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04/06/2026

🐎 “Can Too Much Energy Hurt The Horse?”⚠️

Do horses actually do this often?
And does it hurt them?

The answer is: sometimes.

These kinds of accidents are more common with:

✅ Young or green horses
✅ Horses with lots of built-up energy
✅ Horses that stop thinking and start reacting

But even experienced horses can trip, slip, or simply overdo it.

In this clip, the horse doesn’t appear to be under much pressure.

What we do see is:

✅ Lots of energy
✅ Excitement
✅ Playfulness

And sometimes that combination leads to a little bit of a miscalculation.

⚠️ Just because it looks funny doesn’t mean it can’t cause injury.

Horses are big animals moving at speed.
A slip, fall, or awkward landing can hurt them just as easily as it can hurt us.

🎯 The goal isn’t to eliminate every accident, that’s impossible.
The goal is to prepare our horses properly and reduce unnecessary risk wherever we can.

🔗 If you enjoy these horse behaviour breakdowns and want to better understand what’s really going on, comment “FOUNDING” and we’ll send you early access to our Horseman University app.

02/06/2026

🐴 What Your Horse Is Actually Saying: Part 7 ⚠️

If your horse starts pawing the ground, especially while tied or waiting, don’t be too quick to call it bad behaviour.

A lot of the time, they’re trying to tell you something.

In the wild, horses paw for several reasons:

✅ Digging through grass or roots
✅ Softening the ground before lying down
✅ During conflict or posturing
✅ Out of anticipation or frustration

And in training?

You’ll often see it when:

❗ They’re waiting for food
❗ They want to be back with their herd
❗ They’re tied up and feeling impatient
❗ Pressure is building and they don’t know where to put the energy

⚠️ Pawing isn’t always defiance.

Many times it’s your horse saying:

👉 “I’m uncomfortable.”
👉 “I’m frustrated.”
👉 “I don’t know what to do with this feeling.”

Before correcting the behaviour, ask yourself:

✅ Have I created clarity?
✅ Am I addressing their mental state?
✅ Do they need a reset or a better outlet for that energy?

🎯 Good horsemanship is understanding the emotion behind the behaviour, not just the behaviour itself.

🔗 Have you noticed your horse pawing at specific times?
What do you think they were trying to tell you?

Comment below and follow Smith Horsemanship for Part 8.

Want to better understand your horse’s body language and communication?
Comment “FOUNDING” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

31/05/2026

⚠️ One Mistake Around Gates Could Put You in Hospital 🐎

Most people don’t think twice about walking through a narrow gate with their horse beside them.

Until something goes wrong.

If your horse:

❗ Spooks
❗ Rushes
❗ Jumps sideways
❗ Bites or kicks

You can end up trapped against steel with nowhere to go.

That’s how people get:

✅ Broken ribs
✅ Crushed legs
✅ Serious injuries that could have been avoided

Instead, try one of these options:

🐴 Option 1: Send your horse through first, then follow behind.

🐴 Option 2: Go through first, keep your pressure facing the horse, create a safe boundary, and then invite them through.

⚠️ What you don’t want is your back turned while squeezing through a tight space together.

🎯 Good horsemanship is about setting yourself up safely before something unexpected happens.

🔗 If you want to better understand your horse’s body language, reactions, and handling, comment “FOUNDING” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

28/05/2026

⚠️ Why Did This Horse Suddenly Start Bucking? 🐎

Most bucking explosions don’t happen “for no reason.”
Something usually triggered the reactive side of the horse’s brain.

Here are a few common causes:

✅ The horse wasn’t properly prepared yet
✅ Something touched a sensitive area unexpectedly
✅ The cinch may have been tightened too quickly or too much
✅ The horse still isn’t fully comfortable carrying a rider

A lot of young or green horses will buck because:

🎯 They’re trying to remove what they see as pressure or danger on their back.

If the horse still views the rider as something threatening,
their instinct is simple:

👉 “Get it off.”

⚠️ That’s why groundwork and preparation matter so much before riding.

The goal isn’t just getting on the horse.
The goal is getting the horse mentally comfortable with you on top of them.

🔗 If you enjoy these reaction breakdowns and want to better understand your own horse, comment “FOUNDING” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

26/05/2026

🐴 What Your Horse Is Actually Saying: Part 6 ⚠️

You know that face horses make when they curl their upper lip and look like they’re laughing?

That’s called the Flehmen Response.
And no, they’re not being silly.

They’re actually investigating scent on a deeper level.

Here’s what’s happening:

✅ Your horse draws scent particles into a special organ called the vomeronasal organ
✅ This helps them analyse smells more deeply
✅ Especially unfamiliar or emotionally charged scents

In the wild, horses use this for things like:

✅ Stallions checking if a mare is in season
✅ Investigating blood or urine
✅ Exploring something new in the environment

At home, you might see it when:

✅ Meeting a new horse
✅ Smelling a person who handled another horse
✅ Sniffing new hay or unfamiliar objects
✅ Picking up on emotionally charged situations

🎯 It’s curiosity and investigation, not disrespect.

