Horses Can Read Human Emotions!

[@naturepbs]

For more info about how horses read human expression: bit.ly/2Dr3DJU

[@Special-Delivery57]

I wish that I could meet this lady. She would understand me.❤️🙏🏻🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[@dshe8637]

This link is very general about human emotion. Would like a link to Karen's conclusions

[@Turboy65]

Horses are very attuned to the emotional state of the humans around them. Anyone who has ever spent much time around horses already knows this. And if they like a human, they will do certain things that will put you in a more positive mood if your mood was negative before.

[@mysticthehorselover5979]

That's very true. When I was little I had a favorite horse I'd always ride and I was the only human she really liked. One time when she accidentally stepped on my foot and I started crying, she wrapped her head around me like she was trying to hug me and make me feel better. Horses are so kind and caring.

[@ssr8555]

Horses are very emotionally intelligent, it’s amazing

[@marialindell9874]

399

[@BeepBoopBee]

I spent quite some time with horses as a young kid. And I did learn to a degree that horses pick up on how you're feeling. We had an outside ride once where a barking dog chased the horse I was on, which scared my horse and made us both panic. I couldn't calm the horse down, partially because I wasn't taught before what to do in such a situation. One of the belts keeping the saddle in place ended up snapping, causing me to fall off sideways (fortunately it wasn't front or back, otherwise we'd have to go to the hospital). I fortunately had the outside ride with some other people on horses. The experienced riders chased after the horse to catch and calm it down, while the rest stayed behind to check on me and calm me down. I wasn't injured, just scared and shook. The horse ended up safely returning and as far as I can tell, nobody else got injured either. It was a few blocks away from busy shopping streets at a busy time of day, so it could have very easily gone very wrong. Ever since that day I was painfully aware that if I was stressed or panicked or scared, the horses would pick up on it. And ever since then, I had a fear of the same scenario happening again. That my fear or discomfort would cause one of the horses to freak out and get someone injured. Not long after the scenario I had to switch to a different horse because I was getting to heavy and big for the other one, which did not help with my fears as the new horse was quite a bit bigger than the previous one. I also couldn't get on or off the new horse without help. So I quit horseback riding within weeks of the incident. I've never gotten on or near a horse since. But I wasn't aware that they also picked up on other emotions. Maybe if I had known that when I was young, it would've helped me get over my fears. (Before people ask, I have autism and reading other people's emotions is something I have a lot of trouble with. I often can't read the expression on people's face, so it's not a big surprise that I never realized how horses responded to the various emotions humans displayed. Well, except for the incident of course.)

[@mysticthehorselover5979]

@@BeepBoopBee it's been years since I've ridden horses too. The barn closed, got sold and got torn down and most other barns are so expensive, but I'm hoping to start again soon. Gosh I could keep on writing about what happened to the barn but this message would be super long then.. I really miss the horses and all the animals there, and I did fall off twice but it was on ponies and not the horses' faults. That's also a little story how those falls happened. Anyway, I understand, one time I was on a horse and for some reason another person was cantering right towards me from the right to go to the jump to the left of me. The horse, which was a tall horse, started bolting and cantering. I didn't know how to canter and it scared me, so I screamed. The horse stopped super soon though and I think I just kept riding. I have a brother that's autistic and also an uncle so I understand a lot about people like that, I understand how you were scared about it all, my brother used to be scared to go near horses when he was younger but would sometimes ride them and just slowly approach them but I'm sure he'd be fine now. I've never had problems with horses, I love them, my life has been a little empty not being around them for almost 4 years. I even have a saddle my lesson teacher gave me at my 9th birthday party at the barn. Hopefully I can use it again one day.

[@lexi8893]

As a horse rider for ten years I agree with all of this, when the expression was happy, the horse went right up, ear up saying hello! Saying “ah you’re happy, let’s be friends, lemme come to you and make you happier!” If they were angry, the horse stayed back to give them space, waited until the human was ready. We can also read horse emotions as well! It’s hard, but it can happen after practice.

