practicing with the fly mask, I could tell that Chewie was sometimes unhappy with me lifting the mask over her eyes and putting her right ear in the mask.

I have been experimenting with different ways of initially placing the mask on Chewie’s head or neck. I’ve found that it is easier for her if we start with the mask on her neck and then swing it around. I’ve also been experimenting with different ways to hold the mask and move the mask as I bring it over her eyes.

I haven’t tried to teach Chewie to tolerant these parts of the routine or tried to reinforce her for keeping her head straight. Instead, I’ve tried to find adjustments that I could make to my behavior that would help her be comfortable and happy.

Whenever I’m training, I’m always looking for adjustments, big or small, that will help the animal and I be more successful together.

Big idea #3: Don’t be greedy with your reinforcers!

I find many horse trainers, dog trainers, and pet owners are eager to reduce or eliminate the treats once the animal “knows” the behavior.

Our current fly mask routine takes about one minute, and Chewie earns four clicks and treats.

Long term, I may work toward having this function as a longer chain of behaviors, with one click and treat at the end.

But, for now, I feel like Chewie and I are both happy with our current routine. I love that Chewie is eager to participate and comes right over when I hold out the fly mask each time.

So, why try to fade out the treats? I think it’s perfectly fine that we are breaking the fly mask routine into several steps and that Chewie earns a click and treat for each step.

Chewie and I have been doing some fly mask training. I think she will appreciate wearing a fly mask, as it will help keep the pesky flies off her face.

I’ve been using clicker training this week to introduce Chewie to the fly mask. My goal is to keep our training sessions short and fun and to teach Chewie that the fly mask isn’t something to be afraid of.

What are all the skills a horse needs to know to wear a fly mask?

My final goal is for Chewie to be able to wear the fly mask in the pasture and for her to be comfortable and happy while I take the fly mask on and off.

And, there are actually lots of smaller tasks that combine together to create this goal.

Rather than doing everything all at once, I’ve been working on some of these component pieces separately.

One piece we have been working on is the Velcro!

Many horses are afraid of the sound of Velcro. It sounds loud and potentially scary, especially if the sound happens unexpectedly and right below the horse’s head, as the person is trying to fasten or unfasten the mask.

I the photo above, I’m practicing fastening and unfastening the Velcro when the mask is NOT on Chewie. She’s being curious and investigating what I’m doing, which I love to see!

Also, I’m really appreciating all of the time that we spent earlier this year working on the BARTA agility course.

You can read about some of the BARTA training that we did in this post and watch the video of our submission here.

One BARTA task that we spent quite a bit of time working on was putting a towel over Chewie’s ears and face. Initially, Chewie was unsure about this task. But, she became comfortable with it as we kept practicing.

Wearing a towel and wearing a fly mask are similar in many regards. I think the training with the towel has helped our fly mask training go quickly and smoothly!

It’s a good reminder for me that many training tasks are related. When we take the time to patiently and carefully teach one behavior, this behavior will often help us with other behaviors later on.

You may also like the post that I wrote some years ago about introducing a young rescued horse named Boomer to a fly mask. You can check it out here.

And, I’ve been quite pleased with all of the progress that Chewie has made.

As I wrote about in last week’s post (Week 63: Pool noodles!), I tried introducing Chewie to the noodles several months ago, and I could tell that she just wasn’t ready.

However, Chewie now has a lot more foundational skills. So, when I tried introducing the noodles again, several weeks ago, she was a lot more curious and confident. As we’ve worked with the noodles, it’s been fun to see the fast progress that we have made!

As you’ll see in the photos and video below, Chewie can now happily and confidently walk between two pool noodles. Later on, we’ll add even more noodles!

Here’s a recent video showing all of the progress that we’ve made.

Watch on YouTube: Chewie masters the pool noodle obstacle

It’s a fun obstacle, but also a practical obstacle. This obstacle can help a horse learn to be calm and confident if something unexpectedly touches their side or bushes up against them. In these types of situations, may horses are quick to spook, panic, and run away!

Several years ago, I taught my Arabian gelding, Apollo, to confidently walk between two pool noodles. We went slowly and carefully, as Apollo was often afraid of new things. You can see some photos and videos from Apollo’s early training with the noodle obstacle in this post.

Several months ago, I tried introducing Chewie to the noodles, and I could tell that she just wasn’t ready for this challenge, yet.

