Species / Horses

Horsebody language.

A big prey animal that lives in a herd, runs first and hides pain. Their ears tell you almost everything.

131Signals mapped

64Science-backed references

217Unique scenarios

Start with the animal

Who the horse is.

A horse is a large prey animal that lives in a herd, runs first and asks questions later, and hides pain well. On top of that, people ride them.

That makes horses easy to misread. Alert is not the same as calm, and behaviour that used to be called naughty is often a horse saying something hurts.

What FaunaVera looks at

The signals we read.

A few of the channels FaunaVera watches and listens to in every horse video, weighed together with context and checked against a horse-specific ethogram.

Ears

The single most important signal: a horse looks where their ears point.

For exampleEars pinned flat back against the neck are a clear threat or a sign of discomfort. One ear on you and one forward means the horse is listening to you and their surroundings.

Eyes

Shape, wrinkles above the eye and blink rate.

For exampleTightened, angled wrinkles above the eye and a strained look are part of the recognised horse pain face.

Mouth and nostrils

Tension in the lips, chin and nose.

For exampleA tight chin, clamped lips and tense nostrils can point to stress or pain. A loose, drooping lower lip usually means a deeply relaxed horse.

Head and neck

Height and tension of the carriage.

For exampleA high head on a tight neck means the horse is alert or worried. A low, relaxed neck usually means they feel at ease.

Tail

Clamping, swishing and flagging.

For exampleForceful, constant swishing when there are no flies often signals irritation or discomfort. A clamped tail can mean fear or pain.

Weight and stance

How a horse stands and where they carry their weight.

For exampleResting one hind hoof on its toe is normal relaxation, but repeatedly taking weight off a front leg can be a sign of pain.

Did you know?

Horses read human faces. They react to an angry expression, and they remember the person who wore it.

Common misreads

“A quiet, switched-off horse is a calm horse.”A withdrawn horse with a dull, unresponsive expression may be shut down or in pain. A relaxed horse still reacts to their surroundings.
“He is just being naughty under the saddle.”Tail swishing, head tossing, pinned ears and bucking under saddle are often signs of pain or a poorly fitting saddle. Rule out discomfort first.
“Licking and chewing means the horse gets it.”Licking and chewing often appears as a horse moves from tension to relief. It is a release of stress, not a sign of understanding.

Being around a horse

Approach at an angle towards the shoulder, talk as you come and let the horse sniff you. Stay calm, keep your voice soft and never punish fear.

See it for yourself

Your horse, read in seconds.

Upload a short video and FaunaVera reads the whole picture for you: an Interpretation, Voice of Animal, practical Tips and Ethogram Insights that explain exactly which signals it saw.

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Where this comes from

A few of the studies.

FaunaVera's horse ethogram draws on 64 science-backed references. Here are a handful of them.

Wathan J & McComb K (2014). The eyes and ears are visual indicators of attention in domestic horses. Current Biology, 24(15), R677-R679. Read
Wathan J, Burrows AM, Waller BM et al. (2015). EquiFACS: The Equine Facial Action Coding System. PLoS ONE, 10(8), e0131738. Read
Gleerup KB, Forkman B, Lindegaard C et al. (2015). An equine pain face. Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia, 42(1), 103-114. Read
Dalla Costa E, Minero M, Lebelt D et al. (2014). Development of the Horse Grimace Scale (HGS) as a pain assessment tool in horses undergoing routine castration. PLoS ONE, 9(3), e92281. Read
Dyson S, Berger J, Ellis AD et al. (2018). Development of an ethogram for a pain scoring system in ridden horses and its application to determine the presence of musculoskeletal pain. Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 23, 47-57. Read
Smith AV, Proops L, Grounds K et al. (2016). Functionally relevant responses to human facial expressions of emotion in the domestic horse (Equus caballus). Biology Letters, 12(2), 20150907. Read