Poisoned Cues in Animal Training: What They Are and Why They Matter
By Abigail Greenwalt, R+ Trainer & Animal Science Educator
Is Your Horse Ignoring You—Or Is the Cue Poisoned?
When a horse hesitates, shuts down, or avoids a behavior they "know"—it’s easy to blame distraction, stubbornness, or poor training. But what if the cue itself has become the problem?
In the world of positive reinforcement horse training, understanding the concept of a poisoned cue is critical. Especially for those of us with crossover horses—or those who’ve mixed R+ with traditional pressure-based methods—it’s a lot more common than we might think.
Let’s dive into what poisoned cues are, how to spot them, and what to consider before you begin repairing them.
What Is a Poisoned Cue?
In training, a cue is a discriminative stimulus (SD)—a signal that tells the horse, "If you do this behavior now, reinforcement is available." In a clean R+ context, that cue becomes a conditioned positive reinforcer itself. Hearing it feels good. Acting on it pays off. The behavior becomes confident, fluid, and engaged.
A command, on the other hand, is also an SD—but one trained using pressure, correction, or punishment. It usually functions as an "or else" signal: Do this, or something unpleasant will follow.
A poisoned cue is what happens when those two learning histories collide. The horse may have learned the behavior through correction or pressure (negative reinforcement, positive punishment), but now we’re cueing it and reinforcing it with food or praise.
Even when delivered with cookies and kindness, that cue is still soaked in emotional baggage.
The result? Ambiguity. Hesitation. Shut down. Your horse might perform the behavior, but it feels robotic or flat. Or maybe they avoid the cue altogether. They’re not being defiant—they’re uncertain about what’s coming next.
Common Examples of Poisoned Cues in Horses
Clucks or kisses to move forward: Originally paired with escalating leg pressure, spurs, or whips.
Lead rope pressure: Triggers bracing, balking, or head-flipping.
Mounting cues: The horse lines up but shows tension or reluctance.
Targeting: A once positive behavior, now approached with caution if it was previously coerced.
Haltering, bridling, grooming: All frequently poisoned if restraint or force was used.
Tack or trailer cues: These often combine pressure with high emotional stakes and can be very difficult to detangle.
The environment itself: Arenas, round pens, or even cross-ties can serve as contextual cues associated with past stress or fear.
Yes—even cues trained with positive reinforcement can become poisoned if frustration, coercion, or inconsistency creeps in.
So How Can You Tell If a Cue Is Poisoned?
Here are some key questions to ask yourself:
🔍 History-Based Questions
Was this behavior originally taught using pressure or punishment?
Has the cue ever led to something unpleasant or aversive?
Is the cue rooted in a discipline or trainer’s method you no longer use?
👁️ Observation-Based Questions
Does your horse freeze, brace, or move with tension after you cue the behavior?
Do they leave, shut down, or "check out" immediately after the cue?
Does their response seem unreliable, delayed, or emotionally conflicted?
Do you find yourself over-compensating with high-value treats just to get compliance?
🧠 Emotional Context Questions
Does their enthusiasm drop after the cue?
Is there conflict—like pinned ears or a tight body posture—when they respond?
Would they behave differently if you retrained the behavior with a new cue from scratch?
Clean, Positive Cues Feel Different
A well-conditioned R+ cue is:
Prompt and enthusiastic
Followed by fluid, voluntary behavior
Paired with bright eyes, forward ears, and loose muscles
Increasingly reliable over time
Something your horse seeks out and enjoys repeating
If your cue doesn’t look like that—don’t panic. You’re not alone.
Crossover horses and crossover trainers often struggle with poisoned cues. Many of us inherited cues, environments, or techniques with aversive histories baked in. But the good news? These can be unlearned, reframed, or repaired.
Ready to Fix It?
If you’ve identified a poisoned cue and want to learn exactly how to repair it, I’ve created a full step-by-step course inside the Greenwalt Equine Membership.
Inside, we cover:
How to safely retire and replace poisoned cues
What to do when the cue can’t be changed (like trailering or tack)
How to rebuild behaviors in a clean emotional context
What to look for in your horse’s body language during the process
Protocols for environmental poisoning, emotional fallout, and more
💡 Ready to dive in?
👉 Join the Membership Here
You’ll get immediate access to the full Poisoned Cues Course, plus live group lessons, self-paced classes, training video reviews, and a cozy nerdy community of ethical horse trainers from around the world.
Let’s clean up those cues and rebuild behaviors that feel good—for you and your horse.