She was interested in engaging with me near the noodles, but she was not curious about the noodles and did not want to engage with them. She was convinced that it was a much smarter decision to walk around them than to touch them or to let them touch her.

I think we could have continued attempting training sessions with the noodles, but I could tell that the training was going to be slow and difficult. So, rather than trying to keep pushing forward, we took a break and waited several months before attempting the noodles again.

In the meantime, we’ve spent a lot of time working with flags. And, Chewie now thinks that flags are really fun. You can read more about how I introduced Chewie to the flags in our flags are fun post and you can see a video of Chewie walking confidently between two flags as part of our March 2026 agility entry.

Flags are different than noodles. But, many of the features that make flags scary are similar to the things that make noodles scary. Flags are brightly colored. They move unpredictably. They might touch you. They move when they touch you. And, they feel funny when they touch you.

Now that Chewie is curious and confident about flags, I thought that it might be a good time to try introducing her to the noodles again.

Chewie meets the noodles

We started by doing some explorations with the noodles in the barn.

I set up several noodles in various places and at various heights. Then, we spent time hanging out together in the barn. If Chewie wanted to explore the noodles, she could! If she didn’t want to investigate them, we practiced other behaviors that she knows well, with the noodles nearby.

As we hung out together, I would periodically move to different parts of the barn. This allowed Chewie to practice casually walking near the noodles and gave her more opportunities to investigate them, if she wanted.

Next, I arranged two noodles so that there was a wide space between them. We practiced walking back and forth between the gap. Chewie had plenty of space so that the noodles did not touch her. She could also walk out of the barn and round the noodles, if she didn’t want to go through them.

Over time, I gradually made the gap narrower!

As the gap got narrower, the noodles began to touch Chewie as she walked through them.

We went slowly at first, so that she didn’t get startled or loose confidence.

In our past several sessions, Chewie has made a lot of progress.

She can now push between two noodles and is comfortable letting the noodles touch her body as she walks through them.

I’ll post more next week as we continue making progress with the noodles.

Chewie and I submitted our entry at the end of last week, and I was really pleased with how well we did on the course.

Here’s our video entry. Most of the obstacles involved having the horse stand still while the person did something to the horse.

I have Chewie at liberty (no halter or lead rope) so that she can back away or leave if she feels uncomfortable. In addition, I show her each item before we do the task. That way, she knows what is about to happen!

Watch on YouTube: Horse Agility – BARTA Course 2026 – Mary & Chewie

I’m also celebrating the fact that Chewie and I got last place out of 24 entries!

We received a score of 78/100 for the test. (You can see the full results here.)

I can be quite competitive sometimes.

However, I’m trying very hard to NOT be competitive at horse agility with Chewie. I want to use the horse agility tests as a way for Chewie and I to build new skills while having fun together.

For example, on this test, we lost a chunk of points because we skipped two of the challenges on the test. Earlier in my horse training days, I know I would have likely attempted these obstacles.

But, there’s no reason to try obstacles that we aren’t ready for and to do them poorly, just for a few extra points.

Chewie and I have many years of training together to look forward to. There’s no reason to rush things now!

So, right now, I am celebrating the progress that we made this past month as we worked on this course. And, I’m delighted that some of this training will likely help Chewie be more confident in the future for veterinary and grooming tasks.

BARTA is the British Animal Rescue and Trauma Care Association. They are a non-profit organization that seeks to improve the welfare of animals in emergency situations. BARTA provides specialized training for firefighters, vets, rescue teams, and others who deal with animals in emergencies. 

The special fundraiser course was designed by the Horse Agility Club and by BARTA and simulates situations that may be encountered during equine rescue operations. 

I was excited when I saw the announcement for the course, as Chewie and I have been working a lot recently on training for veterinary procedures. 

The BARTA course has offered us some new training challenges, which I hope will help Chewie be more confident and brave in the future during vet visits or when something unexpected happens. 

Of course, we’ve been using positive reinforcement and clicker training as we work on the course. Here are a few of the challenges we’ve been playing with.

The sound of sirens!

Can your horse stand calmly near you while you play the sound of sirens on your phone or another device? 

The first time I tried this task with Chewie, she left me and walked around the side of the barn, looking for the vehicle that was making all the noise!

Chewie was a little concerned about the sirens, at first.

So, we started with the noise very low and for just a few seconds. Then, we gradually increased the noise level and the length of time. 