[@marialindell9874]

199

[@magnarcreed3801]

Then galloping over to nibble on me is always easy to tell as friendly XD don’t own horses but had a person near my school that did and I’d visit the horses at break.

[@BurkenProductions]

Yeah wait until you see what horses do when they see you really sad. That's amazing!

[@jagoldenpyrenees491]

The sweet little "but I'm a good boy/girl" face when they showed them the angry face broke my heart:(

[@Dashin15]

Horses are such empathetic creatures. When my 32 year old quarter horse was in the last year of her life, I had several scares where I thought it should be her last day. Whenever I cried she would gently nuzzle me and look deeply into my eyes with her ears up, like "its ok, I'm here". Even on her last day, after having a suspected stroke and being very listless, she still responded to me crying and tried to comfort me and make me happy. I miss her so much.

[@quantumgravity92]

The real question should be ‘‘ Can we read the expressions of horses ?! ‘’

[@fburton8]

I don't see why not. It just takes a bit of time, careful observation and desire to learn.

[@Tronpoll]

That would be a nah

[@joaquinesqueda6651]

if you look at their ears you can see what their mood is, for example if a horses ears are slicked back they are mad if one ear is slicked back and one is forward their are listening to you if your riding them.

[@kittydollsxo189]

No but human learns body language

[@nicholasotto3282]

Ask a stable owner. A firm yes I would assume

[@KFrost-fx7dt]

I think horses can understand our emotions even better than we can. That's a given. What I want to know is what these 17 horsey facial expressions are.

[@Phoenix.Sparkles]

It's probably a mixture of ears, eyes and body language, since they show emotions with more than the face. They are not better at it, though, because humans have emotions that horses probably don't feel, such as empathy.

[@magnarcreed3801]

@@Phoenix.Sparkles Hardly. Many animals feel various levels of empathy. There is also more than one type of empathy. Hell not all humans are good or capable of all of them either.

[@PsychicIsaacs]

Horses feel empathy. If I am feeling sad, and am with my horse, she will try to comfort me.

[@GoatBlaat]

@@PsychicIsaacs I've had the same. Whenever I've been upset, the horse I'm closest with tends to check up on me and is very gentle with that.

[@KFrost-fx7dt]

@@PsychicIsaacs They are social family-oriented animals, just like us.

[@ElJobSebastian]

One of the most beautiful animals in the universe

[@poopsiekins2732]

theyre absolutely precious.

[@TruthWillFreeYou]

Imagine trying to quantify their contribution to human society.

[@matimus100]

On planet earth 🌎 not the universe what nonsense

[@ElJobSebastian]

@@matimus100 Nonsense to think that there are no more animals on other planets. Shut up and enjoy the video

[@diesel_dawg]

As horseman Rick Gore said: "The horse's beauty is its curse." Horses are the most abused animal.

[@fionathornton5569]

I volunteer at a therapeutic horse barn and one of the things they do there is teach horse expressions. It help clients understand their horse and relate to them making them feel more secure and showing them what they can do to make their horse feel more calm. It’s really cool to watch and learn about horse have so much in common with our emotions.

[@angelicacitta7021]

Wow! I didn't know that existed something like this!! Would you like to explain more of it? Like some translations of them please

[@allisonjames2923]

It’s crazy that after centuries of living with animals as closely as we do horses, dogs, cats etc, we still question how much they think & understand. Of course they can read our expressions. Just as people who have spent a lot of time with horses can read theirs. What will be cool is when we design talking horse buttons like Bunny the Talking Dog has to communicate in our language. Then we’ll really get an insight into what they think. When you see Bunny put together complex sentences & use words to describe things she hasn’t been taught, you’ll understand how limited our understanding is of our animal friends.

