It's Not What They Do, It's How They Do It!

When we interact with our horses there is a dialog between us. Because horses have a physical language it is sometimes difficult to understand how our horse is communicating with us. When we handle a horse it is important to take their gestures into consideration. When and how they make their gestures will play a major role in how we interpret these gestures.

The physical language of horses includes many different actions and expressions. They push and chase each other around, they pin their ears and bare their teeth. They threaten to kick, strike and paw and will follow through if they don’t get the desired response from the object of their attention. They snort, squeal, whinny and nicker to relay emotions. They will bolt, rear up and buck. They will drop their head in aggression and submission and as a sign of acknowledgment. They will toss their heads and puff themselves up. They will lick their lips and chew, yawn and give themselves a shake. They can clamp, swish and wring their tails. These are but a few of the things that horses do to communicate. Essentially everything the horse does means something.

Once we see the signs it comes down to interpretation. We have a pretty good idea what most of their actions mean. When and how they respond to us is just as important as what they are doing physically. A simple gesture can mean several different things depending on when and how they do it. For example, when round penning, a horse will often lower his head. This may be taken as a sign of submission and it can be, but there are other factors I want to consider before I decide what it means. If he lowers his head right to the ground and keeps it there for a stride or two he might just smell something on the ground. He is saying that he is more interested in the smell than he is in me. If he lowers his head, ears back with his head snaking from side to side he is doing some serious posturing and is thinking about charging me. When his head is low, his neck level and he has a soft look in his eye, he is being respectful.