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Horse Senses

 

Horse senses of sight, sound, and smell are all highly developed to assist in its survival. The ability to smell danger was vital to the wild horse and domesticated animals still have this superior sense. What rider has not experienced the reluctant horse that has smelt pigs and is not at all keen to pass them?

Owners will also be familiar with horses that can smell wormers or medicine powders in feeds.

Horses can also smell fear in humans, which can result in a horse trying to dominate the person or, if the horse is a submissive type, becoming nervous itself.

Horses also have a very acute sense of hearing that is far superior to ours. Each of their highly mobile ears is controlled by 16 muscles and can rotate through 180 degrees to pick up sounds of impending danger.

Keen senses allow horses to pick up very slight changes in the environment. Often more sensitive to subtle movements, far-off sounds or vibrations, and smells than you are, horses are frequently alerted to imagined potential danger (mountain lion) while you notice nothing out of the ordinary (just a new pair of elk gloves or a new brand of clipper oil).

When a horse is convinced that danger is imminent, his reaction is to flee. If restrained in any way, he will break loose. It is the rare horse that on its own will calmly re-assess the situation in the event that he might be imagining things.

 

 

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