[@artflyer8775]

I would love to see that

[@lsmmoore1]

And what's even crazier is that the Clever Hans issue, often cited as a reason to be skeptical of animal intelligence, should have laid this question to rest long ago. The only way Clever Hans could have known to stop tapping his hoof when he didn't actually know the number was by - wait for it - correctly reading the pleased or astonished micro-expressions of the human who saw him get the "right" answer. Which is not only reading emotions, but a highly fine-tuned reading of emotions. Because unless we were to go with the assumption that telepathy is not only real but near-universal (an assumption not borne out in any way by reality), then the only explanation for the Clever Hans effect is reading of emotions being mistaken for something else (which implies that, among other things, the scope of the Clever Hans effect is quite limited and cannot be applied to some things it is applied to which have twenty-six or more variables and fewer than twenty-six emotions which would apply to it).

[@womanofsubstance8735]

Haha! Talking horse buttons will likely reveal first of all the quintessential horse laugh . . . at us and our shenanigans! ;-)

[@lsmmoore1]

@@womanofsubstance8735 At any rate they revealed when horses want a blanket on and when they don't, at least scientifically. And given that blankets help with cold and comfort, and can overheat sometimes, that's a good thing for animal husbandry.

[@ina7084]

Bunny is lovely, but it's not valid research sadly. It's not gone through the proper scientific method from the start. It's not a repeated enough experiment with not enough data. Nothing conclusive can be drawn from Bunny, but people are too emotion driven so ethologists that are presenting their realistic concerns and are pointing out flaws in the experiment are being drowned out.. The anamorphism is especially a problem. When Bunny presses a sequence of buttons you always have different people attributing dozens different meanings to the same sequence. Who is in the right?

[@blaseforestcall3800]

Simply fascinating, but would appreciate more human expressions presented to the horses

[@philenealvarado5008]

So would the horses I bet.

[@erynd2524]

My mare and I are working through some past abuse issues ( both her and I) and this is great information about how these lovelies think and process information. Thank you.

[@astoldbynickgerr]

Is this a horse that has typed this?

[@theFeuFeu]

The other day I got really bad news over the phone just when I had arrived at the stable, but before I went to pick up my horse. He usually waits for me to enter the pasture and then comes up to me. This time, he noticed that something was wrong and came galloping over, approached really carefully and started to lick my hands and arms and put his nose near my face (because he knows I like touching his nose and that it cheers me up). He's a reakky sweet boy and knows exactly whats going on with his humans at all times.

[@juliettej.9676]

Horses are so emotionally connected to the emotions of other beings that they will react to each emotion differently. Among horse people, the saying: a horse mirrors a human, which means that the horse will literally mirror the emotions of humans. If I am going to ride a horse while I am very stressed, the horse is going to be stressed as well. If I am scared, he will become insecure. If I am feeling secure, the horse will trust you more and you will make a better team. I have experienced this so many times. I have a horrible ride whenever I am stressed, but the best are the ones where I feel comfortable. Horses you share a special bond with, will recognise your feelings and they will try to turn them into something more positive. Horses are amazing animals!

[@aina3387]

I am naturally a very calm, unreactive person, and it was amazing how well I could get even the hottest horse to calm down. I rarely reacted if they startled, so their startles were always very short lived.

[@petradegroot3578]

My horse looked after me when i had a depresion. She knew when i had a bad day (standing still for log times and me cuddle her, or lay her nose agains my shoulder) and and when i felt better (she would move around a lot more and could be really stubborn which would make me laugh). She was like a 3 grandmother to me. She past away from old age (almost 32 years old) now 5 years ago; i stil mis her, she was so kind to me

[@geniemedford9200]

Horses are so smart...mine came to me from across a small pasture when I screamed after hurting my hand and wrist area. He even stopped eating, looked up and stared at me and walked straight to me. His food is of utmost importance also. I was blown away by his reaction. It is though there is a human inside of him. Next story: Just a few days before that, two little ones flipped their 4 wheeler and were hurt. He heard the scream and ran over to the far pasture fenceline to see if Knox was hurt. He stood straight as a statue focused on the actions of the parents and boys. A broken arm was the result of their accident and my horse knew it was not a good thing. I stood as well in the distance praying that no careflight or ambulance was called. They were two small pastures over, in the distance. He is always alert on what happens over there. He loves children and the little boys' laughter and fun in the distance.

