Timber Lane Equestrian Center

12/04/2024

Comparative neurobiology of horse and human.

Horses and humans are both mammals.
Our brains may not be the same size, but they are almost identical in their structure and function.

Why can our brains look so similar but our behaviours and sensitivity to the world look so different?

The area in the picture highlighted is the prefrontal cortex or the (PFC). Its job in humans, horses, dogs, dolphins, elephants, cats, mice, rats, all mammals, and even birds is to carry out "higher executive functions" such as:

🧠 problem solving
🧠 decision making
🧠 reasoning
🧠 risk assessment
🧠 forward planning
🧠 impulse control
🧠 intention

Obviously, these executive functions are more advanced in humans than in other species of mammals, but this part of the brain plays a pivotal role in higher levels of learning beyond primal behaviours and learning survival skills.

So why aren't we seeing these higher executive functioning skills and behaviours in horses as much as what we see them in dogs, dolphins, elephants and even birds?

Ultimately it comes down to safety!

The latest neuroscience research suggests that when the brain feels unsafe it causes the body to produce stress response hormones and these stress response hormones cause the PFC to go "offline".
This means that subcortical regions of the brain (deeper parts of the brain) such as the primal brain (AKA limbic system, survival brain, flight/fight brain) completely take over to increase the chances of survival.

Feeling unsafe causes the feeling of fear and it is fear that gets this party started.

So behaviours come from two areas:

1. The PFC, carrying out problem solving skills, reasoning, impulse control, forward planning etc. that may be interpreted as "obedience" and "partnership".

2. The primal brain, carrying out reactive survival behaviours. This brain does NOT carry out impulse control, forward planning, problem solving, etc. It just reacts to the world. This brain heavily relies on patterns and consistency. This brain will cause freeze/flight/fight behaviours such as shutting down, bolting, biting, rearing, bucking, kicking, barging, etc.

Which brain is the domesticated horse spending most of it's time in?
It's primal brain!

This is why we don't get to see their full intellectual and cognitive potential because most of the time, domesticated horses are perceiving their world in a fearful way to some degree.

We can help our horses with this!

Feeling fearful is the OPPOSITE to feeling calm.
If we want to help our horses access their PFC then we MUST do whatever it takes to help them feel calm.

☝️ ONLY when a brain feels calm can it slow down enough to develop TRUE confidence. Only when the brain feels confident will it access TRUE cognition (PFC).

☝️ We first need to understand that when we get "bad behaviour" from our horses, it's not intentional or naughty or rude. What you are seeing is either a horse that is just reacting to the fear they feel or they are carrying out their "coping mechanism" in response to their anticipation of feeling fear.

☝️ Try to remove expectations that your horse should "know better".
"Knowing better" implies that all behaviours are coming from the PFC and there should be some impulse control and reasoning. Unless your horse feels calm, they can't access the PFC to "know better".

THIS STARTS WITH YOU!!!

You need to be consciously aware if YOU feel calm first. If you feel calm, your horse will have a better chance at feeling calm. Expecting them to feel calm when you don't is unfair.

The best way to create calmness is to intentionally be SLOW!!!
SLOW EVERYTHING you do down.
SLOW your movement down.
SLOW your talking down.
SLOW your walking down.
SLOW your breathing down.
SLOW your horse down.
If you feel too slow, then you're going slow enough.

Calmness is slow, not fast.

This will help you and your horse to connect and feel safe together.
When the brain feels stressed, the stress response hormones cause the body to speed up.

Stress = speed

We can reverse engineer this process and create a calm mind through slow intentional movement and a relaxed posture.

The by-product of a calm brain is confidence and cognition (PFC access).

Happy brain training 🧠
Charlotte 😊

Photo: Credit: Adult horse (equine) brain, sagittal section. Michael Frank, Royal Veterinary College. Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

12/02/2024

1

𝐇𝐀𝐈𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐋 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘 (𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞) 𝐃𝐄𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐃

This knowledge is a game changer in the horse training business and for those in all the competition sports, and a valuable guide for horse owners looking to find the perfect horse for their lifestyle and riding pleasure. Geneticists in three countries have provided the first scientific evidence of the inheritance of hair whorls, links to behavior, and specific genes linked to certain hair whorl patterns. There's no scientific evidence more definitive than genetic evidence. Dr. Temple Grandin and I at Colorado State University waited 28 eight years since we published the first scientific evidence of the link from hair whorls to behavior for the genetic evidence we always knew would come. We never claimed to discover the relationship between hair whorls and behavior; people worldwide for thousands of years have casually observed the relationship. What we did that was new was show the link to lateralization of the nervous system and the hair whorls association with functional specialization of the cerebral hemispheres of the brain. I studied and documented the relationship for ten years before meeting Temple Grandin, working as a farrier and horse trainer. I learned the practical application of this knowledge in real-world situations before seeking and finding the academic support needed to make this useful information available to everyone.

