A foal born to a neurologically impaired dam is unlikely to mimic his mother's unusual behavior. Photo © EQUUS

Q: If a mare with neurological problems gives birth, will the foal mimic her odd behavior? This is an ongoing debate at our barn. Some people are theorizing that as mom walks, baby walks, and as mom eats, baby eats. I understand that some foals, however, can be born with neurological diseases. Can you help us settle this?

A: Although it is true that foals sometimes mimic the behavioral patterns of their mothers, those born to mares with neurological issues generally do not imitate those deficits. At our neonatal intensive care unit, we have delivered many foals from mares who were afflicted with equine0 protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM), one of the more common infectious neurological diseases seen in horses. These foals do not display any of the neurological signs their mothers do.

However, foals can be born infected with organisms that cause neurological disease that are passed down from the mother. For example, studies show that one of the organisms that can cause EPM, Neospora hughesi, can be transmitted via the placenta to the fetus carried by some naturally infected mares; however, the foals who were found to be infected with the protozoa did not necessarily demonstrate neurological signs for up to three months after birth. Likewise, transmission of the highly contagious equine herpesvirus type-1 (EHV-1) can also occur from the dam to the fetus via the placenta, but while these foals are born with EHV-1 in their bloodstream and various organs (lungs, liver, thymus), the majority of them do not show any neurological signs.

The most common cause of neurological disease seen in the newborn foal is neonatal encephalopathy. This can occur when the fetus is deprived of oxygen in the womb because the placenta is not functioning properly, usually because of a bacterial infection (placentitis). In cases like these, the foals are born with neurological abnormalities, such as incoordination and lack of the suckle reflex. Neonatal encephalopathy may also develop in foals who are deprived of oxygen for too long during the birthing process, as we often see with difficult deliveries (dystocias); these foals generally do not develop neurological signs for up to 18 to 24 hours. In both scenarios, the lack of oxygen leads to fluid accumulation in the brain tissue (cerebral edema), and damage may also occur to other organ systems, such as the kidneys and gastrointestinal tract. The prognosis for these foals is generally very good if they are treated early and appropriately.

Rodney L. Belgrave, DVM, DACVIM
Director of Internal Medicine
Mid-Atlantic Equine Medical Center
Ringoes, New Jersey

Recently, a friend told me she was having trouble finding a trainer to start her 9-year-old horse under saddle. One refused to take on the horse without giving any reason, then another told her that horses were no longer trainable after they turned 9. This surprised us both: Neither of us considers a 9-year-old horse to be “old.”

I am well aware of the prejudice against training older horses who’ve never been ridden or those still considered “green.” However, as founder and president of Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society in Waco, Texas, I have had the opportunity to work with such horses, and I can assure you that there’s no particular age at which it’s too late to start a horse. They’re all individuals---some young horses can be quite a handful, while some older ones settle right into their new jobs.

In fact, I’ve found that most older horses are more than capable of learning new skills or unlearning bad habits. Plus, they offer some important advantages that younger horses do not:

• Unless they were abused or totally neglected, older horses---even the untrained ones---often have a “been there, done that” attitude that enables them to stay calm in new situations. They’ve seen more of the world than younger horses have, and this, in many cases, allows your training to progress much more quickly.

• The personality of an older horse is already defined, so you know what you have to work with. However, this does mean that you need to carefully evaluate the personality of an older horse before committing to him, because he’s not likely to change. For
instance, work and experience may help eliminate spookiness, but an older horse who is more reactive and hotter than others will probably stay that way.

• Older horses have reached their full height, and any conformation problems will have shown up already. You won’t be left guessing what they’ll look like when they’re done maturing.

• The mental maturity of an older horse gives him a longer attention span. He’ll retain more from longer, more in-depth training sessions than a younger horse would.

• In most parts of the country you can probably acquire an untrained older horse for free or nearly nothing. Once you’ve invested your time in training, you may end up with a much nicer horse than you could normally afford.

Also remember that, thanks to improved nutrition and veterinary care, a horse in his late teens or 20s these days can still be in great physical shape. Riders who don’t mind putting in a little effort can often get a nice horse that they can enjoy for many years, for very little money.

Considering all of this, I would encourage anyone with time and training experience to take a chance on a slightly older horse, even if that horse has no or very limited experience under saddle. There are, however, a few things to keep in mind. First, make sure that your horse will be physically capable of participating in your chosen discipline (see “Health Check,” page 64). Then, consider whether you have the time, patience and experience you’ll need for the type of older horse you’re considering: There’s a huge difference between an older horse who has never been handled, one who has been handled badly, and one who has been handled well. Although I believe that any horse can be trained, some will take longer than others.

To help illustrate the challenges and rewards of working with older green horses, here are a few examples of some I’ve met who have gotten fresh starts later in life.

Jericho: Overcoming poor handling
Jericho was about 15 and still a stallion when he was discovered wandering back county roads. We can’t say for sure that he was abused, but it was clear that whatever handling he’d had wasn’t consistent. He had learned to get his way by pinning his ears and snapping. After he was gelded, his foster caretakers had to act as if he’d never been trained at all to relay a foundation of respect, working hard to establish good manners on the ground and to teach him that biting isn’t acceptable. Because he was so set in his ways, it took many, often trying, weeks to work through his bad habits. But once he was behaving better in hand,a trainer was able to begin preparing him for work under saddle. Jericho is ridable, and because of that it will be easier to find him a stable home, but he’s probably always going to be a handful, so he’ll need to be placed with experienced handlers.

The difficulty you’ll have training an older horse depends in large part on the handling he has previously received. Three types of handling in particular may increase the training challenge.

• Harsh discipline--immediate, forceful punishment for any misbehavior---may not necessarily be abusive, but it can produce a timid horse who is scared of making mistakes. He may be constantly waiting for you to come down hard on him, and it can take months of consistent, kind handling before he begins to trust you. This type of horse often benefits from a lot of handling on the ground before he’s started under saddle. You still need to discipline misbehavior, but you also need to give the horse a chance to do well and reward him promptly when he does the right thing.

• Inconsistent handling often results in a spoiled horse who doesn’t know how to behave. Although these horses were sometimes disciplined for poor behavior, at other times they were allowed to have their own way without consequences. These horses will try your patience with repeated attempts to test their limits. They benefit from consistent handling during groundwork to teach them that misbehavior is always disciplined but that good behavior is also rewarded.

• Abused horses are the hardest to train. Fortunately, outright abuse, where the horse has been repeatedly beaten or even tortured, is very rare. Some horses fight to save themselves in the face of abuse, and it can be hard to stop fighting. They’re the ones who become dangerous to handle: Their immediate first reaction to anything they don’t like is to kick, strike or bite. If you find yourself with a horse like this on your hands, seek professional help. It takes a lot of consistent and careful handling to help these horses overcome their past, and they can be dangerous until they learn to trust humans again. Occasionally, a horse like this has been so traumatized that he can never recover.