[@TammySaj-zm6kr]

I can vouch for that, my thourobred gelding I owned as a very anxious teenager, calmed me when ever I was with him. 17.2 of love he was.

[@bradwolfe2993]

That's why horse therapy is so very successful , it is all spiritual interaction , they are spiritual like humans , glad some humans are catching on ... finally

[@sharronpettis384]

So are German Shepherds!

[@TheSilverwing999]

Why finally? This isn't new knowledge whatsoever and plenty of people have known this for centuries lol

[@ufosrus]

But so are other animals including the ones in your dinner plate.

[@destinationaddictionsamsar7894]

Horses are exstreamly observant animals who recognize a flick of a ear and tail, the expanding of the eye and nose etc. I love a trainer called Warwickshiller as he uses the horses body language to draw the horse in. From just getting the horse to flick a ear to him he eventually can get them to do liberty. He's so good at reading the horse and using that to train the horse. He doesn't demand the horses attention but ask for it by using their curiosity

[@artflyer8775]

I would love to learn that

[@BrownBrown270]

If you really want a horse to befriend you, wack it off.

[@kayreeve.author]

That's amazing. I think people far underestimate the importance of emotions in every living creature. I love the work this lady is doing in removing the communication barriers. I'm sharing this with my niece who is training with horses at college. 😍

[@secretariatgirl4249]

This was a fantastic show!!! I learned so much about the way they breathe, run...and the fact that they are MINDREADERS!!! Highly recommend this show!!!!!

[@cas..4724]

The way they breath?

[@diesel_dawg]

They're not mind readers, they just know how to sense how others are feeling from body language.

[@orion7741]

@@diesel_dawg not entirely true. many animals actually do communicate with their minds. yes, they absolutely can react subtle changes in body and face languages, but they also communicate on wavelengths not perceptible to humans amongst themselves.

[@shannononeill7108]

as someone who does rode this is very true, horses can tell if you are nervous, excited, upset. Before my runs if I am nervous I notice my horse can pick up on that and she will start to get ancy, if i stay calm she will also stay calm. They tend to feed off of our emotions, they can also hear our heartbeats too! So if your heart is racing they will know you are nervous. Such interesting animals

[@limitedtime5471]

These darling creatures deserve all the respect we give dogs and even more..where would we be as a species without horse power?!

[@robinchwan]

the horses need to read our emotions to know how to act in all kinds of situations. and we need to be able to read them and know how they'll react in all kinds of situations. no surprise there at all. for a horse to trust a human to ride them is nothing short but a miracle to me, specially when they've been trained in the newer ways where you don't break them but rather nudge them towards being able to let people ride them. that's absolute trust right there!

[@hh7407]

I would like to see the 17 expressions. 💖

[@Sushfoo]

Super cute how they recognize emotion. They go up to the picture that's smiling and stay back when they see the face that's angry.

[@ashurean]

One of the first things I was taught while learning to ride horses was that they could tell how you were feeling when you were riding them, and would respond in kind. If you're stressed, the horse is stressed. If you're calm, the horse is calm.

[@feloniousbutterfly]

The fact that we've lived side by side with animals for this long and only now people are like "Wow they can understand our physical language!" Is really alarming considering it suggests we are very slow at learning basic things.

[@thegildedagemadonnabe]

The horses I mostly bond with are Appaloosas. They will lean into my hug and I will close my eyes and feel us both go to a more peaceful universe.

[@AEKAskenburne]

Horses are pretty smart! An old geling (an old Haflinger) came up to me one day to show me a wound on his eye. Ths might not be so significant in itself. Yet, the gelding and I were - up to that day - not too keen on each other. He was just another horse in the mini-herd of the pony I took care of. However, I was so impressed, that he chose me to show his wound, as if he knew, that I could help him with it. After that occasion, I felt deep respect for the old man and we got along just fine.

[@inukoinu.k9]

i just love how intelligent and understanding horses can be

[@ryohn5468]

I was crying one time around a horse and it came up to me and stood there and was trying to be comforting. They see what others are going through.

