Monday, September 29, 2008

Edify and melee

"You can't teach an animal by lecturing, or threatening, or tricking," she said, running the brush over the mare's mane. The horse stood patiently under Jill's touch. "Dogs, cats, horses, even cattle are not wired the same way as humans. They need to be instructed through patience and companionship, through positive reinforcement and encouragement."

"You don't think people respond to that stuff?"

"Oh, of course they do. But with people, there are more options. If you find out that a child has colored on the wall an hour after it happened, you can still explain to him why it was wrong and he can learn not to do it again. Animals aren't that way. There's only that moment to teach them. If you miss it, you can't get uspet. You just have to wait and try again."

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