Other horses react to abuse by shutting down emotionally and not responding to anything. They simply stand and take whatever their abuser dishes out. One effective approach is to simply spend time near these horses without handling them, and then to work with them consistently on the ground. The length and degree of the abuse these horses endured will affect how long it takes them to begin trusting you.

Windy: An adorable blank slate
Windy, a pinto pony---probably about 10 years old---was halter broke when she arrived at our rescue, but it was clear that that was about the extent of her training. She was spoiled and pushy, and she had most likely always gotten away with her bad behavior because she was so cute and little.

Our trainer spent several sessions just teaching her ground manners, but once Windy got those down, her training went quickly. Because she had seen more of the world, she was quieter and more settled than a younger horse would have been, and she adapted quickly to work under saddle. It didn’t take many months before Windy was ready to be placed with a family, and today she’s being ridden, doted upon and loved by small children.

Mature horses with little or no prior handling can be a challenge and take quite a while to train. The tougher cases are the mustangs or other feral horses who have never seen people before. They need to be accustomed to human handling before you can begin any real training, and the longer a horse has lived on his own, the harder it will be to gentle him. His sense of self-preservation grows each year, and he is going to be likely to flee anything he deems scary.

That said, feral horses can be gentled at an older age, but I find that they often remain highly reactive for the rest of their lives, even if they’re successfully trained to ride. In the beginning, these horses are more likely to try to jump or run through a fence to get away from you. You need to keep them in an enclosure with a stout fence that’s at least six feet high and made of horse-safe panels attached to wooden posts, woven wire hung on posts, or strong boards.

Horses who have been kept around people, just never handled, can still be a challenge, but they’re far easier to train than truly feral ones. You don’t have to worry about introducing them to the sight of people before you can start working with them. However, it’s still a good idea to keep them confined to a smaller pen with six-foot fencing because they can be prone to trying to flee when you begin to put pressure on them.

Halter breaking is the first step with a horse like this before you proceed to other groundwork, and this can take much longer than it does with a younger horse. But once they’ve accepted a halter, their under-saddle training tends to advance pretty quickly.

One advantage of working with an older green horse is that you don’t have to worry about overcoming someone else’s training mistakes. He’s a blank slate, as it were, for you to make your mark on.

Hermes: Building on a solid foundation
Hermes was a neglect case. When we picked him up, the 13- to 15-year-old stallion was emaciated and needed time to recover his health, but it was obvious he had been well handled at one point in his life. He led, stood tied and knew how to longe. He behaved himself around other horses and respected his handler’s personal space. Once Hermes gained weight and was gelded, I started working with him. Because he had such a good foundation, his retraining went quickly. I taught him to carry a saddle and bridle in no time. He went to a trainer for a few weeks, and everyone who met him was amazed at his progress. But the training he had years before was so good, it only needed to be uncovered for him to excel. Hermes was quickly adopted by a family as a show horse for their daughters.

Older horses who have had positive prior experiences are the easiest ones to train, even if they haven’t been ridden or worked with in years. Since they haven’t been mishandled, there are no bad habits or associations to overcome. They’re used to people and know what to expect from them and are generally trusting. Chances are, they’re already used to the routines of domestic life: farrier visits, veterinary exams, being caught and haltered, etc.

As long as this type of horse is physically capable, you can begin working with them right away. These horses often progress quickly through the groundwork stages: learning (or relearning) to longe, carry a saddle and carry a bridle fairly quickly.
Many older horses who were handled well previously also take to a rider without much fuss. They are a delight to work with.

There is a potential pitfall to these easygoing older guys, however. They can lull you into a sense of complacency. You’ll never want to forget that this is still a green and inexperienced horse. He may still become frightened, confused or spook. It’s only fair to give him the same level of understanding when he makes a mistake that you’d give a 4-year-old. Similarly, it can be easy to push these horses too fast. Remember that’s he’s still learning skills, even if he seems to be picking them up very fast. Don’t cut corners or skip steps in his training or you may end up with a resistant, cranky horse despite his great foundation.

Ask your friends if they’d be interested in a 10-year-old green-broke horse and you’re likely to be met with a few suspiciously raised eyebrows. It’s a natural reaction to assume something must be very wrong with a horse who makes it so far in life without more than just basic training. But the harsh reality is many older horses weren’t lucky enough to have a complete or quality education in their younger years.

This doesn’t mean they can never be useful mounts. In fact, many turn out to be terrific. If you think you have the resources and patience to take on an older green horse, I’d encourage you to, creating your own success story to share.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue #427.

A cribbing horse grasps a surface with his incisors, flexes his neck, and swallows air. As the air passes through his throat, it makes a gasping, grunting, or groaning sound.

The behavior can be hazardous to the horse’s health, and there is no “cure” for the condition. Once a horse starts to crib, he might feel the need to latch onto any surface in his reach. Most often, horses will crib on fence boards, stall doors, and feed tubs.

Auburn University professor and extension horse specialist Cindy McCall has even had reports of horses cribbing on crossties in a barn aisle and — one particularly determined cribber — on his own shoulder.

There are ways to manage a horse’s cribbing, and research is underway to better understand and work with cribbers. Here’s a closer look.

What kicks off a horse’s cribbing behavior may be fairly complex. “There are a range of risk factors that come together, so personality, breed, diet, early experience — including weaning method — all have a role to play,” says Dr. Daniel Mills, a well-known equine behaviorist who’s researching stereotypes at the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in the United Kingdom.

Here’s a rundown of possible causes.

Breed. A primary factor in determining whether a horse will crib is the breed. Thoroughbreds are the No. 1 breed for cribbing, with 8 percent of them exhibiting the behavior. Quarter Horses are next most likely. Evidence points to a genetic link for cribbing.

Weaning/feed. “Cribbing usually at weaning or when you change the horse’s diet,” says Dr. Katherine Houpt, a professor of behavioral medicine at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. “When you bring him off of pasture, stick him in a stall, and give him sweet feed—that continues to be the main stimulus.” The role that sweet feed plays in triggering cribbing is still unknown. However, feeding straight oats seems to decrease the frequency of cribbing in horses exhibiting the behavior.

Dr. Mills believes half of all cribbing horses start within 20 weeks of age, the typical weaning period. Weaning horses using careful management can reduce their likelihood of becoming cribbers: “Ensuring good turnout, gradual weaning, and minimizing the use of concentrates, especially early in life” can aid in prevention, says Dr. Mills.

Anxiety. Some horses are naturally more anxious and stress-prone, and Dr. Mills says that could be a predisposition for cribbing. In fact, the behavior is least often found in cold-blooded horses, such as ponies and draft breeds, which tend to have less-worrisome personalities.

Stomach upset/ulcer. Dr. Mills has treated cribbing horses with antacids and found this might significantly reduce the behavior. His team’s research is ongoing.

Christine Nichol of the Centre for Behavioral Biology at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom has found an association between gastric ulcers and cribbing.

McCall says that she and her team haven’t reached a conclusion as to whether cribbing causes stomach issues or whether the presence of stomach issues is the impetus for cribbing.

