A Horse's Body Language can Tell You A Lot

As all horse insurance customers will realise, to understand your horse you need to first understand their body language. You should always approach a horse slowly and calmly. If you are calm they will also be calm. Horses speak with both their heads and tails so you should always be aware of their body language.

If you see a horse with their ears laid flat back there is something amiss. This is a sign the horse is frightened or in most cases it means they are angry. When a horse directs their attention to something their ears usually follow. When their ears are sticking straight up high this can be a sign of mischief or the horse is on alert about something. If their ears are flickering it means they are listening and attentive.

If a horse is swishing its tail it usually means they are agitated about something. Animal Friends Insurance suggest that you need to be alert when this happens because they may kick. They swish their tails to tell other horses to back off. They will also swish their tails to keep files off. You need to watch your horse to understand the reason they are swishing their tail so you can be ready in case they start to kick.

Horses will sometimes take off running and bucking across a field. This is usually a sign the horse is in a playful mood and feeling good. It ears will be back and it may make grunt and squeal noises.

Sometimes young horses will buck their riders the first couple of times because they are unsure of what is going on. Just remember bucking is not a sign of pain. A horse that is really afraid will not buck but rear up and most likely run.

Most people approach grooming as just something that needs to be done. You can use grooming to establish a bond between yourself and your horse, and this will help you to understand and interpret your horse's body language. The horse will soon get used to being handled and brushed and once it becomes routine both of you will enjoy the experience which regular horse grooming brings.