[@Discrimination_is_not_a_right]

This is why horses are used as therapy animals. They will actually be a mirror to the person working with them.

[@RickyJr46]

They are wonderfully perceptive and communicative beings!

[@honeybiscuit1457]

Almost all creatures are designed with a universal understanding of the importance of the eyes and mouth since those are the most expressive parts of the face. A vast majority of creatures all communicate through their facial body language. When an animal ever looks directly at you, they always know to look directly at your eyes just like how we look directly at theirs.

[@matimus100]

Nonsense there's no creatures in nature respect this please

[@KatherineUribe-1]

Horses are amazing. They not only read facial expressions but also body language, non-verbal communication. They have a very high emotional IQ.💟🐎💟

[@LadyYautjaSpacePirate]

This is definitely important for horse training! I want a horse which is why I'm watching these videos.

[@albatraozgirl]

Horses can hear your heartbeat as well and use that information to evaluate your mood

[@schleepy6362]

Jeez, I wanna learn so much more about horses. I don't think this video even scratches the surface. There's a reason horses are one of the few animals able to be tamed and ridden, and there's a reason so many horse riders will tell you that horses are in tune with us and can predict where the rider wants to go. Horses may not be mind readers, but they must be able to pick up on VERY subtle cues in our bodies and faces, some that we may not even notice ourselves. I'd highly suggest looking up the story of Clever Hans, "the horse that could do math." His trainer would ask a math question, and Hans would tap the answer with his hoof. Of course, Hans couldn't really count, but here's what was really happening: He would tap his hoof continuously until his trainer's expression/body language subtly changed. Obviously, the trainer would get apprehensive once Hans was about to get the right answer. Hans would notice this and stop, which is EQUALLY as impressive as doing some simple math. It's a perfect example of the difference between human and animal intelligence. Our minds are hard to compare, but unique and amazing in their own ways.

[@Kuro_Reaper]

This is literally amazing! It was thought that dogs were the only species of animal capable of reading human facial expression, and the fact that horses also have that ability is really incredible! Amazing what domestication and selective breeding can do. I wonder if there are also other species that can do this. I know studies have been done on cats but they don't have the same understanding as dogs, and now horses. :D

[@allisonjames2923]

It’s not that cats don’t have the same understanding, it’s that they are less eager to play our games!

[@Meraxes6]

Cats can understand our expressions, they usually just don’t care 😂

[@Kuro_Reaper]

That would make sense that cats don't give two penguins about facial expression. Cat's are narcissist. But that's why we love cats and would never change them. XD

[@dryocampa]

This isn’t due to domestication or selective breeding. Apes can do it as well, it is down to intelligence

[@zeff8820]

@@dryocampa it can be due to domestication too

[@alejandroelluxray5298]

I love how emotional animals can be, it is simply wondeful

[@RestlessWandererOriginal]

Horses are beautiful animals

[@priyesh0071]

My colleague has 4 horses.. He is an expert.. He used to tel me the Horse feels the whole body of human (specially his owner).. He reads courage n fear the most, if the owner expresses courage he wld jump even in the fire of woods without budging or the owner forcing him/encouraging him by hitting or so.. And if the owner is scared he won't even jump a 2 feet hurdle.. Its literally that connecting.. And 2nd thing he said (specially in Polo games), no matter what if any human falls of the horse, no horse will intentionally or even momentarily step on him (like any part of the body), they will just leap any how.. Only in coincidence or accident they wld hit that person otherwise no unless it's a wild horse and trying to be controlled by an unknown other species (be it human).. 😊

[@Clara-ph7my]

Amazing study. We buy a horse. For example rideable. We expect the horse to be just that. Hop on do the job I paid you for,. Horses are removed from their original family home and passed on time and time again, through life. As with humans, building trust takes time. Building a relationship with your horse takes time (some more than others). Amazing video. As owners we do also need to reflect on our approach and our mood/emotions.

[@zuzannaczerwonik8309]

Really interesting video. Thank you, horses and animals in general are extraordinarily intelligent.