Cribbing Dangers

Colic. Cribbing horses can damage equipment and facilities with their grasping and pulling behavior. The real dangers, however, are

the dangers that the horse poses to himself. “Cribbing does present a big risk factor for colic,” said Dr. Houpt. She hasn’t found a direct correlation between the frequency of cribbing and the risk of colic, although she’s lost one-third of the cribbing horses she’s studied due to colic.

Tooth damage. Cribbers wear down their front teeth. They’ll crib on any solid surface, very often including metal surfaces.

Eating disorders. Many cribbers appear thin. “Our skinny ones are skinny because they’ll crib at the expense of eating,” says McCall.

Cribbing Myths

Cribbing is learned. The belief that horses learn to crib from other cribbers is untrue, says Dr. Houpt. Research shows only 10 percent of cribbers pick up the habit from others, and those horses were probably genetically predisposed.

Cribbing horses are bored. The idea that horses crib because they’re bored may also be untrue. Dr. Houpt has found that enriching their environment and providing regular exercise isn’t a help. Other experts disagree, saying cribbing horses that receive regular exercise and other types of environmental stimulation, such as mirrors and toys, are less likely to crib.

Horses crib to get “high.” Research into endorphin levels — the “feel good” chemicals in the bloodstream — hasn’t yielded consistent results as to whether cribbing horses actually get a “high” from their actions. One possibility, Dr. Houpt suggests, is horses might not crib because of the endorphins; rather, the endorphins that are already present from another source — such as a type of feed — might be a cause for the action.

7 Management Techniques

Horses kept on pasture and those with free-choice access to hay may crib less.

Photo by Heidi Melocco

Some experts think the dangers posed to the cribbing horse require management. Others say cribbing should be reduced using a cribbing collar, but the control should be removed for short periods of time so a horse can occasionally act on his need to crib without incurring too much physical damage.

“I would generally say, unless the horse colics recurrently, that it’s better to allow him to crib than to prevent it through collars or surgery,” says Dr. Mills. “These interventions do nothing for the motivation.”

Here’s a look at seven common cribbing-management techniques.

Forage. Horses kept on pasture and those with free-choice access to hay may crib less.

Antacids. As mentioned, research has shown that some cribbing is related to ulcers. Providing an antacid in your horse’s diet could be beneficial.

Cribbing collars. Dr. Houpt says these popular neck collars do seem to work, but “you have to make it so tight that often the horse develops lesions.” Fitted around the horse’s jowl at the throatlatch, a cribbing collar doesn’t affect a horse’s breathing, eating, or drinking when he isn’t attempting to crib. When the horse does attempt to crib, the collar applies pressure to the throatlatch so he can’t arch his neck and suck in air. Note: Avoid shock collars, which are often viewed as cruel.

Cribbing muzzles. Muzzles do work, although horses will try their hardest to remove them. A metal and nylon muzzle clips to the horse’s halter and allows the horse to graze and drink, but the horse can’t get his mouth around a solid object to crib.

Cribbing rings. “They are copper hog rings that you put around the horse’s teeth so they can’t make contact with the fence,” says Dr. Houpt, who has used these in her research. “It works, but they don’t stay in very long, and it does slow down their grazing.”

Premises paint. Several wood coatings are produced with the intention of preventing cribbing. Some people swear by hot pepper sauce. But such treatments have mixed results.

Modified Forssell’s procedure. A surgery designed to prevent cribbing is the modified Forssell’s procedure. A surgeon cuts muscles and nerves in the horse’s neck, and removes some muscle tissue. This makes it difficult for the horse to arch his neck and suck in air.

Some horses are perfectly content living alone in a backyard paddock. Others, however, can become nervous wrecks without the security of a herd. Anxious horses may pace and fret, and even if they remain outwardly calm, the tension may increase their risk of gastric ulcers and other stress-related health disorders. If your horse would be happier with a companion, you have several options, including:

• Retirees. Rescue organizations have plenty of older and/or injured horses who cannot be ridden but would be ideal pasture companions. Make sure you’re prepared to take on the responsibility for any special veterinary or farriery care your retiree might need. If you don’t want to spread your feed budget that far, a smaller pony or Miniature Horse might be a more economical choice that

would still fulfill your horse’s need for a herdmate.

• Donkeys. These close cousins in the equine family are relatively easy keepers, and they usually get along well with horses. Most thrive on pasture and grass hay and need little more than basic care such as deworming, hoof trimming, dental care and vaccinations. Donkeys also come in all sizes, from Mammoths to Miniatures.

• Goats. Not all horses bond well with goats, and vice versa, but sometimes these two species form fast friendships. Care for a goat is generally similar to how you keep a horse--with access to fresh water, pasture and a run-in shelter, as well as fly control, vaccination and hoof trimming. But before you commit to getting a goat, make sure you research specifics of feed supplements he may need and the types of illnesses he is vulnerable to. Also, make sure you will have access to a veterinarian experienced with ruminants. If your horse’s regular veterinarian does not handle goats, she may be able to refer you to someone who does.

Whatever choice you make, consider bringing the new companion home on a trial basis and make the introduction slowly, to make sure everyone will get along. If all goes well, the company will help to keep your once-lonely horse happier and healthier for years to come.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue #425.

For most of us, trail riding is all about relaxation and enjoyment. When you leave behind the rigors and repetition of arena work, you can simply savor the experience of being in the saddle and perhaps getting to know your horse a bit better.

But sometimes a trail outing becomes a test of wills--and your skills. It’s hard to relax on a ride punctuated by successive spooks or interrupted by refusals to cross water or pass “scary” objects. And it’s exhausting trying to control constant jigging or, conversely, squeeze a little momentum out of a sluggish mount. The disappointment is even greater if every other horse on the ride seems to be taking everything in stride. What is it about those horses that makes them so much more fun to ride on the trails?

Finding the answer means looking beyond specific incidents and frustrations and taking a broader view of your horse’s training. To perform well on the trail, a horse must have a good foundation, says trainer and clinician Jonathan Field from British Columbia, Canada. “People don’t equate the same level of prep for trail riding as other disciplines because it seems like such a simple endeavor,” he says. “But the people who are living the dream, they’re the ones who have put in the time to make that horse the best trail horse he can be.”

To set out on that path yourself, you may need to revisit a few basic training exercises. Many of these will involve skills your horse learned long ago but hasn’t had to use very often. Others will focus on gaps in training that can be fudged a bit in the security of the riding ring but become significant issues when you’re away from home. But, mainly, going back to the fundamentals will help you address larger issues of compliance and respect that underlie many trail behavior problems.

Here are the seven things to teach your horse to keep your trail outings as harmonious and enjoyable as possible.

1. Teach your horse to: Load willingly.
“Big red flags go up when I see someone having trouble loading because it tells me about the willingness of the horse and if he has respect for the rider,” says Gary Woods, a frequent trail rider from Gilbert, Arizona, who is also my riding instructor of many years.