This post aims to clarify and unify common terminology and principles of hair whorl height and position, either left, right, or center. For future posting on this page, this information is essential for you. The most important language to clarify relates to the side preference exhibited by horses and its relation to horse welfare concerns. The terminology in the horse industry, as is in the scientific language, is broad and varies between people in the US and other countries. The formal scientific term for this phenomenon is lateralization of the nervous system. Some scientists use a less formal term, 𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚. 𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒅𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 is the general term used to describe the phenomenon across species that includes human handedness, paw preference in dogs, footedness in birds, and side preference in cattle, horses, and other herbivores. In my writing, I interchange the terms laterality, handedness, and side preference depending on sentence context, but they all mean the same thing.

I drew this graph on this horse because this horse represents a large proportion of horses and the hair whorl type that suffers from the most severe welfare concerns. It has a single whorl, is left of center, and is very.

𝐇𝐀𝐈𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐋 𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓

"Very Low" defines a non-reactive horse with low fear. "Low" whorls represent a horse as slightly more reactive than the "very low." "Very Lows" and "Lows" show minimal side preferences, and the hair whorls are usually in the center of the midline. The V-lines on the graph represent how, as the whorl gets higher, the side preference increases.

𝐌𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐋𝐄 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐇𝐈𝐆𝐇

Most horses are in the Middle and High Range. The reactivity and fearfulness are in the mid-range, with some variation. Reactivity is higher in the top portion of the High range and lower reactivity in the lower middle range. The V-shape on the graph represents side preferences. The higher the whorl on the forehead, the stronger their side preference.

𝐇𝐈𝐆𝐇 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 𝐇𝐈𝐆𝐇

A smaller portion of horses are in the "High" and "Very" High range. Both high and very high define highly reactive and fearful horses. Side preference is highest in these two ranges, and the distance left or right from the midline also increases the side preference strength. This horse represents very high nervous system reactivity and laterality but not extreme laterality (side preference). A hair whorl closer to V-line would be an example of extreme laterality.

𝐇𝐀𝐈𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐋 𝐄𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑

The epicenter defines the position of the whorl. This horse has a very high whorl slightly off to the horse's left side. This horse is highly reactive. The side preference is strong but not the strongest., and its natural fearfulness is very strong.

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘

Approximately 70% of horses have a left side whorl in the medium to high ranges. 10% to 15% have hair whorls on the right side. Approximately 10% have two side-by-side whorls, always in mid-to-high ranges, never low. The double side-by-side whorls we considered normal in our research.The doubles, either side by side or one above the other, are harder to define and require a separate post to clarify.

The remaining 5% have multiple or two whorls, one above the other. In our research, we considered these types of whorls abnormal.

The horse in this picture will favor the right lead and travel better in a circle to the right or clockwise. The left whorl and right turning preferences are similar to most right-handed people. The right side whorl is opposite, like left-handed people. The horse with a high right side whorl favors the left lead.

This horse's left eye is the "look out for danger" eye in horse's with a left side whorl, and prefers the right lead. The side of the whorl is the side the horse will give a farrier the hardest time. The opposite holds for the horse with a right side whorl.This horse's right eye is the "look out for danger" eye in horse's with a right side whorl, and this horse prefers the left lead.

The high reactivity(fearfulness) and the laterality (side preference) of the horse in the photograph and a horse with the opposite on the right side are the types of horses I encountered most while working as a farrier and horse trainer. The horses with the high right and left hair whorls show the most potential as high-performance horses, but they also represent the horses with the most severe welfare concerns. Unfortunately, when they have behavior problems, they are the most dangerous and unpredictable. It all depends on how they are raised and handled. Any clarifying questions are welcome.

12/02/2024

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09/14/2024

08/16/2024

In this video Ryan and Emily talk about how to prepare your horse and yourself for successful rides while staying in the saddle. We cover ground exercises, r...

06/27/2024

To replace a good horse!
The best horses are built over years of hauling, hard work, tough times, good times, bad times, big spooks, little spooks, their mistakes, our mistakes and continual love and care.

No, your breaker can not turn your young prospect into your old faithful in 30, 60, 90, or even 365 days. It takes years.