[@xoselhket]

Owning horses my entire life has naturally taught me all of this :)

[@VL1975]

Goodie for you!

[@geologick]

@@VL1975 oof passive aggressive much?

[@gentleasa5728]

The Horse whisperer, it’s never about the Horse! Great lessons

[@dionnedunsmore9996]

Idk much about horses but i hear they're quite spiritual. Lots of ppl really enjoy them

[@alwaysyouramanda]

No one can say for certain just how long we have been together 🥺💜

[@dooovde]

I find it really surprising that people find it surprising that animals other than humans can read emotion. It's a basic necessity to survive and must have existed within our makeup for millions of years. It's not surprising that mammals share this ability, even fish can read emotion ffs. If we couldn't tell the state of mind of another animal then we wouldn't last too long on this planet.

[@catpoke9557]

The surprising thing to me is never that they can read emotion, but that they can read specifically ours. Some things are universal like baring teeth (for the most part, there's nuances to that too) but some things can only be understood by being of the same species or having experience with the species.

[@Cotac_Rastic]

@@catpoke9557 That's mainly due to the fact they are a domesticated work animal that has been born and bred for everything from war and transport to farmwork. Their obedience and familiarity is genetic memory at this point.

[@TheSilverwing999]

The surprising thing isn't that they can read emotion in general, it's that they can read HUMAN emotion. Because evolutionarily speaking they would only have needed to be able to register the emotion of their own species, and for every other species to understand only two variations (danger so run away and safety). So no, it's not surprising that people find this surprising. It's logical. The answer is btw that they are very attuned to humans because of being work animals for so many centuries. Other animals might not have developed this ability as much, if they didn't have contact with humans

[@RPB-1]

Ich glaube das ein Pferd auf jeden Fall ohne Reiter glücklicher unterwegs ist!

[@RockandRollsince1992]

It's crazy how both horses reacted in the same way. Animals are so much smarter than we think they are.

[@valeska6434]

I have been riding for 14 years from the age of 6 to now 20. I have noticed the change in horses behavior when changing riders drastically. From stress and irritation to complete relaxation. Humans have so much impact on horses and their emotions. Very interesting

[@lizxu322]

Bruh ive had my rescue horse for 2 years and she gives me the dodgy side eye more than anything else 😂😂😂 we all know what that looks like

[@lindademott6472]

I knew all this years ago. Just being around your own horses, you can't help but observe their expressions, feelings and observations.

[@Dell-ol6hb]

I mean it seems kinda obvious that they would be able to read our emotions from our faces because we've raised them for thousands of years, it really goes to show that we really don't give animals enough credit and always think of them as lesser than us or beneath us when they in fact oftentimes are extremely complex beings

[@GoldenLegionHoney]

lowering the head may also be a submissive posture in relation to the angry face

[@jerr-chan2821]

This is so fascinating to me, I love animal behavior and how it never ceases to amaze me

[@fourleafclover2377]

Very enlightening ! This video made me happy

[@Hazelduff]

One time, with my very first horse that I was tending to, as I was releasing it to its pasture, it began teasing me by running off with all of its leashes, (not sure on the proper English term sry) even the long one still attached to its head before I could remove them, and ran off with her fellow horse friends to tease me. I was already emotional so I began crying out of fear that she'd trip over the long leash and hurt herself. After a brief moment of crying I realised they had all stopped and were staring at me, and my pony allowed me to remove the leash peacefully, as if to say they're sorry.

[@ΓΕΩΡΓΙΟΣΔΡΕΤΑΚΗΣ-ω9β]

Love,friendship and respect for every animal. We overestimate ourselves (the human intellect)

[@carolinebyrne4995]

I ALWAYS KNEW HORSES COULD READ PEOPLE THERE VERY VERY SMART ANMILAS PLUS THEY CRY AND GREEVE SO VERY DEEPLY AT THE DEATH OF THERE FRIEND OR HUMAN COMPAION

[@ElsjeMassyn]

Check out Anna Breytenbach interview with a Black Leopard in South Africa. Stunning. Animals know much more than what we think they know.