Loading into a trailer is basic to trail riding; you won’t get to many far-flung trails without a willing traveler. Although horses tend to be a little claustrophobic by nature, most learn to tolerate hauling, given enough time and patience. But loading problems are usually not just about getting into a trailer. They’re almost always about you and your horse, and where you stand in his estimation of your leadership skills.

I learned this the hard way years ago, when I called Woods to ask if he could help me retrieve my horse, Louie, from a friend’s backyard after he refused to load … for two days. Woods said he could help, but that it would take patience, trust and groundwork. He was right. Today, Louie is a consistent loader. He hops into any trailer when asked, and just as important, once we arrive at the trailhead, he’s quiet, confident and a pleasure to ride.

“If the horse is stressed out the whole time he’s in the trailer, and he’s burned up every ounce of confidence he’s ever had, and he’s sweating and scared, how is he ever going to go on that great ride you want?” points out Field. If you take the time to teach your horse to haul safely and confidently, many other issues will resolve themselves in the process, he says. Along with gaining the horse’s trust, exercises such as sending him over tarps and driving him through narrow openings can help prepare him for loading and hauling, according to both Woods and Field.

2. Teach your horse to: Go where you point him.
A good trail horse will go willingly over obstacles, around rocks, down canyons and, especially, through water. “At some point you’re going to come to water that you have to cross, and if your horse refuses, you’re going to have a problem,” says Field.

Some horses are willing to cross water and go where you point them, either by training or by nature. Woods says he can tell a lot about a horse’s willingness by his response to pressure. “If I touch his rib cage, I expect the horse to move over. If he doesn’t, that doesn’t mean I can’t teach him to move off of pressure, but a good trail horse will already have that ability,”
he says.

An unwilling horse is one of the more common problems for trail riders, but it’s also one of the more fixable ones, given the right training and leadership. Both Woods and Field do leading exercises to get the horse in sync with his handler’s body language. “If I’m not able to control the path on which my horse walks from the barn to the stall, why is he going to pay attention when we get out there and things get a whole lot more interesting?” points out Field, who expects his horses to walk stride for stride with him, just as they would with the herd.

“By having that level of sensitivity to the herd and awareness to every movement, they have no time to focus on anything else. Their focus is locked in on me, the leader,” he explains.

3. Teach your horse to: Come back to neutral.
A good trail horse will keep a cool head no matter what is happening around him. A mare in season, a barking dog or a small-scale mutiny among the other horses on a ride---any of these situations can turn ugly if your horse overreacts. “I see this happen a lot. A horse in the group becomes animated and starts bossing other horses around, and someone’s horse explodes as a result,” says Field. Some horses naturally have a calm and willing disposition, yes, but training, leadership and riding with intention can help to defuse any horse and bring him back to neutral in eventful situations.

“So many recreational riders are just going along. They’re not active in their intention, and the horse feels he has to look out for himself as a result,” says Field. Keeping your horse’s mind engaged while in hand or under saddle, and generally riding with purpose can help cooler heads prevail in times of high stress and uncertainty.

4. Teach your horse to: Be careful about where he puts his feet.
He has four of them, and he should know where they are and where you want him to put them next, says Woods. This is especially important when your horse is asked to scramble down a steep canyon of loose rock or to scoot around, say, a moving bike or low-hanging branch. I had some time to think about this recently as a small group of us braved a too-narrow mountain pass with a steep drop-off on one side. I remembered my conversation with Woods years ago, at a frustrating time when just about everything needed to be trained in or out of my little brown horse. “Give me one good reason why I should keep him,” I said to Woods, who replied, “Because he is sure-footed.” He was right, of course. Over the years, I’ve spent more than a few anxious moments in the saddle thanking my lucky stars that my horse could keep all fours on the ground during incredible circumstances and on tough terrain.

But what if your otherwise trail-worthy horse trips from time to time and sometimes seems a bit unstable? Woods and Field suggest getting him to pay attention to his feet by asking him to step over cross rails, around poles and through obstacles of all kinds, and the more uneven the ground, the better. “I’m never quite comfortable with a horse who’s raised on the flat because it’s like riding two horses. He’s bound to be out of balance so that if he gets in trouble on the front end, his back end can’t help him. Horses like this get trippy,” observes Field. He likes to back his horses up hills and down hills, and to get them to lift up their feet and round their backs when possible. “I want to see them get worked up and down hills in hand to figure out how to get themselves balanced, so that by the time I get on them, they have a pretty good idea where to put their feet,” he adds.

5.Teach your horse to: Overcome his flight instinct.
One day you’ll be ambling along the trail and, in the blink of an eye, you’ll come across a bear or deer or, more likely, a bush with fangs. Your horse’s split-second reaction should be to stop, not bolt, and to wait for your cue. “If I can wriggle the rein, and his ear comes around as if to say, ‘Yes, I’m here,’ that’s good. But if I try to wriggle my rein or touch him with my leg and he doesn’t move, that’s not good,” says Field, explaining that a refusal to move is almost as bad as a bolt---and, in fact, is a precursor to a bolt. “Anybody who has started young horses knows that the longer the horse takes to take his first step, the more he is going to come apart when he does because he’s stored up energy,” he explains.

Of course you can’t expect that your trail horse will never spook, but you’ll want to teach him not to overreact when he does. “He is going to spook at some time, so the question is how big is his reaction and how long is it going to be before he’s OK with it?” says Field. Simple observation can tell you a lot about how a horse reacts to new stimuli. Is he explosive without warning? Or does he take things in stride? Does he get worked up slowly and remain in a heightened state of alert for a long period? Or does he snort, approach the object of concern and return to a more relaxed state within no time?

Easygoing horses who quickly recover from surprises make the best mounts for trail riding. But it’s wise to spend time building any horse’s confidence. Trail challenge competitions and play days are great for desensitizing the horse and exposing him to new stimuli in a controlled setting. In addition, Woods suggests establishing a relaxation cue, such as a pat on your horse’s withers or a slight lift

of one rein as a “Come back to me” or “It’s OK” cue as one more measure of control should your horse’s world turn upside down while ambling down the trail.

6.Teach your horse to: Maintain his independence from other horses.
If your horse is friendly with his herdmates, that’s fine. But if he’s glued to the tail of the horse in front of him, that’s not. Likewise, if one horse in the group trots, your horse shouldn’t have to trot, too.

Seemingly little issues like these can become dangerous quickly if you’re separated from the group for any reason or if one horse bolts or starts acting out and your horse follows suit. “So often these horses live in small spaces, and they’re not used to horses coming and going. If their riders don’t fundamentally have the leadership to keep these horses with them, they lose control,” says Field.

To find out where your horse falls on the herd-bound spectrum, both trainers suggest watching him interact with his herd or taking him out for a ride alone. Does he call out to other horses or balk when leaving the property alone? Does he feed off the energy of other horses in the pasture? Does he readily back down when challenged by the herd? Or is he overly bossy?

An insecure horse is more likely to be herd-bound than a more confident one, but aggressive horses also exhibit a related behavior---a tendency to be bossy or pushy toward other horses, according to Woods.

