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Horses and Emotion Those of us who raise children and animals understand how we always try to add reason to things the children and animals do. Especially with our pets we attempt to understand their actions in terms of how we relate to things emotionally as well. We especially do this with horses whom may appear to some to have less ability to communicate directly with us compared to our canine friends. Traditionally, scientists have not widely accepted the idea that horses like to work or love to play, etc. In more recent decades with all the emphasis on animal husbandry, scientists are researching the capacity for emotion in animals and horses as well. So what do you think? Through the years I have seen a slight change in equine behavior in our eldest horse when a “buddy” of his had relocated to another barn. These two were inseparable in the pasture, always grazing very close to each other. They were also co-dominant with other herd mates. More recently you can notice that when one pasture mate is missing from the group upon turnout, the horses of the group whinny with the horse in the barn, especially if they are used to continuous companionship. As far as scientific research, the question is still not answered with unanimous validation by facts that our equine friends share the same type of human emotions. Fear is certainly one of the primary emotions shared by both humans and horses. However, other secondary emotions such as shame, pride, guilt, jealousy, etc usually arise less rapidly in humans and emerge after primary emotions are evident. Some scientists believe that secondary emotions may require a much higher level of cognitive capabilities. But then we can see here at our barn the dominant horse who wants all the attention. So perhaps attention also can be seen as affection which is a form of bonding, and bonding among herd animals results in protection for the equine herds. I personally believe that horses share many emotions but that the type of communication through which they express their emotions are different from ours. It is with years of experience and intuitive understanding of body movement and watching our horses that we can really begin to peel down to layers of understanding with our horses. The popular “horse whisperers” I believe, have greater perception skills and can demonstrate greater communication skills with our horses. You may not be able to hug your horse like your children and get the same result, but certainly you can bond and demonstrate affection toward your horse and if you pay attention and present communication in a way your horse values you will, in turn, be rewarded. Enjoy your animals!
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