16/10/2025
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20 Ways Horses Talk Without Saying a Word
1. They talk through their behaviour when asked to do something, e.g. how they perform a canter transition.
2. They talk through their reactions to situations, e.g. when you go out to try and catch them.
3. They talk through their gestures, e.g. when they tighten their mouths and swish their tails.
4. They talk through their posture, e.g. when they hollow their backs and how they stand.
5. They talk through their movement, e.g. when their movement is rushed, tense, or discombobulated.
6. They talk through how they brace to protect themselves, e.g. how they react when you pick up the rein.
7. They talk through how their muscles have developed or become wasted away, e.g. stand your horse square and examine the symmetry of their muscling from one side to the other.
8. They talk through their conformation, e.g. what does their conformation tell you they will excel at or struggle with?
9. They talk through inspecting their mouths and teeth, e.g. bits can cause damage, and once you know how to see it, you can never un-see it.
10. They talk through their hooves, e.g. from stress rings to hoof wear, flaring, and balance.
11. They talk through the health and quality of their coat, e.g. is their coat shiny or dull?
12. They talk through their weight, e.g. are they underweight or overweight?
13. They talk through the way they are bloated, distended, or have no core.
14. They talk through their breath, its smell, rhythm, and depth.
15. They talk to you in their heart beat and other vital signs.
16. They talk through their footfalls, the timing and heaviness as they hit the ground.
17. They talk through the contraptions people attach to them or use to control them, e.g. nosebands, bits, chains, whips, spurs, or food, etc.—all tell a story.
18. They talk through their curiosity, preferences and what they wish to avoid.
19. They talk through their owner’s frustrations and the names they are called.
20. They even talk to you in their manure and how often they pooh!
Horses will always tell you what they know, how they feel, and provide an in-depth history of their lives. Important things. In fact, horses have a lot to say if you watch, observe and learn what things mean.
I welcome you to add to this list.
📸 IMAGE: Here’s a horse demonstrating the quirks in how efficiently he processes in this part of his visual field. A shoutout to Ross Jacobs for the quote — he was the first person I heard say this, and it’s stuck with me ever since. Thank you to everyone who has taught me to hear, see, feel, and smell what truly matters when it comes to understanding horses.
Come along to one of my Whole Horse Workshops, where we will work through the observations that matter.
This is Collectable Advice Entry 53/365 from my notebook challenge — SAVE it, hit SHARE, and as always… no copying and pasting, thank you!