He suggests exercises such as gradually lengthening the distance between you and other riders and keeping the horse’s attention on you at all times, which is at the heart of all herd-bound issues. “The reason he’s looking to other horses is because he doesn’t trust you, and that’s the number-one thing you need to develop in a good trail horse,” says Woods.

7. Teach your horse to: Head out as eagerly as he heads home.
A good trail horse has to be able to go anywhere without issue. He won’t jig, grow anxious, or bolt for the barn at the first sign you’re turning for home.

Barn-sour horses typically lack confidence and have many of the same tendencies as the herd-bound horse, and they may even be attached to their herdmates as well as to familiar surroundings.

Horses who are more curious by nature or have been exposed to different environments early on are more likely to adjust to the novelty of trail riding, while habitually barn-sour horses are more predisposed to be anxious in new settings and situations, according to Field. He says that many horses fall somewhere between these two extremes and simply need more exposure to new and different surroundings before they make confident mounts.

“A lot of horses live in 10- by 10-foot pens, and suddenly they’re put out on the side of a mountain somewhere with little or no preparation whatsoever. You have to be willing to prepare them for trail riding like you would any other activity,” says Field, who advises ponying a young horse with a more experienced, confident horse when possible.

He also suggests slowly expanding the barn-sour horse’s zone of comfort around a familiar trailhead or arena to help him gain confidence and adjust to new environments.

There’s one last thing you’ll want your trail horse to have, but it’s not something you teach with lessons or exercises: It’s a good attitude. A good attitude trumps all other desirable characteristics in a trail horse simply because with the right attitude, he is more inclined to load willingly, get along with other horses, and keep his cool during times of excitement and uncertainty.

A good attitude means he’s confident in his abilities as a trail horse and he’s enjoying the ride to the extent that any horse can.

No doubt, your horse has already let you know his feelings on the matter. If he’s difficult to catch, balks or pins his ears at the merest suggestion that you’ll be saddling up for a trail ride, he could be telling you he doesn’t like his job and it might be time to reconsider his trail prospects. But if he nickers to you when you hook up the trailer, greets you at the gate, and practically puts on his halter himself when you go to catch him, you can be fairly certain he likes to trail ride.

A trail horse with this kind of attitude is worth his weight in gold.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue #425.

There he goes again. Your horse is pawing incessantly at his stall floor, or he’s cribbing, emitting a stream of rhythmic grunts as he pulls on the door with his teeth. You’ve tried repeatedly to get him to stop, but the behavior persists.

Why is he doing this, and how can you get him to quit?

For years, we’ve called behaviors like these stall or stable “vices.” The first part of the name is right—with the exception of fence-walking, a horse doesn’t do these things unless he’s in a stall. But the “vice” part isn’t correct, according to modern research, which indicates these actually aren’t bad habits per se, but simply the reactions of horses that aren’t getting what they need.

And what’s that? A more natural environment, unavailable largely because of stable management practices that go against an equine’s basic needs.

Researchers have discovered that many of these behaviors typically develop early in a horse’s life, so your horse may have already had one when you bought him. But even if your horse is older, you can generally reduce and sometimes eliminate an unwanted behavior by addressing its cause, not its symptom.

I’m going to describe the behaviors in question, outline the traditional ways of treating them, then give you the latest thinking on ways of dealing with them that are more humane, and often more effective. (And even if your horse doesn’t have any of the behaviors, the back-to-nature approaches to management I’ll give you will assure he doesn’t develop any—plus improve his overall quality of life.)

Vices? No, Coping Strategies
Stall vices are more accurately called stereotypic behaviors, that is, repetitive, apparently functionless behaviors that fall into two categories. These are locomotor (which include stall- and fence-walking, weaving, pawing, stall-kicking, and head-bobbing) and oral (cribbing, wind- sucking, wood-chewing, and tongue-lolling).

Stereotypic behaviors have never been observed in horses who live as Mother Nature intended—outdoors in a herd, grazing or foraging 40 to 60 percent of the time.

By contrast, five to 10 percent of domestic horses develop them.

Which ones? Studies indicate horses with limited social interaction and turnout, inadequate roughage (such as hay and/or pasture), and large, infrequent grain meals (two to three per day, rather than having roughage always available) are much more prone to develop the habits that have traditionally been called vices.

Let’s take a closer look at each of the two categories of equine stereotypic behaviors.

Gotta Move: Locomotor Behaviors
In the list below, you’ll learn what these behaviors look like, when they typically start, what specifically causes them, and what we used to do about them. Then, in the box “Slowing the Locomotion” (page 3), I’ll give you the latest thinking on how to deal with all of these “gotta move” behaviors.

Stall- and fence-walking
What it is: Rapid walking (pacing) inside a stall or along a fence.

When it starts: At about 18 months or older.

Causes: Anticipation of a meal and/or a need for equine companionship. Feeding large, infrequent grain meals and inadequate roughage can upset a horse’s digestion, and also creates long periods between meals, which can result in a hungry, lonely, and/or frustrated horse that intensely anticipates his next feeding. Because horses are herd animals, they feel most content and secure when surrounded by other, familiar horses. Enclosing them in a stall or paddock can make them feel isolated from the herd. The resulting frustration causes them to attempt “escape” by resorting to stall- and fence-walking (or weaving).

Harm to horse: Possible chronic injuries (joint wear, tendon strains, muscle damage) that can lead to lameness; fatigue (a horse can wear himself out before he’s ridden or performs).

Harm to the environment: Damaged stall flooring from constant movement; trenches along fence edges.

Old “cure”: Make a horse wait to be fed to “teach” him patience. (This just intensifies the behavior.) Give him stall toys. (They typically don’t work because they don’t address what the horse is craving. He’s not bored—he wants to escape so he can be with other horses.) Tie him up. (This stops the movement, but you’ll likely wind up trading one stereotypic behavior for another, as a tied horse will often begin to weave.)

Weaving
What it is: Walking in place, picking up both the hind and front feet, usually at the opening to a stall.

When it starts: Usually when a horse is first confined for any length of time.

Causes: Same as for stall- and fence- walking.

Harm to horse: Chronic weavers can actually wear their bare feet down to the point that their soles bleed. Other possible effects include chronic injuries (joint wear, tendon strains, muscle damage) that can lead to lameness, and fatigue.

Harm to the environment: Damaged stall flooring.

Old “cure”: Same as for stall- and fence- walking.

You’ve slept through the alarm, and now you’re racing out the door to be sure you feed on time. Slow down and enjoy some coffee first. A little variation in your horse’s feeding schedule won’t hurt and, in some cases, might even be beneficial.

Consider this: Horses fed on precise schedules are more likely to develop destructive anticipatory behaviors, such as pacing or stall kicking. Having mealtimes vary within an hour or two can prevent and minimize this behavior.

Furthermore, studies have shown that there is no physiological reason for a pleasure horse to be fed on a strict schedule. They are not likely to colic0 or develop laminitis0 if their meals come at slightly variable times: Those conditions are associated with large, starchy meals rather than feeding schedules. (Elite athletes in training, however, do need to receive grain on more rigid intervals. Their bodies utilize every calorie they consume, and feeding them on time optimizes digestion to do so.)