[@ManyfiresWoman]

This was fascinating! I just always thought that horses were able to "feel" our emotions. Never thought of them being able to "read" our facial meanings. Very interesting.

[@ginacaparotta7971]

I agree with the whole hardly. When I use to ride horses. I rode a pony and him and I were very close. I would bring him treats every time I came. Even if I wasn't riding him I would. Any way one day I was riding and plane had gone by. He took a side ways step and I was falling off. he wait until I was off him before He took off. Of course I was upset,(Didn't blame him) He stopped and came back to me to make sure I was okay. Horses are one of my favorite animals.

[@sharronpettis384]

Having seen the German Shepherd dog portrayed on tv as an aggressive, attack animal of the police, people have NO idea how loving, intelligent, protective, and mostly intuitive they are! It’s quite incredible. Mine knows when I’m sad, in thought, worried etc. the list goes on! She even has different toys that she selectively brings to offer for the different moods of people around her!! They are not at all aggressive they simply watch the actions, moods, and can sense the intentions of people that come into the circle of others. They will protect (not viciously either) anyone who another person or animal means to do harm! Usually by simply moving in closer to the aggressor or a warning bark, usually very subtle. I suspect they can tell whether or not someone is about to attack another person or animal and adjust as necessary. Highly intuitive and quick acting. Most kind people have no problem being around them. I suspect those meaning harm sense their awareness! They’re usually the ones who are scared of them.

[@gloryshadow8710]

that small white horse with little ears is so cute :) 0:31

[@NickV-ez4be]

It's interesting that so many animals use the same intonations and facial expressions to portray their emotions. If we can understand when an animal is afraid, angry or sad, why can't they?

[@VSWVeeresSchleichWorld]

Toffee is so adorable!

[@chloesibilla8199]

"to build her library of horse emotions"

[@OneMeanArtist]

All of those horses need some serious time with a farrier.

[@sugarsore]

Absolutely incredible.

[@skywagon2458]

We have evolved alongside these creatures. Of course they know us just as well as we know them.

[@somnyad]

Cats also do things like this. A lot of videos show cats biting or whatever, but oftentimes these cats consider the way they have been treated to be disrespectful. People can't treat horses with disrespect because horses are bigger than us and there is a power balance. Cats fingers are cut off (declawing), they are poked at and clumsily picked up, and people expect them to be complacent, but their personalities demand respect, as you might give a horse or a parrot. I have had all of these animals as pets, and this is what I believe.

[@belogical3961]

What I know is, The emotional connection between a horse can be so special and beautiful, that your wife might even want to get a divorce. 😂

[@ShinySonic]

Very first thing my rider teacher taught me back when I rode horses was that they can see my emotions or sense them, they’ll know if I’m upset, angry, or scared and go off that, if they knew I was scared while riding they’d usually stop or go back to the teacher, I had to learn I needed to be calm on my horse and not so tense, I wonder how much better I’d do now after tackling my anxiety

[@puppshades2554]

VERY INTERESTING OBSERVATION KEEP DOING IT

[@Kiraiko44]

What's really fascinating is how much horses use their bodies to communicate. Humans do it too of course, body language is a whole thing, but I'd say we most use our faces and voices to communicate. Horses use mostly their faces and bodies, vocal communication is pretty minimal with horses. It makes sense if you think about it, they're prey animals, they wouldn't want to attract attention by making a bunch of noise. Communicating silently would be preferred, so face and body language.

[@InstigatorDJ]

Horses are amazing.

[@sundaywhiterabbit7679]

Of course they can. So can dogs. Likely because we are all mammals. And all of us use body language. Horse communicates mostly through body language and are very social and intelligent animals, like ourselves.

[@Brunette3030]

Also, horses are herd animals and dogs are pack animals. These are inherently going to be much more attuned to body language and emotional states than an animal that's naturally solitary.

[@sundaywhiterabbit7679]

@@Brunette3030 you have a point but even solitary animals, also use body language to communicate. When a leopard crouches and has it's ears back and flat, and looking at you, I bet you get the message loud and clear.

