Ask an Expert: Dr Andrew McLean

from Equestrian Hub Magazine Issue 7 2022

by equestrianhub.com.au

Young Rider: Lauren Rowe

ASK AN EXPERT

Dr Andrew McLean: Facial expressions

DR ANDREW MCLEAN, CEO of Equitation Science International, explains how a horse’s ears, eyes and lips can speak volumes.

First, it’s important to recognise that the areas of the brain involved in pain and stress are one and the same. Pain is a form of stress, and other than cortisol, which in stress has a much broader level of expression than with pain, there’s very little difference in the hormonal responses.

Another point to consider is that like humans, some of whom have more facial lines than others, horses’ facial expressions also differ. So when you’re looking for facial indicators of pain or stress, you have to allow for the uniqueness of that particular horse. Once you know the horse, their expressions become easier to recognise.

There are now more than a dozen studies on the facial signs of pain in horses. A horse expresses pain through their eyes, ears and lips. Ears tell you a lot, especially when the ears are drawn further apart, or out to the side, or pulled back. If a horse is pinning their ears, it could indicate either anger or aggression, but it can also indicate pain. Often, pinned ears are just a feature of that particular horse’s temperament, especially if the behaviour is transient. For example, some will do it when they’re groomed around the rib cage. As an owner, you would need to investigate further to ascertain whether the behaviour is due to temperament, or the cause lies elsewhere.

In a calm, contented horse the ears are pretty mobile. Led or ridden, their ears should be moving: two ears forward, one ear back, that ear forward, another ear back and so on. If a horse is on very light aids and you use the left rein, the left ear should even move back a little in acknowledgement. If they’re on

It's important to recognise that the areas of the brain involved in pain and stress are one and the same.

really strong aids they tend not to do that. Ideally, you really want ears that are listening – flipping backwards and forwards – a good sign that your horse is happy.

While a horse with its ears pricked forward might look good, particularly in photos, it’s actually often the first stage of alarm. It’s not really indicative of a happy moment; it’s an interested moment in which the horse is judging the depths of its safety. Or, they could also be looking for something, such as their food. Either way, pricked ears aren’t necessarily a sign of calm; the ears of a relaxed horse are generally looser.

The eye can tell you a very great deal if you look closely. For example, a horse in pain, or perhaps acting aggressively, will often show the white of their eyes. More

subtle, however, is the expression formed by the skin around the eye. If the skin is tight it is often associated with pain or stress, and will frequently cause wrinkles above the eye that are not normally there. In contrast, when a horse is relaxed, the eye is ‘soft’ and expressive.

What is fascinating is that the emotional systems that control the eyes and ears aren’t necessarily voluntary, so pain and stress will immediately show up in those areas.

The lips are also interesting. Apart from more wrinkles at the corner of the mouth, in extreme stress the bottom lip will often be pulled back further than normal, rather like a parrot mouth. Many people are not always very good judges of these features. I know of at least two dressage textbooks where the picture on the front cover is of a horse that to me, looks quite stressed.

With regards mouthing the bit, I think the constantly moving mouth held as an ideal in classical dressage is actually incorrect. The mouth can move, lick, and chew occasionally, but more movement than that is likely a sign of stress. The horse is attempting to move the bit with its tongue because they’re not comfortable, and not clear with the signals they’re receiving.

In the same way that we humans dislike confusion and strive to resolve it, so too do animals. In behavioural science that’s defined as attempting to produce a predictable and controllable world. So if the bit is too strong, or clear signals aren’t being transmitted through the bit, the horse will express their confusion with intense mouth movements, and the more intense the movement, with the lips pulled back and the tongue constantly moving, the greater the problem.

Taking the time to understand the expressions that tell you whether your horse is anxious, stressed or in pain, or on the other hand is calm and content, is the mark of good horsemanship. I think not getting to know your horse in their most relaxed state is a very great loss.