If you’d like to start varying your feeding schedule, begin by offering free-choice hay throughout the day. This is easiest to do using a slow feeder that controls portions while reducing waste. Not only does unlimited hay give a horse something to occupy his time while he waits for grain meals, but it will prevent the kind of hunger that can lead to anxious behavior.

With free-choice hay available, wait an extra half-hour to feed one day. Then show up about 20 minutes earlier than usual the next. Over the course of several weeks, vary your schedule so meals arrive within a two-hour window, but never at the same time. Your horse will adapt with no behavioral or physical consequences, and you can enjoy a bit more flexibility around feeding time.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue #424.

Chances are pretty good you understand what your horse is saying when he nickers as you bring him his feed. The meaning of a pinned ear and cocked hind hoof are also pretty obvious.

But not all equine communication is quite so clear. Do you know what a clamped tail indicates? What a foal is saying when he clacks his teeth? Even more important, can you recognize subtle signs of fear or frustration before they escalate into a blowup?

Because people rely so much on verbal communication, it’s natural to focus on a horse’s vocalizations when trying to figure out what he is saying. But like many animals, horses communicate much more through postures, gestures and expressions than they do with their vocal cords.

The ability to read and respond to this equine body language is what sets great trainers apart from the rest. From a distance, it may look like these experts are “mind reading,” but in reality, they’re noticing and responding to the subtlest of cues from the horse, both on the ground as well as in the saddle.

This isn’t a mystical skill. Anyone who spends time around horses can learn to tune in to their unique forms of nonverbal communication. It may take some time and attention, but a better understanding of the language of horses will improve your horsemanship skills, and you’ll be able to read your horse more clearly and fine-tune your training and handling accordingly. Here’s what you need to know.

What His Ears Say
One of the first lessons a novice rider is taught is that when a horse’s ears are forward he is alert, paying attention and/or interested in what’s in front of him, and when his ears are pinned back close to the neck he is angry and about to bite or kick. But the ears have more to say than just that:

• Turned out to the side. The horse is asleep or relaxed and may not be attuned to what’s going on around him. You don’t want to march up to this horse and pat him because he may be startled and react by running over you, whirling or striking out. Instead, call his name or make some noise, and don’t approach until he turns his head or otherwise indicates that he’s paying attention to you.

• Turned back. If your horse’s ears are pointed backward but not pinned, it often means he’s listening to something behind him---he may be deciding whether to run away or turn around and check out the sound. When combined with a swishing tail or other signs of tension in the body, turned-back ears may be a precursor
to pinned ears.

• Rapidly swiveling. Ears that are flicking back and forth are a sign that the horse is in a heightened state of anxiety or alertness. He may be trying to locate the source of a frightening sound or smell, or he may be overwhelmed by too many stimuli.

What His Head Carriage Says
The position and movement of a horse’s head are easy to see and can tell you a lot about his mood and what he’s thinking:

• Lowered. A dropped head is a sign your horse is relaxed and feeling good, and his ears will often hang to the side as well. If he’s standing in his stall or pasture with a lowered head, he’s probably either resting or asleep; call his name and make your approach obvious so you don’t startle him.

• Elevated. Your horse is focused on something in the distance, and he’s probably trying to figure out whether he should flee, investigate or ignore it. As his handler, you need to realize that he is not paying attention to you, and he may be about to spook or bolt; to prevent that from happening, you must regain his focus.

A horse who raises his head while being ridden may be in pain, especially if he also hollows his back, pins his ears or wrings his tail. Carefully examine your tack for protruding screws or other sources of discomfort and check for proper fit. If the behavior persists, have a veterinarian check your horse for back pain.

• Snaking. Lowering the head slightly and waving the neck from side to side is an aggressive act, often used by stallions who are fighting or herding an uncooperative mare. If you see a horse do this, it’s a red alert. You need to ascertain why the horse is aggressive and defuse the situation. This may mean refocusing his attention, moving him out of the area or just getting away from him.

What His Forelegs Say
We’re all trained early on to watch out for a horse’s hind legs because that’s where the kicks come from, but the front legs can also communicate quite a bit:

• Standing splayed. A horse spreads his front legs out to the sides and leans back a little when he is scared---he may be seconds away from a spook or bolt.

Injuries or health issues, such as weakness from malnutrition or neurological impairment, can also cause a horse to stand with his forelegs splayed. Call in a veterinarian if a horse standing splay legged is unwilling or unable to move.

• Pawing. Horses paw---an arcing action with the foreleg that may dig a trench in soft ground---for a number of reasons. The bored or impatient horse paws when tied---he’s saying that he’s tired of standing around and he’s ready to go! Stressed horses may paw in the trailer or at feeding time, and the behavior stops when the source of the anxiety is past.

Pawing to indicate anger is rarer, but it is a signal you need to heed: In these cases, the pawing is more forceful and is often combined with pinned ears. In a loose horse, pawing like this often precedes a charge or some kind of attack. If you see this, get out of his way and make sure you’re not between him and another horse who may be the source of his aggression. In a horse who is tied or in hand, forceful, angry pawing may proceed a bite or strike. In this scenario, move other horses away, correct him with a sharp “No,” then refocus his attention by moving him from the area or putting him to work.

• Stomping. Unlike pawing, stomping is raising and lowering a foot forcefully in place. Horses stomp to indicate irritation. Usually, it’s something minor, such as a fly they’re trying to dislodge. However, stomping may also indicate your horse is frustrated with something you are doing, and if you don’t address it, he may resort to stronger signals.

• Striking. A strike is a forceful, forward kick with a front leg that can be either aggressive or defensive. This is a dangerous action. If you’re very lucky you’ll walk away with only a bruise, but a strike can break a bone. If the horse rears and strikes your head, he can kill you easily. Fortunately, horses rarely strike without warning, such as stomping or pawing, wide eyes, an elevated head or pinned ears. That’s why it is important to listen to those signals so that you can change your horse’s focus or prepare for worsening behavior.

What His Hind Legs Say
The hind legs of a nervous or frustrated horse are a danger zone to be heeded:

• Cocked. When a horse cocks his leg, he rests the leading edge of the hoof on the ground and drops his hip. When combined with a lowered head or ears hanging to the side, this is the sign of a horse who is relaxed and resting. You may see him occasionally shift his weight, uncocking that back leg and cocking the other one. However, if your horse shifts his weight rapidly from one foot to the other, he’s probably in pain and cannot get comfortable; you need to call your veterinarian.

A horse may also cock a hind hoof when he is irritated or defensive and considering kicking. In that case, he may also elevate his head and turn his ears back, and he may be looking back over his shoulder to keep an eye on the perceived threat. The best thing you can do then is steer clear of his back end and move him forward and away from whatever is bothering him.

• Raised. Your horse may lift a hind leg off the ground to signal irritation. The cause may be something as minor as a horsefly, or it could be that he’s annoyed with a horse or person behind him and is threatening to kick.

