Samantha Couper - Equine ABCs

05/21/2026

This is an incredible class--if you're a trainer using R+ or you're interesting in learning R+ in more detail, there is no place better to truly deepen your understanding.

Trudi has a gift for teaching others, as well as undeniable skill using R+ with horses. It's hard to get the two in combination in someone so humble and kind.

We've just crossed into the final chapter of this year's Professional Horse Trainer Certificate, and I couldn't be more proud of this cohort.

These students are working so hard - the theory, the practical training, the wobbly moments and the breakthroughs and now they begin what I think is the most exciting part of the whole process: training their own student.

Watching people grow into confident, thoughtful, ethical trainers is genuinely one of my favourite things. I don't understand how any course for trainers can be solely theory based. If you are going to train humans and their horses then you need to practice that skill and be supported in doing so using THE most modern training techniques.

If you've ever thought about taking this course, the next one starts in March 2027, drop me a message. There's always a scholarship place at a hugely discounted rate!

05/02/2026

03/30/2026

27-28 June 2026 at Reasheath College, Cheshire. Lectures, demos & workshops on horse behaviour, training, physiology, equine science and welfare.

03/30/2026

Want to know some of the behavioral differences between wild horses and b***os? This is a great, free webinar from equid behavior expert Dr. King.

- Brief introduction to studying behavior, the why and the how
- 4 Sites (2 Horse, 2 B***o) in the Western US
- 4 Year look at radio collars, group structures, and behaviors
- Differences in horse and b***o social systems
- Time budgets for both wild horses and b***os
- Differences in horse and b***o behaviors; both agonostic (conflict) and affiliative (friendly) behaviors are discussed
- Reproductive behaviors
- Scent marking behaviors
- Female choice in horses
- Relationship between agonistic/affiliative behaviors and stallion reproductive success

Dr. Sarah King will present recentresearch about wild horse and b***obehavior, highlighting differencesbetween the species. She will discusstheir behavior in...

03/29/2026

The answer to this question is yes. Justine always has excellent breakdowns of some of the latest horse welfare literature!

ARE WE WEANING FOALS TOO EARLY?

From the horses and problems I see, I know the answer is yes. Now an interesting new study suggests that how we manage the mare–foal relationship doesn’t just affect the foal in the short term, but can shape how they think, cope, and behave as adults.

Researchers compared foals weaned at around 6 months with those who remained with their mothers for longer, looking at brain development, behaviour, learning ability, and physiological stress markers.

Foals who stayed with their mothers:

• Showed differences in brain regions involved in emotional regulation and decision-making

• Had stronger connectivity in brain networks linked to processing information and responding appropriately to the environment

• Were more exploratory, more social, and quicker to approach novelty

• Learned handling tasks in fewer sessions and showed less resistance

• Despite spending less time feeding, foals with their mothers gained more weight

Whereas early-weaned foals:

• Showed higher cortisol levels, indicating greater stress

The concept at the centre of this research is allostasis – the brain’s ability to predict what is likely to happen and adjust behaviour and physiology in advance, based on past experience and current information.

Allostasis isn’t something a horse is born with. It develops through experience and from social learning. The mare appears to play a key role in this process, providing the foal with the information needed to interpret situations accurately. Without that early guidance, the developing horse may be more prone to overreact, misinterpret stimuli, or struggle to regulate stress.

We should be rethinking whether foals are being left with their dams for long enough. I very often see horses with behaviour problems who were weaned at 6 months or earlier (sometimes as young as 3 months), rather than the 8–12 months or longer they would remain with their dam naturally. The difference between foals who have had a more secure early upbringing and those weaned early is often striking in their behaviour, confidence, and ability to cope with the world around them.

The weaning process should not be treated as a management event driven by commercial timelines or the urgency to sell the foal. It is about how early life experience shapes the adult horse.

If behaviour, learning, and stress resilience are being influenced this early, what are the long-term consequences of how we currently raise and manage foals?

