I found an amateur video clip in our tack room and nobody knows where it came from. It shows an amazing demonstration of loading two horses on a trailer. The horses, without a lead or halter, went right into the trailer, one after the other, when the demonstrator gave a hand signal. She gestured toward the open trailer on the other end of the arena and said something like “OK to load.” The horse just trotted up to the ramp with enthusiasm, then walked right on and stood there like a gentleman. Then she gave the second horse the same gesture, and the same thing resulted. They both stood there waiting for the demonstrator to close the ramp at the back and go around and hook them at the front.

Then she unhooked the horses at the front and opened the ramp again. The horses then waited until the demonstrator walked around to the back and gave the word for each one to unload. Then the first horse backed out and turned to the girl while the other one stood waiting for his turn. It seemed like trick training.

She had a fanny pack with treats or something that she slipped to the horses sometimes during and at the end of the demonstration. The tape also showed horses without riders going over a course of jumps on command, again with no tack. It seemed the person on the ground was just pointing the way and the horse did it.

My horse usually loads pretty well, but sometimes jumps back after getting in, or too soon when I am opening the back, or flies off faster than is safe. How can I get my horse to do that loading trick?      via email

This sounds like a demo of loading that is accomplished with what is called target training, or other comparable form of positive reinforcement-based training to get your horse to go anywhere and to stand waiting anywhere for a treat. It’s based on the standard behavior modification and shaping principles and methods.

One of the popular educators of this technique is Shawna Karrasch, who calls her method On Target training. In fact, from your description, she came to mind immediately as the possible demonstrator in the video. There are books and videos available to show you step-by-step instructions. It’s truly easy to train a horse, or really lots of different species of animals, to follow comparable commands for positive reinforcement. For more information on how to do it, see www.on-target-training.com.