At the more aggressive end of the spectrum, many of the warning signs will be similar to a horse with a cocked leg: He may elevate his head, pin his ears and possibly even snake his head back and forth in warning. Your goal will be to move him away from whatever is bothering him and refocus his energy by putting him to work.

What His Muzzle Says
Even beyond nickers and whinnies, a horse’s nose and mouth can tell you several things about what he’s feeling:

• Drooping lip or slack mouth. A horse standing quietly with his lower lip drooping may be relaxing or even asleep. If you approach him, do so cautiously and call his name to avoid startling him. Once he’s awake and moving around, his lip should return to normal. However, if the slackness in his mouth persists while he’s alert, he may have an injury or a neurological problem. Ask your veterinarian to investigate.

• Chewing. It may look a little funny to see your horse chewing when you know he’s not eating, but this is a good sign when you are training him. It indicates he’s relaxed and thinking, and that in turn means he’s learning.

• Clacking teeth. A foal will sometimes raise his neck, push his head forward, curl his lips and click his teeth together. It can look comical to us, but it’s an important behavior for him: This is how the foal tells other horses, “Hey! I’m a baby! Please don’t hurt me!” You’ll see this most often in foals and weanlings and occasionally among more submissive yearlings. Normally, they stop by the time they’re 2 or 3 years old.

• Flehmen. Flehmen is another of those behaviors that looks humorous but serves an important function: When a horse smells something he’s unsure of, he raises his head, curls his upper lip, breathes in and blows air back out. This allows him to push the scent particles through a structure in his nose called the vomeronasal organ (VNO).

The VNO enables horses to better detect chemicals in the air, often pheromones emitted by sexually receptive horses. You most often see stallions flehmen when they’re determining whether a mare is in heat and ready to breed, but all horses will do this when they smell something unusual and they’re trying to get more information.

• Flared nostrils. A horse will stretch his nostrils wide to draw in more air as he exercises, and the flare may continue for a short time afterward. At other times, a horse’s nostrils may flare and even quiver when he is startled or nervous---this is one of those quieter communications that can develop into something more serious if you don’t take heed right away.

• Tight, pinched or pursed mouth or muzzle. This is a subtle sign and can be easy to miss. Tension around the mouth tells you your horse is worried, stressed or scared. When you notice his muzzle tighten, take action to either remove your horse from the situation or help him work through the stress or fear so he won’t have to resort to “louder” messages like biting or running away.

• Gaping mouth with visible teeth. This gesture can signal different things, depending on the context. If the horse also pins his ears and you can see white around his eyes, he’s angry and probably seconds away from biting you or another horse---move out of his way immediately to avoid being hurt. If a horse’s mouth gapes while he is being ridden, he may be in pain. Check the fit of your bridle and bit, and schedule a dental examination to make sure his teeth aren’t hurting him. Last, if your horse stops eating and stands with his neck stretched out and his mouth gaping, he may be experiencing choke, an obstruction in his esophagus. This is an emergency; remove the uneaten food and call your veterinarian immediately.

What His Eyes Say
The movements of your horse’s eyes tell you not just what he’s thinking but also where his attention is focused:

• Tension. As with tension around the muzzle, tightening of the muscles around the eyes is a subtle, early sign of stress, fear or discomfort. You may see this as a wrinkled upper eyelid or tightness at the corner of the eye. If you learn to notice this cue and respond promptly, you can avoid bigger problems.

• Rapid darting. When your horse’s eyes are flicking from side to side, he’s probably scared and looking for a way to escape. This sign may precede a spook or bolt, but if your horse feels trapped he may react by biting or kicking in an attempt to get away. Remove him from the situation or calm him down to keep yourself safe.

• Whites of the eyes showing. To interpret this sign correctly, you need to know your horse and what’s normal for him. In some horses, the sclera (the opaque white portion of the eyeball surrounding the cornea) is always visible, especially in Appaloosas and pintos with lots of white on their faces. In some horses, the sclera is exposed when they are only startled or mildly alarmed.

Usually, however, by the time a horse has gotten worked up to the point that you can see the whites around his eyes, he’s extremely upset. If his ears are also pinned, he’s angry. If he’s trembling or snorting, he’s scared. Either way, you’ll need to take quick action to reassure or distract him to prevent a spook, bolt or defensive move.

What His Tail Says
More than just a fly swatter, the tail is one of the more mobile methods of equine communication:

• Raised or “flagged.” A tail carried above the level of the back is a sign of excitement. This behavior is often associated with Arabians, but any horse will do it if he’s energized enough---some will just get keyed up more readily. A horse who is so excited that he’s flagging his tail isn’t paying much attention to you, and he’s probably prone to spooking, bucking or bolting. You may need to put him to work to regain his focus.

• Clamped down. A nervous or stressed horse will press his tail down, and he may tuck in his hindquarters. This is a good time to reassure him and try to build his confidence. If your horse clamps his tail when you are riding, he may be in discomfort or pain; you need to make sure he’s sound and his tack fits well. Call your veterinarian if the behavior persists for no obvious reason.

• Rapid swishing. Slow slapping of a tail is all about fly control. But when a horse’s tail is jerking quickly from side to side or up and down, he is irritated or angry. This is often a pretty clear warning sign that he’s about to kick or buck, and you need to heed it immediately.

If your horse swishes his tail often while you are riding, check your tack to make sure everything fits properly and no sharp or protruding edges are hurting him. If he continues with the behavior, have your veterinarian examine him to look for pain or lameness.

What His Whole Body Says
Sometimes you need “the big picture” to get the full story of what’s going on with your horse:

• Tension. When your horse’s muscles are rigid and his movements are stiff, he’s either hurting, nervous or stressed. If he’s scared, you can work him through the problems with some desensitization---this is easier to do if you start before the point where he has to bolt or buck to get your attention. If you don’t think fear is the problem, have your horse examined for back pain, lameness or dental problems.

• Trembling. Shaking is almost always a sign of fear. Extremely nervous horses may tremble when exposed to something new, but I see it most often in rescued horses who were abused in the past and are very frightened of being handled. We had one mare whose entire body tensed whenever we moved toward her, and when we first tried picking up her back legs, the anxiety turned into trembling so severe she nearly fell down. At first I was afraid that something was physically wrong with her, but she showed no other signs of illness or injury. It was simply fear.

A horse who is so scared or nervous that he trembles is on the verge of either running away or fighting to protect himself. If you see this, stop whatever you are doing and give your horse a few minutes to calm down. When he’s relaxed, slowly reintroduce the thing that scared him. Be quiet and calm with him, and he’ll pick up on your attitude. Working with a horse who is this scared or nervous takes a lot of time and patience. You might want to enlist an experienced trainer to help him work through his issues.

• Touching you. If a horse reaches out to touch you with his muzzle, he could be trying to nip or bite you. Or it may be that he’s curious and checking you out. Another possibility is that he’s nervous and needs a little reassurance. This is one of those times when you need to know your horse to distinguish the difference.