I’m plagued with the problem of trying to impress on people how long it truly takes to build that dream partner. There’s not a smooth paved path. Your green horse will embarrass you, frustrate you, and maybe even hurt you. For some of you, buying a $20,000-$30,000 horse is going to be worth it and SAVE you money. Even that more finished horse will take a year or more to sync up with.

Cheap rate for horse training is $1,000 a month.
1 year of training: $12,000
2 years of training: $24,000

Many of you won’t believe this but your dream horse is on the other side of two years of training. In reality, it’s likely around two years of training and two years of seasoning (hauling them to town). Will that horse still make mistakes? Yes, they all make mistakes until the day they die. But that horses mistakes probably won’t put you in serious danger and that horse will probably pack your grandkids around.

If you’re trying to decide between a $3,500 prospect or a $15,000 proven horse. My advice is to do an internal inventory and figure out what you want. Buying that prospect is like the first roll on the Jumanji board. You’re entered up, get ready for a journey of ups and downs (possibly quite literally!) If you’re buying that finished horse decide what you really want, get ready for a lot of shopping and painfully overpriced sh💩tters. Take a friend or a trainer on this journey with you and try to double your budget (that’s right, 30k). Be smart and buy something OVER 8 years old. Don’t buy that pretty 5 year old they only want 20k for. He isn’t old enough to be proven for you. Lots of horse traders are trying to flip horses, anything under 8 is likely twice as green as he looks in the video. Maturity, both mental and physical will be key when looking for a safe horse.

If you want a project and a challenge I’m not hating, that’s what I want in a horse too, so I buy young ones. If you need a safe one, bring lots of money and quit thinking you need a 6 year old. You probably don’t have what it takes to mentally support that 6 year old through new situations.

The biggest reason I bring this up is because as folks retire their old faithful they are so far removed from when that horse was green and did dumb stuff. They forgot how tough those two years were back when he was 4-6. They only remember the amazing horse he was when he matured. The 3 year old they just bought is YEARS from filling that horses shoes when it comes to training level and safety level. I see people hate on trainers because the trainer couldn’t make their young horse, “finished” in 90 days. It’s honestly the biggest reason I like taking colts for 30 or 60 days. The expectation is shockingly lower than when I take one for 90 days. It’s weird what people expect from a 90 day start. Most people should commit to sending their young horse out for a full year. Two years would be even better.

Green horses do green horse things, don’t blame others for the challenge you bought yourself. Accept the challenge or pay the price for one further along. No matter which path you choose with horses, it’s going to cost you.

(I didn’t write this one I’m not sure who did, however every word of it rings true)

Edit, author Craig Moore

06/12/2024

I want horses to have opinions.

A horse with an opinion will express when they do not feel safe - because they are being pushed too hard, because they are hurting, because we’re asking for something incorrectly, because our energy is off. An opinion can tell me that something is not right - and it is my job to do my best to figure it out.

Leslie Desmond famously said “What value does yes have if no is not an option?” If we don’t give them the ability to express themselves, how will we have a clue how they are feeling? Do we actually care? How will they be able to learn willingly verses through submission? And yes, there is a difference. A BIG difference.

A horse with an opinion is thinking for themselves, verses blindly doing what is asked even when they are not mentally or physically capable. Better to refuse a fence rather than jump it in such a way that is going to be dangerous. Better to be unsettled in warm up and try to figure it out before entering the show ring. Better to act up in smaller ways, rather than push them through until the bigger explosion or the really unsafe risk happens.

In my practice, the horse is a feedback loop. How she moves and reacts, in addition to what I feel under my hands and see, tells me things. I need to be willing to let the horse have an opinion, to express how they feel, so that I do not push beyond boundaries to ask too much. I try not to get to “no”, but no is okay. No is important, just as important as yes.

A teacher recently said to me that the way we train and ride horses is often separating their sensory and motor functions to the point that they really don’t know where their bodies are in space. The way we strap down their heads and prevent full range of eye sight; the way that we restrict breathing and mouth movement (which impacts the entire body) by cranking nosebands tight; the use of harsh bits; when we drug them before we ride; the way that we simply ask for constant submission.

I have not really stopped thinking about this.

We are, in essence, teaching horses to ignore their nervous systems when we are on their backs.

No thanks.

No “dead broke” horses for me. If my horse, or any horse I’m working with, is feeling fear or pain or sweet release, I sure as hell want to know it.

Photo credit: Olia Gozha

06/12/2024

We know just from standing close beside your horse that he, like every living animal, generates heat. But have you ever considered where that energy comes from? Just going about the daily business of staying alive, the cells of the body convert the sugar glucose into energy. But the cells do not use...