A text about horses you do not see every day. Helped a lot, especially if you're a beginner in terms of relationships with animals.

Let me jump in to debunk a few flaws in this text. 1) I´ve seen stallions chasing around mares until the mare is exhausted so he can get what he wants. Your view on "mares are always in charge" basically is an overgeneralisation. Herd dynamics aren´t easy to decipher and humans always tend to use their specific human thought patterns instead of judging the situation "as is". This is valid for both, wild and domesticated horses.

2) Don´t generalise! SOME domesticated animals are curious, other aren´t, depending on former experiences, "manners" that have been taught to them et al. Offering an overgeneralised statement like that inevitably leads to some very "surprising" experiences for the willing "newbie". Always remember that each horse has its own personality and history.

3) Yes, horses are sensitive to sounds. But they are even more empathic than sensitive to sounds. They literally "read" your current state of mind. It surely helps a lot to use a deep, soothing voice when "talking" to them as this tone resembles the natural "I´m okay/I like you" horse sounds they use to do their herd communication. But I wouldn´t rely on the tone of the voice too much. Always keeping your calm and a horse-friendly attitude will pay more than any deliberate attempt to change a squealy voice into a dark one to "talk" to horses. My riding instructor always told us that horses are like mirrors: they only show your own reflection. If you have unsolved problems, a horse will sense that, no matter what funny "horse voice" you try to use.

4) Facial expressions are overrated. You have to notice that there are essential differences between "man talk" and "horse talk", e.g. a human grinning or smiling is showing his teeth...what for a horse isn´t particularly a friendly sign at all. Like in 3), the most important thing is to keep up a calm and friendly attitude towards the horse. And then there´s always the horses´personality and history that has to be included into the equation.

Although I absolutely appreciate posts like yours, you should try to avoid quick conclusions and generalisations. What "works out" with one mare will get you into hospital with another. There´s NO working "system" you´ll just have to internalise to become a "horseperson" or a "horsewhisperer", it very much depends on the "chemistry" between two autonomous individuals, basically like in ANY relationship.

Another thing to mention: Sure, consent is possible...but let´s bet honest for a second, shall we? In many cases, there is no such thing as consent because one party can´t understand "human" and the other is too complacent with all the lies and half-truths that are swirling around the internet. Most "zoos" indeed are "rapists",but not out of evil intent....they rape their animals because the are ill-informed by the "zoo-myths" passed around for nearly three decades, they are too lazy to keep learning once they get what they want or have the awful tendency to "humanize" animals.

According to that, you really should rethink your last paragraph. What you imply with it is an adaption from the animal towards the human, not the other way around, like it should be if you take the core idea of zoophilia serious. It´s always the human that has to adapt to the animal, its needs, its bodily features etc... "The animal always comes first" Don´t "sleep" with your animal like a human would do, do it like one of their own species would do. That will definitely raise the chances of a true understanding of your quadruped partner, rather than "forcing" your animal to become a little bit more human...

[removed]