I once worked with a little filly who was nervous and high strung. After a day or two, when she felt comfortable with me, she began to reach out and gently touch me with her muzzle if something scared her. That was my signal to slow down, reassure her and let her get used to the new thing. If I hadn’t known her well enough, I might have thought she was being pushy and “corrected” her to discourage biting---which would have made her more nervous and might have caused her to escalate to bolting from things that scared her.

• Swinging hindquarters. When your horse swings his rump from side to side, it can mean one of two things. Usually, he’s warning that he’s about to kick. In that case, his ears will probably be back, he may be wringing his tail, and his body will be tense. Move him away from whatever he’s mad at and put him to work.

A mare in heat will also swing her rump slightly from side to side, trying to get the attention of any stallions that might be around. She’ll also likely raise her tail and turn it to one side, and she may urinate a little.

Learning the body language of horses takes time. As you work with your horse, observe how his postures and expressions change as he interacts with you as well as other people and animals. Before long, you’ll start to understand the more subtle signs that he’s getting annoyed or fearful, and then you can start a more proactive “dialog,” responding to his cues and keeping his focus on the work at hand. One day, the intuitive, “mind-reading” rider everyone envies may be you.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue #424.

Ever wonder what’s going on inside your horse’s head? What makes him act—and react—the way he does?

Temple Grandin has a better idea than most. She’s the celebrated animal scientist whose autism enables her to see things the way animals probably do. Her bestselling book, Animals In Translation (Scribner, 2005) teems with unique insights; the book’s subtitle is “Using the mysteries of autism to decode animal behavior.” Because of her autism, Grandin doesn’t think in words, as most of us do. She thinks in pictures. Animals, who are wordless, likely visualize their thoughts in a similar fashion. This puts Grandin in a unique position to speculate on how animals think and feel.

For this special report, we pored through Animals In Translation to discover Grandin’s most compelling observations about horses. We also spoke at length with the Colorado State University professor, herself a horse fancier who rode as a teen. We’ll share her explanations of such phenomena as why a horse’s fear is “faster” than ours; what a horse sees that we probably don’t; and why rough handling of a horse can create lifelong phobias.

We’ll also suggest how you can make the best use of Grandin’s insights in riding and handling your own horse.

Scary Pictures
We all know that, as a prey species, horses have certain hardwired behaviors designed to help keep them safe from predators. As Grandin explains it, they use emotions to “predict” the future and thereby make wise decisions.

“A healthy animal makes sound, emotion-based decisions all the time,” she observes.“He has to; otherwise he’d be dead.” For example, fear of the scent of a predator causes a prey species to run away and escape being caught.

That makes fear a basic, predominant emotion for horses. We tend to refer to a horse’s excitability or his spookiness or his level of agitation, but what it all boils down to, says Grandin, is fear, which horses and all animals experience far more vividly than we do.

“Fear is so bad for animals, I think it’s worse than pain. I always get surprised looks when I say this. If you gave most people a choice between intense pain and intense fear, they’d probably pick fear. I think that’s because humans have a lot more power to control fear than animals do.”

And that’s because, she explains, we can use our analytical faculties—courtesy of our prefrontal cortex—to understand and rationalize our fears, whereas animals cannot. All your horse knows is, “This is scary, which means I’m in danger of being killed, which means I need to get outta here.”

Another thing that “awfulizes” fear for horses is the visual nature of their thinking. Consider, if you will, how much scarier a picture of Freddy Krueger is than a verbal description of him. The image has much more impact, right?

By the same token, “a visual memory of a scary thing is more frightening than a verbal memory,” says Grandin. “When it comes to managing their fear, animals and autistic people are at a big disadvantage because they have to rely on pictures.”

Though social in their own way, horses are less controlled by social stimuli than dogs are, thus less likely to do something purely to please you.

Fast Fear, Slow Fear
Another way horses and other animals differ from us is that they tend to experience fear “faster” than we do. There are two ways fear is experienced in the brain, depending on whether it takes what Grandin calls the “high road” or the “low road.” The high road gives you “slow fear” because its physical path through the brain is longer than the low road.

“On the high road,” explains the scientist, “a scary stimulus, such as the sight of a snake in your path, comes in through the senses and goes to the thalamus, located deep inside the brain. The thalamus directs it up to the cortex, at the top of the brain, for analysis. When it gets there the cortex decides that what you’re looking at is a snake, then sends this information—it’s a snake!—back down to the amygdala, and you feel afraid. The whole process takes 24 milliseconds.”

By contrast, the low road, or fast-fear system, takes half the time. You see a snake in your path, and the sensory data goes straight from your thalamus over to your amygdala, avoiding the cortex. The whole process takes 12 milliseconds. Nature gave us both systems because you can’t get hyper speed and accuracy in the same system.

“The fast road is quick and dirty,” says Grandin. “You see something long, thin, and dark in your path, and your amygdala screams, ‘It’s a snake!’ Twelve milliseconds later your cortex has the second opinion: either, ‘It’s definitely a snake!’ or, ‘It’s just a stick.’ The reason fast fear can be so fast is that accuracy is sacrificed for speed.”

High road fear is also conscious (you know what you’re afraid of); low road fear is not—“you’re running away before you know what you’re running away from,” says Grandin.

Your horse, as you might have guessed, depends primarily on low-road, fast fear, so he’s going to respond to something scary much more quickly than you would. That’s often what catches you off guard.

Grandin says the inborn temperament of animals also plays a role, as some species and breeds are even more sensitive to fear than others. She calls these more fear- prone animals, which tend to be finer boned than less sensitive types, “fear monsters.” Arabian horses in general fall into this category; as a result, they tend to have a low tolerance for rough handling.

“Some trainers swear rough handling is effective. But what’s interesting about these trainers is that if you check out their horses, they’re all big-boned, low-fear horses who habituate fast to treatment that would crush a high-strung animal”—such as an Arabian. (For you Arabian lovers, note that Grandin also observes that high fear and high sensitivity tend to correlate with intelligence; the greater “awareness” of such horses makes them highly trainable—by the right methods.)

A mare’s reproductive cycle is controlled by her hormones, which in turn are influenced by exposure to sunlight. From early spring to late fall, she is in the es

trus phase of her cycle, during which eggs mature and are released every 19 to 22 days.

So-called “marish” behavior—aggressiveness, impatience and general grumpiness—is more common during estrus because of increased hormone levels.

As days become shorter, the mare’s body produces the hormone melatonin, which shifts her into anestrus. During this period, no eggs are released. The transition to anestrus begins in late fall. By winter solstice, a mare will be in the deepest part of the phase and may seem more calm and easygoing.

Not all behavior changes in mares are hormone-related, however, and it’s wise to investigate them even if you think you know the cause. If your mare’s personality seems different this winter, start recording your observations, including checks of her vital signs, in a daily journal. Call your veterinarian if she shows any other signs of illness. Continue the journal through the spring and summer, noting her reaction in various environments and situations, such as being in the pasture with other horses or being tacked up for riding. Comparing her attitudes during the winter and summer can help you identify possible hormone-related behaviors.