And no…
they’re not “showing their weapons” 😅

🔗 Have you seen your horse do this before?
What do you think triggered it?

Comment below and follow Smith Horsemanship for Part 7.

Want to better understand your horse’s body language and communication?
Comment “FOUNDING” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

24/05/2026

⚠️ Never Feed Horses Loose In The Pasture 🐎

At first it looks harmless…
until the crowding starts.

Then suddenly:

✅ Horses start circling
✅ Dominance behaviour kicks in
✅ Competition over food escalates
✅ And you’re standing in the middle of it

⚠️ That’s how people and horses get injured.

If I dropped the feed right there, it would instantly become a fight over resources.
The dominant horses would push the weaker ones away, and potentially push you too.

So here’s the safer system:

✅ Catch and separate the horses first
✅ Tie them in a controlled environment
✅ Feed the least dominant horses first
✅ Teach patience before food arrives

Over time, the horses actually begin standing calmly at their feeding spots, waiting to be caught and fed.

🎯 Feeding time shouldn’t create chaos.
It should build patience, structure, and respect.

🔗 If you want to better understand your horse’s behaviour and communication, comment “FOUNDING” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

21/05/2026

🐎 Why Do Horses Roll After Workouts or Baths? 🌾

Ever noticed your horse immediately rolling after a ride or after getting hosed off?
That’s actually completely natural.

Here’s why horses do it:

✅ To relieve sweat, irritation, or itchiness
✅ To help dry their coat after getting wet
✅ To loosen up and relax after work

And there’s another important detail:

🎯 Horses usually only roll when they feel safe enough to relax.

A tense or threatened horse typically won’t expose themselves by lying down and rolling.
So in many cases, it’s actually a positive sign.

⚠️ Just make sure the saddle is OFF first 😅

🔗 If you want to better understand your horse’s body language and what different signs really mean, comment “FOUNDING” and we’ll send you early access to our Horseman University app launching soon.

19/05/2026

🐴 What Your Horse Is Actually Saying: Part 5 ⚠️

A lot of people say:
👉 “If a horse licks and chews, they’re relaxed.”

But that’s not always the full story.

Licking and chewing usually happens after tension, not during it.

It’s often a sign that the horse’s nervous system is shifting:

✅ From stress → toward calm
✅ From resistance → toward processing
✅ From alertness → toward release

In the wild, you’ll see this after herd conflict:

One horse moves away…
The other lowers its head and licks and chews.

Not because it “submitted”…
but because it’s processing what just happened.

Training works the same way.

Sometimes your horse is licking and chewing because:

✅ They’re mentally checking back in
✅ They finally understood the pressure
✅ Or they were pushed too far and stopped resisting

⚠️ The lick itself isn’t automatically “good” or “bad.”
The important part is what happened right before it.

🎯 Context matters more than the behaviour alone.

🔗 Have you ever noticed your horse licking and chewing after a specific moment?
Comment below and follow Smith Horsemanship for more breakdowns.

Want to better understand your horse’s body language and communication?
Comment “founding” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

17/05/2026

⚠️ Trail Jumping, Impressive… But At What Cost? 🐎

Clips like this look incredible.
But there’s something most people aren’t thinking about…

👉 Is it actually safe?

Here’s the reality:

✅ Jumping your horse on outrides can be a great exercise
❌ But jumping high logs with sharp branches and uneven footing? That’s risk, not training

What can go wrong:

❗ Horses slipping on landing
❗ Getting caught on the log
❗ Injuries from sharp branches
❗ Riders being thrown in unpredictable terrain

⚠️ The danger isn’t just for the rider, it’s for the horse too.

And the bigger problem?

🎯 These clips inspire people to try things they’re not prepared for.
That’s where wrecks happen.

So what should you do instead?

✅ Keep jumps controlled and safe
✅ Choose solid, clear obstacles
✅ Build your horse’s confidence progressively

🎯 Good horsemanship isn’t about doing the most impressive thing.
It’s about doing the right thing, safely.

🔗 If you want to become a better horseman and learn how to train your horse the right way, comment “founding” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

14/05/2026

⚠️ Never Leave a Halter on in the Pasture 🐎

Don’t learn this lesson the hard way.

Leaving a halter on while your horse is turned out can lead to:

❗ Halters getting caught on fences or branches
❗ Serious injuries from panic and pulling
❗ Horses trapping or injuring each other while playing

What seems harmless can become dangerous very quickly.

🎯 Turn your horse out safely.
Take the halter off and let them just be a horse.

🔗 If you want to better understand your horse’s behaviour, body language, and training, comment “founding” to join our Horseman University app launching soon.

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