Transcript: Horsefulness Training podcast-episode 9

Title: "Your horse IS dominant."

Date: 09-04-25

Host: Karine Vandenborre

Hello and welcome to the Horsefulness Training Podcast. I’m Karine Vandenborre, I’m a professional horse trainer and instructor, founder of Horsefulness Training, and creator of the online Horsefulness Training Programs.

In episode #8 of the Horsefulness Training Podcast, I debunked myth #2, which was: IF YOU WANT TO BE YOUR HORSE’S LEADER, BE HIGHER IN RANK!
If you missed it, go ahead and listen to that one first.
Today I’ll debunk myth #3, and that is: YOUR HORSE IS DOMINANT!

Among many trainers and horse owners, there is a strong belief in the dominance theory, and when a problem with the horse occurs, it is quickly claimed that the horse is dominant.
When the horse is pushy, he 'is dominant.'
When he bites, he’s 'dominant.'
Even if the horse doesn’t follow an instruction given by a human, the horse 'is dominant,' while it is often the case that the horse doesn’t understand or reacts emotionally through fear or frustration.

No horse IS dominant. What is possible is that a horse can SHOW dominant BEHAVIOR.
Maybe you think, "That is the same thing, isn’t it?"
But no, it isn’t!

Dominant behavior has to do with motivation.

Horse A could be enormously motivated to take the hay from horse B because it is hungry and there is only one pile of hay. Horse B gives up his spot. However, an hour later, it could be that horse B is thirsty and drives horse A away from the water tank.

Which of these two is dominant?
No one, it depends on the situation.

Depending on the situation, a horse will show more, less, or no dominant body language, but a horse is not dominant by definition.
So, when will horses show dominant body language towards each other? Here are a few of the many examples:
- when it is about food or water
- when it is about an in-demand spot, like a spot in the shade, a tree to rub against, or to be able to pass to go somewhere
- when a horse wants to protect his friend
- or when a mare wants to protect her foal
- when a stallion wants to protect his group of mares
- when they want to put an end to something another horse does that irritates them

So, as you can see, horses show dominant behavior when they need something (food, water, shade, a spot), or if they want to protect another (for example, a foal, mate, a group of mares), or when they want to make clear to another horse that they must stop what they are doing. So, this last one is about showing personal boundaries.

What is also important to know is that horses will assess the extent to which behaving dominantly will produce the wanted result and what is smarter at the given moment: behaving more dominant than the other or behaving submissively.

In other words, they will assess the “risk”: is it dangerous to act dominant towards the other horse or not? For example, rival stallions: one stallion can decide not to attack the other because of the risk of serious wounds if the other stallion looks very strong and very impressive. Or he does attack because he thinks he has a good chance of winning the battle.

So, hierarchy is therefore contextual: in one situation, horse A will act higher in rank than horse B, and in another situation, it is the other way around.
Dominant body language is shown when the horse wants to take something, wants to keep something or someone, wants to show boundaries, and where he has decided that the chance of success is realistic!

Now, how is this translated to the human-horse relationship?

Well, if your horse wants something from you, for example, something tasty you have in your pockets, it is very possible your horse will show subtle to clear dominant body language. It can place its ears back, it can push you, or it can also bite when you don’t take the carrot out of your pocket quickly enough.

Or another example is when your horse wants to go past you out of the door and tries to drive you out of the way.
These are situations where your horse will use the same dominant body language he would also use with other horses in similar situations. Here it is also contextual and therefore depending on the situation and the motivation of the moment.

This doesn’t mean we should not place boundaries on dominant behavior. For our own safety, it is very important we deal well with it, and at the same time treat the horse respectfully. We can show boundaries in a respectful way, in a way that the horse understands, in a way that matches his nature!

It’s of course of great importance that you do recognize the difference between dominant behavior and defensive behavior, because these two are often mixed up.
A horse that is scared will show defensive behavior, which sometimes looks like dominant behavior. If this is mishandled, it can be very difficult for a horse.

Just think about horses that push against you because they need space: if a horse doesn’t have any faith in its trainer and the trainer comes too close, the horse will try to keep a distance. If the trainer doesn’t give the horse that space, then the horse could decide to jump forward, towards the trainer, trying to get away that way.
This isn’t dominant behavior; this is defensive behavior. It is the horse communicating to you, asking you to take a distance, and if you miss that, the horse gets upset and charges at you. These things happen a lot. There are a lot of situations where horses are basically scared or suspicious and then become defensive because they don’t see any other solution.

In my online program, I remember a mare that pinned her ears, tried to bite, and kick her owner. Her owner could not approach her or touch her; he said she was very dangerous. After asking the right questions to the owner, I just knew that this was defensive behavior. All the time, he thought this was aggressiveness, so he reacted with aggression in return, but it wasn’t aggression, it was fear and defensiveness. I explained to him he had to be soft, passive, and understanding with her. Most people would do the opposite, just like him; they would be very hard with the horse and they would punish the horse.

But I explained to the owner what he needed to do instead, and he learned how to help the horse trust him. The result was that her dangerous reactions stopped. She became calm and easy to touch and halter, and the defensive behavior never came back because she learned to trust him and feel safe with him.
So, you see, the way you react, communicate, and interact with your horse is crucial! A lot of things that happen in the horse-human relationship are a result of the human’s actions.

If you want to learn more about all this, because you feel you can also improve the way you interact and communicate with your horse, don’t hesitate to contact me, or register for my free training. You can find the link in the show notes.

Great, another myth debunked, and up to the next one in the next episode. Then I will talk about moving your feet and the myth that if you move your feet first, your horse thinks you act lower in rank.

If you like The Horsefulness Training Podcast, I invite you to subscribe to iTunes or Spotify.
I look forward to reading your comments, so don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and insights after listening!

Thanks again for being here, and until the next episode!

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