[@sundaywhiterabbit7679]

The most surprising information about communication is that the Sun and Stars are alive and also communicating with life forms they have created. Namaste.

[@deanmashburn6829]

I seen this on public television nature I watched this man break a horse who had never even seen a human being in its life and the horse never booked him off never booked not one time he got on it slowly and ended up riding the horse just like the horse had been rolled 100,000 times he won that horse's trust and the horse followed him all around the corral while he walked some animals are so smart they outsmart humans think about that for a minute

[@arcosprey4811]

Literally every single horse in the Americas grew up with humans. Crazy.

[@AntiSimpTrooper-175]

Which is why they are good companions alongside dogs and.. the chonky boi's

[@hsh3710]

What a discovery. Everyone knows it. Most animals grin to scare the enemy, it is normal and every animal knows it.

[@susanb4846]

I absolutely Love horses!! Have been lucky enough to have owned 4

[@IL_801]

When they showed the angry face and his little ears went back as he put his head down I CRIED A LITTLE. ;; IT'S OK BUD no one is angry with you I promise

[@thelthrythquezada8397]

Yeah, I have a pug, and she will look at me as soon as I look at her, soon as I smile without talking she begins to wag her tail.

[@AAPPPAALLOOOSSAA]

Mes meilleurs amis un animal magique qui nous fait découvrir la nature et l'amour inconditionnel

[@kikithepupper6774]

wow horsies are amazing

[@y-mefarm4249]

Horses get a read on us by how we stand and move. Sure they get cues from our facial expressions. Eye contact with your head up, standing stiff. Means something completely different then head down, side eye contact, with a relaxed leg. One will make your horse a tad uncomfy the other is welcoming. Horses are fun to talk to.

[@woox200sx]

A horse walks into a bar and the man behind the bar asks 'Why the long face?'

[@justaguy4real]

2:08 they're clearly intelligent enough to realize that it's the mouth and eyes that give away the most information about the subject/person

[@TimCausleyhorsemanship]

Horses know who, what, and how you are when you walk into a room-they do not need to see you--ask any true horseman-(whisperer) Reading their expressions is what gives us that know a greater ability to talk to them and connect as a trusted partner-some people do this by nature-others can be taught-it is a rhythmic dance

[@rubenhayk5514]

Humans always fascinated that other animals are similar to humans

[@Cjs478]

Its just that horsepeople want their horses to have emotions so bad, they just start to see things like these.

[@Jennifer-di4nl]

I'm an empath and I can tell you that since I was a teenager I could read a horses emotions the second I got on his/her back. It's a symbiotic relationship of feeling each others emotions and not pushing each other beyond what they are capable of in that state. I've sensed fear, agitation, pain, hunger, happiness, etc.. from horses. They get a sense within minutes how much of their bullshit you will tolerate and if you're feeling like you want to take it easy or you want to really ride. They know. My teacher once told me they know the second you get on their back of you can ride or not and they will take advantage if you do not know.

[@ems7623]

I've always thought the word "empath" sounded too much like "psychic" or "clairvoyant" in English. Of course, it's not. (It's actually a real psychological trait and the others are a bunch of hooey, as you know.). I would say it's a pretty good trait to have.

[@Jennifer-di4nl]

@@ems7623 It can be a curse or a blessing. This video is great way of explaining how empaths are created and what it means.. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gaHHZJqMdpWhncU

[@RockieC1]

Be nice to horses and show them respect! Imagine being a horse completely controlled by humans with ropes

[@KitKatToeBeans]

Highly intelligent, beautiful creatures. We don’t deserve them. If only man would fully appreciate them & not abuse, torture, neglect & even butcher them.

[@slade_ezekiel_sachs]

Where is the full documentary?

[@stardust949]

I wonder if wild mustangs have the same discernment as domesticated horses?

[@rachelw8506]

Mustangs aren't wild they are a domesticated species

[@cymbala6208]

If evolution is reality (which I believe), then it is very logical that we share emotions and their behavioural expressions with other animals.