Protection barrier

Can you hold a board or other large flat object against your horse’s side? This object is meant to simulate a protection barrier that an emergency worker might place between themselves and an injured horse. 

For this challenge, Chewie and I started with a paper bag and gradually worked our way up to larger pieces of cardboard and then other types of objects. 

At one point, we tried a plastic platform that Chewie often stands on. When I held it up near her, she took several steps away from me. 

And, that was okay!

She was communicating to me that she wasn’t ready for that level of challenge, yet. We switched back to easier objects that she was more confident about. 

A towel over the head

Can you put a towel over your horse’s neck and then gently pull the towel forward until it covers the horse’s head and eyes?

In certain emergency or veterinary situations, it may be useful to cover a horse’s eyes. At first, Chewie was a bit unsure about having the towel come up and over her ears. 

So, we started with a washcloth, instead of a towel. I practiced rubbing and touching it on parts of her body where she would accept it happily, such as on her neck. Then, we gradually worked toward her ears. 

We are getting ready to film our submission for the BARTA course.

I’ll share the video, later on!

Chewie got lots of extra treats and scratches today for her birthday.

I don’t know Chewie’s exact birthday. However, the rescue organization and their vet used April 1 for her health records, which means that today is Chewie’s more-or-less official birthday.

So, Chewie is now three.

She is starting to look like an adult horse, but she still has more growing to do. Most horses don’t fully finish growing until they are around six years old.

Chewie’s March agility video

We also recently submitted our entry for the Horse Agility Club’s March Young Horses course.

I was really proud of Chewie. The March test was the first time we attempted all five obstacles in the test, and I think we did quite well!

As you’ll see in the video, Chewie had to back up over a pole, pass through two flags, weave between five cones (without me weaving with her!), walk through a scary corridor, and then halt on a tarp.

It was a bit windy on the day we filmed the course, and I love how well Chewie did with the blowing flags.

The one challenge for this course was that the first two obstacles and the last two obstacles had to be set up in a line. This arrangement made filming a bit difficult.

But, we managed to get the whole course on camera!

Watch on YouTube: Horse Agility Club – March 2026 – Mary & Chewie

What’s next in Chewie’s horse agility journey

Our March submission is our third and last submission for the Young Horses course. Now that Chewie is three, it’s time for us to start entering in the regular competition classes.

However, we plan to still approach these horse agility courses slowly and thoughtfully! My goal for Chewie and for me is for us to have fun together, rather than to be competitive.

The regular competition classes usually have a series of ten obstacles.

I’m not sure if Chewie and I are quite ready for ten obstacles all at once! So, on the upcoming tests, we’ll probably skip obstacles or modify obstacles, as needed, to create a course that will be challenging, but also fun for both of us.

This year, I gave two lectures at the conference. In addition, I presented two learning labs and participated in a symposium about multiple markers. It was a busy weekend!

As I mentioned in last week’s blog post, Chewie didn’t get to come with me to the conference. But, she certainly did help me prepare for the conference.

In today’s post, I want to explain more about the photo I shared last week with the cone on my head.

One of my lectures at ClickerExpo this year was all about cues. I discussed what cues are and how they work. I also talked about the idea of “constant stimuli” and how constant stimuli work in conjunction with cues.

What is a constant stimuli?

When an individual learns a behavior, they don’t just learn the behavior. The individual is also learning the antecedents (cues) that accompany this behavior, as well as the constant stimuli.

You can think of constant stimuli as the context, or the background features. They are the features that are constants during a training session. We usually don’t even notice them! However, when they change suddenly, they can disrupt a behavior.

As part of my lecture, I showed some video examples illustrating how constant stimuli may disrupt behavior, what we can do to prevent these disruptions, and how we can use constant stimuli to create stronger cues.

Chewie has a very solid behavior which involves standing with two feet on a platform.

She approaches the platform from a distance, climbs onto it, and then stays on it until I give my reinforcer signal. When I say the word “nice” (my reinforcer signal), we both leave the platform, and she receives a handful of pellets in a large tub that is located some distance behind the platform.

I often put two cones on either side of the platform. The cones don’t cue the behavior. But, they are usually present. They become part of the constant stimuli, or background features of this training set up.

However, the cones are always on the ground!

I was curious to see what Chewie would do if I altered the constant stimuli for this training set up. What if one of the cones was on top of my head, rather than on the ground?

Chewie had no problem getting on the platform.

