Horses Explained: Common horse behaviour issues

[@coma1366]

Thanks for a inspiring conversation. Especially about mares in heat, and our presumptions about grumpy mares. And also the boss thing! No more af that kind of thinking. Thank you from Denmark!

[@juliemiles97]

Love this series, look forward to the next one.

[@ln6455]

So glad you addressed the nonsense of being boss and showing the horse you are the boss, and being naughty , and doing things on purpose to get the owner! such crazy beliefs that so many horse people will not let go of.

[@off5229]

What does the horse move its head up and down? What does this behavior indicate?

[@ljo0605]

When ridden? could be lame, could be a bit issue. Get a vet in to check. If none above is a problem it's hard to tell without a video. When their head is high it shows tension and head down they are more relaxed

[@worldhorsewelfareeducation]

Thank you for your question! Head movements can mean different things, depending on the behaviour and the context in which they are displayed. Horses move their heads up and down for a variety of reasons, for example to get rid of annoying insects, to adjust their line of sight, and as social communication. Head movements are also part of the Equine Discomfort Ethogram (Torcivia & McDonnell 2021) as well as the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (Dyson et al. 2018) and could be a sign of pain. When interpreting your horse's behaviour, it's important to consider the context. You can find out more about tacking up and ridden behaviours on our advice page here: bit.ly/4fafvQP

[@ljo0605]

Herd hiearchy does exist it's just not dominance in the way we think. They do what is best for the herd and all have their role. It all depends on who moves whos feet, they do drive and follow eachother I see it all the time

[@ln6455]

Absolutely 100% a horse is not happy for a reason there is no such thing as a grumpy horse!!!!!!

[@ln6455]

I disagree voice does make a difference, angry words and voice makes a difference to nice words and calming , happy voice.

[@ljo0605]

It's the tone, not the words

[@ln6455]

@@ljo0605 as I said