Horses Ears ” A Horses Means of Communication

Sat, May 16, 2009

Sports

Do you know what your horses ears tell you? It is very important that you know how your horse communicates with its body parts because this can prevent you from getting attacked. If you are a parent whose child is having a horse riding lesson, you must educate your child about it.

By nature, horses are very observant animals because they are prey animals. Since they always fear for their lives, they must be aware of their surroundings at all times. Because of this, they have developed the fight-or-flight instinct that works very well in saving their lives.

Because horses can react violently if they feel they are threatened, you must be very vigilant whenever near a horse. They can bite and kick, which can lead to serious injuries. Horses have unpredictable nature. This is why basic knowledge and a few consideration of horse behavior are of utmost importance.

Since horses are animals, the responsibility of understanding their basic nature lies on you. You must know how they communicate with each other and recognize certain behavior and its meaning. If you know these things, you will be able to predict their next move.

A horse communicates with its body in varying degrees to express itself. One of the most expressive parts of a horses body is its ear. Horse ears are one of the horses means of communication aside from their facial expression.

One of the distinctive characteristics of a horses ear, aside from being sensitive even to the slightest noise, is its pinna. Its pinna, which is the visible part of the ear residing outside the head, can rotate up to 180 degrees. Meaning, even without having to move its head, it can hear at up to 360. You should also know where its attentions at by following its ears direction.

Here are some information on horses ears, which can be key signals that you must be aware of.

If your horses ears are in upright or forward position, it means it is very alert. If the ears are stiff and tilted, it is scared of something. If the ears are in the forward position, it is an expression of friendliness and good cheer. However, there is an exception to this.

Remember that a horse’s ears will always point to where its interest lies. If your horse is straining its ears forward at a strange horse, it might be intending to sniff noses with that horse. The next reaction can be loud squeals, kicks, or nips. This is why you should pay attention to which your horses ears point.

If the ears are pointing backward, your horse might be expressing fear. But this is not always the case. Ears pointing backwards can mean that your horse is feeling sleepy. If you are riding your horse and its ears are pointing backwards, it means it is listening to you.

When a horse puts its ear back flat to its neck and shows the white of its eyes, it means that it is angry. This expression means a threat, and the threat may be followed up with a bite or sometimes a kick.

All of these ear positions can indicate what a horse will do next. Understanding or having an idea about these will help you become a better rider.

About the Author:

Tags: , , , ,

Related posts:

  1. Horses Ears ” How a Horse Communicates Using its Ears? Did you know that your horses ears can save your...
  2. Gamble On Horses If you're interested in starting to play the horses via...
  3. Ringing In Ears Causes & How To Treat Tinnitus When you are experiencing tinnitus, your life can be difficult,...
  4. Ringing In Ears Causes & What To Do About It When you are suffering with tinnitus, it can be a...
  5. Help For Buzzing In The Ears - Tinnitus Retraining Therapy Tinnitus retraining therapy is a therapy that has proven to...

1 Comments For This Post

  1. dazey Says:

    Excellent information that is extremely important especially for anyone who has only casual contact with horses. For recreational riders who keep horses at home it is important to establish a relationship with the horse, which the horse can understand. How to relate to a horse as his alpha mare herd member, which will allow a rider to teach the horse without having to use bits, spurs, rope, longe lines or round pens can be found in the small paperback Basic Training for a Safe Trail Horse available at Amazon.com. Questions may be sent to the author at safetrailhorse@gmail.com

Leave a Reply

Close
E-mail It