She approached the platform promptly and climbed on it, as she always does. However, as you can see from the photo below, Chewie was quite curious about the cone on my head! She spent quite a bit of time smelling the cone, even though she has seen this same cone on the ground many, many times.

One way you can strengthen your cues is by making frequent changes to the constant stimuli. Animal trainers sometimes call this process “proofing.” Your animal is learning to perform the behavior on cue, with lots of variations in the background environment.

Your goal during this process should be to make gradual, systematic changes that result in the animal still performing the behavior reliably on cue.

When I put the cone on my head, I made too big of a change. Even though Chewie successfully got on the platform, her behavior was disrupted. She was not ready for the next cue and needed a good bit of time to check out the cone on my head.

I could have made this training session even more successful by starting with gradual changes. For example, over a series of repetitions, I could have put the cone on a cinder block, then held it at waist height, then held it at chest height, and so on, gradually raising the cone until it was on my head.

However, I loved that Chewie was super curious about the cone and wanted to smell it. She was not at all scared or uncertain about a person with a cone on their head!

Chewie doesn’t get to come with me to the conference, but she has definitely been helping me prepare for my lectures, as you can see in the photos below!

This year, I’ll be giving a lecture and a learning lab about cues.

We’ll be talking about what cues are, what does it mean for a behavior to be “on cue”, how constant stimuli work in conjunction with cues, how to change cues, and much more!

In these photos, Chewie was practicing going to her platform and standing on the platform.

Meanwhile, I was experimenting with making changes to some of the constant stimuli and documenting how this affected her behavior.

I’ll share more next week about ClickerExpo and about the concept of constant stimuli.

This was a big deal for Chewie!

Last summer, our vet came out to the barn to give Chewie a vaccine for strangles. When the vet poked Chewie with the needle, Chewie pulled back and bolted across the paddock with the needle and syringe hanging out of her neck. Chewie told us very clearly that she did not want to be poked with needles!

Chewie and I have spent the past several months working diligently on vaccine training in preparation for the two vaccines Chewie needed this spring. My desire is for Chewie to be happy and calm during vet appointments so that everything is safer and easier for both Chewie and my vet.

I don’t have any photos or videos from our recent vet visit, but here’s what happened.

To start, I cleaned Chewie’s neck with alcohol before the vet arrived. Chewie tolerates me putting alcohol on her neck. But, she still doesn’t love this step, and I want to minimize the number of unpleasant events that she associates with the vet.

Then, I had Chewie eating hay in the yard outside the barn so that she could see the vet arrive. She and the vet got to say “hi” to each other in the yard. Chewie spent a little time sniffing the vet, and the vet gave her a few scratches.

Then, we went to the barn to get started!

Our training routine for injections involves a big plastic platform. Chewie gets her food pellets in a bucket that is approximately 15 feet away from the platform. Then, she tells us that she is ready to start the next training repetition by standing on the platform. The platform gives her a clear way to opt-in or to opt-out. It also lets her control the pace of the training session or the actual vet visit.

Once Chewie is on the platform, we do one repetition for whatever training step we are working on. Then, I say the word “Nice!” as our reinforcer signal. “Nice” is the cue for us to both leave the platform and walk back to the bucket for a handful of food.

At the actual vet visit, we did three repetitions with Chewie on the platform. Each time, she came over promptly and happily to stand on her platform.

Repetition 1 was our warm-up rep. The vet and I stood in front of the platform. After Chewie got on the platform, she sniffed the vet for a few seconds. Next, the vet moved to Chewie’s side and petted her shoulder and neck for around 10 seconds. Then, we went back to the bucket for a bit of food.

Repetition 2 was the vaccine rep. Again, the vet and I both started in front of the platform. Once Chewie was on the platform, the vet moved to the right side of her neck, and I stayed by her head. The vet stroked her a few times, poked her with the needle, and then injected the shot. Chewie did not move or flinch at all! After the needle was out, I gave Chewie a handful of food on the platform. Then, we went back to her blue bucket in the barn for another handful of pellets in her bucket.

Repetition 3 was a follow-up rep. I wanted to make sure that Chewie would still come back to the platform. After Chewie finished her food in her bucket, she did indeed come promptly and eagerly back to her platform. My happy vet talked to Chewie and fed her a few treats while she was on the platform. Then, we left the platform and went back for more food in the bucket.

All in all, the whole session took around five minutes.

I’m really proud of our success! This spring, I will write some more about our training steps and share some photos and videos from our practice sessions.