Study: Valenchon et al, Affiliative behaviours regulate allostasis development and shape biobehavioural trajectories in horses, 2026, Nature Communications

03/28/2026

I absolutely love teaching this class through the University of Utah. It is a joy to be able to connect with so many people. They get really into the nitty gritty science and ask so many good questions. We dive into a LOT of material, some of it “advanced” but I’ve never had a group of students not up to the challenge.

02/12/2026

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU INTENTIONALLY TRAINED SOMETHING YOUR HORSE FINDS FUN?

Sure, a horse can learn to have fun during training, but when was the last time you intentionally picked something your horse enjoys?

Training is almost always for us:
- preparation for riding
- preparation for handling
- getting horses responsive to cues
- getting them safer to handle during stressful moments

But life gets exhausting when every day is a math test. What kind of things does your horse like to do, that you can integrate into your training?

Here’s a few things I do:
- Nova likes scent games and puzzles, so I try and make sure some of our training sessions are this and some days she gets food puzzles and that’s all we do
- Oberon likes scratches and brushing, so some days are just brushing and Oberon gets to pick the brush and direct where to brush and when to stop

Not every day needs to be hard. Fun days are important, too.

02/07/2026

Such a great summary of how uncomfortable something that seems like it should be fun can be for a learner! Clarity is such a key component no matter what form of training we’re trying to teach our horses with.

I realise it’s 25 years this month since I held my first clicker. And the experience was so awful I vowed I’d never use one of those with a horse!

A friend had heard Ben Hart, equine clicker training pioneer, speak at a conference and suggested we try playing the “clicker game”. A bit like the “hotter, colder” game but using a click instead of saying “hotter”. So there I was, with three friends, and every so often I’d hear a click when I did something “right.” The problem was… I had no idea what that “right” thing was.

I stood in the middle of the room, feeling stumped. I stepped back. Nothing. I stepped sideways. Nothing. I squatted. I stretched. I waved my arms like an idiot. Then suddenly — click.

My heart jumped. Okay… what did I just do?

I tried to repeat it. I turned to the right. Click. Turned more. Click.
Turned again… nothing. I felt myself getting shaky. Embarrassed. Flustered. I didn’t want to look stupid, but inside I was panicking.

What do they want from me?

Ten minutes later I was frozen halfway up a staircase. I didn’t know whether to go up… go down… sit… slide… or turn around. I had no idea what the “right” answer was. And even though I was surrounded by friends and nothing bad could happen, I wanted to cry.

Finally I said, “I’ve got no idea what you want.” They laughed and said, “We just wanted you to turn the light on.” Oh. The light switch. Right there. That was it.

We laughed about it… but when I drove home, I couldn’t stop thinking about how awful that felt. And one thought hit me hard:
I would never want a horse to feel what I just felt. So I put the clicker away. For three whole years. After all, I already had much better tools than this.

But years later, with more experience and reflection, I understood the truth: it wasn’t the clicker that was the problem. It was the lack of clarity. People argue about tools — clickers, food, pressure, methods. But none of that is the heart of good training.

Good training is kindness through clarity. It’s making the next right step obvious. It’s helping the learner feel safe enough to succeed. The best trainers don’t force answers. They guide towards them. My lovely friends failed to provide the necessary guidance for me to succeed and it felt awful.

That moment on the stairs gave me something I will never lose: the feeling in my gut of being lost and desperate to get it right. So now, when I see a horse offering random behaviours… when I see confusion instead of confidence… I remember that staircase.

And I know the answer is always the same: Clarity.

Make the right thing obvious.
Let them feel successful.
Let them feel understood.

And out of the clarity tools available, a clicker IS one of the best!

02/02/2026

02/01/2026

Some gastric ulcer information!

The latest issue of UC Davis Center for Equine Health Horse Report focuses on equine gastric ulcers. Here are 10 things you might not know about them... https://cehhorsereport.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/news/10-things-you-might-not-know-about-equine-gastric-ulcers