Fear: Enemy or Friend?

Horses are unique creatures. Their beauty, grace and intelligence leave many people on the planet indifferent. But there's something else: if a human being is made up of 80 percent water, a horse is made up of fear.

It wasn't easy for our four-legged friends in the wild, as they were constantly being hunted by predators. It was fear that helped them to survive in those difficult times.

It's no secret that the horse is a herd animal. Everyone knows about this almost айти это since childhood. But what does it mean?

The horse does not have an individual mind. For over 60 million years, this animal has survived and evolved through natural and learned instincts, emotions in the moment, and group (herd) decisions.

The strongest emotion in the moment is fear. It is triggered by the reptilian brain, the oldest part of the whole brain. Therefore, despite the fact that our horses are no longer threatened by predators, their instincts work just as they did a few million years ago. And if you learn to understand them, you can treat your partner and friend with more leniency.

The 3 stages of fear

The emotion of fear in the horse throughout the entire existence of the species on the planet has acquired a clear structure, thanks to which we can monitor the slightest changes in the animal's behavior and influence them.

When a horse is afraid, it necessarily goes through 3 stages:

Freezing

The horse experiences a slight startle, a wariness. At this point she raises her head sharply and begins to stare intently somewhere in the distance. This reaction helps your partner correctly assess the potential danger and make the right decision: either go back to the last action in progress or run away.

Freezing can occur at absolutely any moment, for example, when the horse is grazing, or when he goes into the barrier. Therefore, freezing is not always due to the horse's reluctance to jump. It may simply consider a crookedly drawn pattern at the last moment and become frightened of it.

Escape

If the horse realizes that its life is threatened by something, the fleeing stage is triggered after the freeze. It can also activate immediately in the case of an "experienced" horse or a very strong stimulus/irritant. This condition is dangerous in that when the horse goes into panic flight, he doesn't quite know where he is running.

In an equestrian routine, we encounter this reaction far more often than we might imagine. For example, when during the warm-up the horse starts to rush around unreasonably in the lane. She doesn't realize that she is moving in a closed circle. Her instincts are telling her: "Run."

Sometimes the running away reaction can be seen in competition training if the horse "rushes" against the barrier. Of course, the reasons may vary from animal to animal, but it is often the case that the rapid acceleration during the approach is due to fear of the barrier itself, the rider or some object/appearance on the training ground. This way the horse is trying to get rid of the threat: I will jump over quickly and it will be over.

Aggression

If running doesn't work, the aggression stage, the so-called "hit-and-run" reaction, kicks in. When "run" doesn't work, the horse attacks. This is not a natural reaction for her, because in the wild, the horse has never been the aggressor. So if it has begun to attack, in most cases it means that the horse is very afraid and is trying to protect itself, its resources, offspring or family.

In the minority, attacks of aggression not for protection do occur in some domestic individuals, but here we are talking about a learned behavior, that is, something that has been fixed by humans in specific conditions.

The Language of Fear

Although horses can't talk, they have a terrific body language. Being able to read it can prevent a large number of negative reactions from the horse that lead to injury in humans.

Fear is a very vivid emotion even in its nascent stages. Therefore, understanding a horse's body language during fear is not as difficult as it seems.

Head

During a freeze, the horse will raise its head high up to increase its view. It will point its ears toward the frightened object and try to turn toward it with its whole body. The eyes and nostrils are wide open and breathing will be deep and noisy for more information.

Even if the horse has no opportunity to "freeze", you can tell its fear by its ears: where the horse's ears are pointed, that's where its attention is directed.

Body

There will be a marked tension in the body which may even cause the animal to start trembling. The back will be arch. It may seem as if the horse is getting ready to "start", and it really is. The moment of faltering precedes running, so the horse should be all 'toned up' to be able to get off and run quickly.