Turning Horses Out Together
If you've ever watched horses play in the field together, you know they can be very rambunctious, which is why people often are reluctant to let horses be together. Domestic horses, like wild horses, will establish a pecking order, and in determining their ranks, the scene can get a little wild, with biting, kicking, charging, and rearing. They can definitely hurt each other, but most of them wisely pay attention to each other's subtle signals and know when to avoid actual physical contact.
Horses in rental-type trail rides are usually well socialized to people and other horses, but they will still behave like normal horses. This can pose a danger for a novice rider who doesn't understand the warning signals that a horse gives to another one that follows too closely. Never ride too closely behind another horse, or you could get a good kick from the horse in front.
Horses confined together are more likely to get hurt when they don't have enough space to get away from each other. For example, if one horse chases another, and the horse being chased has nowhere to go but over or through a fence, that is where the horse will go. But if there is ample space, then the lower-echelon horse has room to move away and learn the lesson of boundaries, and it won't get hurt in the process.
Instead of chasing, some horses may back up and kick at their opponent with both back feet or lunge with bared teeth. If the space is big enough and there are no corners to get trapped in, the horse getting the worse end of the deal can stay out of reach of teeth or hind feet. But if the space is too small, the horse can easily be pinned in the corner of a corral and kicked badly. If given enough space, a horse's choice will almost always be simply to get out of harm's way. If provided with ample grazing, most horses will stay happily occupied with their nose in the grass and have less inclination for arguments.
Horse owners sometimes make the choice to never put their horse in with another horse, for fear that they will hurt each other. Although this choice is understandable, especially if you own a valuable show animal, a solitary life is quite lonely and unfair to the horse. Horses crave companionship and need interaction with their own kind. If possible, it is better for their mental health and overall contentment if they can spend some time socializing with other horses. After all, they are herd animals by nature.
Imprinting is a specific desensitizing method used with newborn foals. Robert Miller, DVM, developed the technique, which involves handling the newborn foal extensively to accustom it to human hands. Learn more about imprinting by reading Dr. Miller's book,
Horses may hurt one another when two or more horses are suddenly thrown together without allowing them to see and smell each other first from nearby. If just one of them is unaccustomed to being with other horses, problems will develop fast. Some horses lack the necessary socialization skills to get along with and live among other horses, usually because they've never been allowed to live in a herd. These horses don't understand the nuances of the equine pecking order and are not likely to understand dominant and submissive standings in the herd. Nor do they understand the other horses' warning signals when they unknowingly violate the order by getting too close to a dominant member's feed.
