Know What a Horse Needs

First and Foremost: Horses are a prey animal. Horses are a herd animal.

Dogs, like humans are cave dwellers - predators who feel comfortable taking care of themselves.

Dogs and humans run in packs primarily to gain advantage in the hunt, not for safety.

Pat Parelli says humans and dogs are most interested in praise, recognition, and material things. Horses are not interested in any of that.

Horses are interested in safety, emotional comfort, play, food, and procreation. Praise, recognition and material things are of no interest to a horse.

What we humans feel our “horse babies” should have is most often the exact opposite of what they need for health and happiness.

A horse’s entire physiology has been built over centuries to:

• Move a minimum of 15-20 miles per day on bare hooves.

• Be with the herd, physically and thus emotionally safe, unstressed (not in separated stalls).

• Spend 16-18 hours a day eating FROM the GROUND. A variety - continuous uptake in small quantities to suit their small tummies.

• Control their own thermoregulatory system, thus controlling their own internal body temperature.

If we want to do right by the horse, allow horses to live as nature intended in an environment needed for horses to thrive.