"Important Wisdom from Important Authors!"
When Worlds Collide
(This article is from author "Karen En Hayes, DMV, was first published in Horse World in August of 2000. It is adapted for American readers).
Do you think of your horse as a member of your family, sort of an overgrown, four-legged kid? You're not alone. Horses bring out the nurturer in many of us. We hug on them. Bathe and brush them. Give them treats. Include them in family pictures. We create cozy, stall homes for them, color-coordinate their belongings, and even bundle them up when it's cold. In short, we want to believe our horses want and need the same things we do, and this in return for our devotion, they love us, trust us and would never hurt us.
But in truth, you equine pal outweighs you by 1,000 pounds and can kill you with a single, well-placed kick. If you care for your horse as though he's an oversized extension of you, you lose sight of that danger, and of a fundamental fact: he's a horse. That mean he's wired to behave and react like a horse and not at all like a human. When you forget this basic fact, you can find yourself on the losing side of a war between worlds. It's the single most significant source of conflict and training frustrations.
Difference #1 Social Position
Your Horse's World
He's a herd animal: hierarchy within the herd is critical to survival. In equine society, position in the herd determines what a horse eats and when. Dominant horses get first dibs on everything, from the first drink of water to the best resting spot. A subordinate horse can't enter a dominant horse's personal space unless invited; to invade that space invites an aggressive rebuttal. Because it's to a horse's benefit to move up the hierarchial ladder, many will test their higher herd mates in efforts to gain in position.
The same powerful instincts drive your domesticated horse. If dominance/subordination hasn't yet been determined, a kick, bite or strike will settle matters quickly. Once position has been determined, a look, pinned ears, head swing or threat of kick usually will quell further attempts at space invasion.
Your World
Probally the only other large, four-legged animal you've related to on a companion level is your dog. But to Fido is a pack animal and subordinate to his alpha or top dog. In his eyes, you're that dog. When he wags his tail and nuzzles you, he's signaling affection and subordination. He'll roll over for petting or snuggle up to you. When your horse knickers and nuzzles you, you may get the same warm and fuzzy feeling you do from your dog. And that's where you start to go wrong in relating to your equine.
A nuzzle from your dog is a sign of subordination; from your horse it's an invasion of your space and it means he does not consider you to be the boss. Just as you may view your horse as a human in a fur suit, he views you as a fellow herd member. In the horse's view, you're neither dominant over him or subordinate to him. If he doesn't regard you as the boss in your herd of two, he'll treat you as a subordinate in one of several potentially dangerous ways. These include: nipping, kicking and/or striking; pushing or rubbing you with his head, walking into or over you as you handle him or lead him; showing aggression to you by pinning ears or swishing a tail during feeding, grooming or saddling. In general, he'll resist your every request.
How to Avoid Conflict
He treats you like a horse.....do the same to him! If he invades your space, immediately slap the invading body part away. And please note: your horse has an attention span of 3 seconds so you have that much time from the "crime" in which to react. After that, efforts at punishment do nothing but confuse him. So react quickly.
Let the punishment fit the crime. If your horse has made a gentle invasion, such as a head nudge, use a firm slap on the side of the neck. Don't smack him in the face but do use your hand or elbow if you can to thump him on the neck or side. If it's an aggressive invasion such as a body push, react with a firm smack or if you have a dressage whip, use it. More importantly, combine the smack with a loud, furious shout, just as a horse would kick and squeal. This isn't cruelty - it's body language that horses use among themselves and understand.
Be consistent with these reactions and you'll see an improvement in ground manners and obedience. Watch the body language of other riders whose horses behave well. You'll notice that just a look from the rider can stop a horse's bad behavior!
WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE PART #2
Difference #2 VISION
Your Horse's world: He has mostly monocular vision, meaning he has an eye on each side of his head. Each eye works independently, sending images to speperate sides of his brain as the eyes constantly search for predators lying in wait. As a result, your horse's peripheral vision is excellent. Only when he's directed both eyes on an object in front of him do his eyes focus together for binocular vision, sending a single image to the brain. His long-distance vision is also excellent, as he's an animal designed to watch the horizon on the open prarie. Up-close items are blurry; he's slow to focus on them, and must move his head to do so - this makes the object appear to move. A horse has oversized retinas that magnify objects so they appear 50% larger than they are. Equine retinas also make movements look B-I-G. These vision facts, coupled with his inability to foucus instantly, prevent your horse from making "logical" decisions. Instead, they provide him with a key survival tool: visual cues that scream "predator alert", inciting him to react instantly and instinctually - without stopping to think - so he can put some distance between himself and the threat.
Your World: Human vision is binocular. You have (or did before you turned 40!) keen up-close vision with good depth perception and the ability to focus your eyes instantly. Your peripheral vision is quite limited, however. This is considerably different than your horse's vision.
Opportunity for Conflict: Your fast-focus vision - coupled with your ability to use logic and reasoning - gives you an almost instant ability to identify a harmless object as no big deal. Your horse's eyesight can make that same object life threatning. That's why a wind blown plastic bag makes you see "litter" and your horse sees "monster". Furthermore, the horse's superior peripheral vision allows him to spot horse-eating monsters long before you do.
He's wired to spook and run at the first glimmer of a threat. From a safe distance, he can use his excellent long-distance vision to evaluate the scarey thing. If you're caught off guard, you could be injured. At the very least, his behavior can be alarming at first and then, when you recover, you may be a bit irritated by it. After all, you saw just some litter, right?
How to Avoid Conflict: Stay alert when working around your horse. Use quick-release snaps whenever you tie or crosstie him. That way if he does see something and his instincts take over to panic him, you can minimize risk of injury to both of you.
Always stay out of his flight of path, to avoid being run over accidentally. When working on your horse's legs, bend over or squat - never kneel - beside his legs, so that you can get out of harm's way quickly, should the horse react suddenly.
When riding, be attentive to your surroundings and try to keep your horse focused on you. The more he's responding to your communications and requests, the less he can eyeball the scary stuff. Remember that his vision is very different from yours and his instincts will give him a message to flee. His instincts are strong! You're asking him to overcome what he sees and how he reacts naturally to instead responding through the training and trust he feels in you.
