YOUR PONY'S SENSES

Text | Shelley Wolhuter, Libratum Equus

PART 2

In the November issue of the HQ Pony Mag, we talked about the senses of hearing and vision and how they help us to understand our ponies better. In this issue, we will discuss the remaining three senses, smell, taste and touch.

Smell

Horses have an excellent sense of smell. Scientists believe that their sense of smell is better than ours but not as keen as a dog’s. Most equestrians will have witnessed the funny moment when a horse curls their upper lip in response to a particular scent. This is known as a flehmen response and enables horses to get a more concentrated sense of the smell of something.

Did you know?

Studies have found that horses can tell the difference between their own droppings and other horses’ droppings but cannot tell which dropping belongs to which horse. Furthermore, using flehmen to concentrate scent, stallions can detect when a dropping comes from a mare.

Taste

Taste is the least researched sense in horses, meaning not a lot is known about taste in the horse. What is known is that they have four of the five taste elements that we have: sweet, sour, salty and bitter. Horses have individual taste preferences, and some breeds, such as Arabians, have been found to have the most individual taste preferences. This explains why some horses won’t eat certain supplements or treats while others will.

Did you know?

When comparing foods for smell, flavour and nutritional content, horses will usually choose the food with the best nutrient content. This supports the old saying that goes, “Horses know what is good for them, and they are excellent self-medicators”. This means that horses choose plants that assist them with micronutrients that they may be lacking.

Touch

Touch is an extremely important sense for us to understand when it comes to our horses. In fact, their skin is the largest sensory organ in their bodies. Horses are highly-sensitive creatures that can detect something as light as a fly on their coat. Similarly to humans, horses have areas that are more sensitive than others. The most sensitive areas include the muzzle, neck, withers, shoulders, coronets, lower flank and behind the pasterns. It is important to be mindful of these sensitive areas when considering using equipment such as bits and spurs.

A horse’s skin is very sensitive.

Did you know?

The whiskers on the muzzle are called vibrissae and act like little fingers that touch and feel things. This helps the horse to avoid bumping things with his lips, select the right forage, and explore unfamiliar objects.

Final thoughts

Horses are intricate and complex creatures that experience our world very differently to us. Keeping in mind that their senses are often sharper than ours in some areas and critical for their survival, helps us to be more patient and understanding towards them, especially when they are having a hard time.