One of the first things we purchased after our initial horses arrived was an electric clipper. We were told that we must have one so we could start desensitizing our horses to the noise they make. I am so ashamed that we had no more sense than to listen to these people. Thankfully, before the box was ever opened, we began to think. And ask questions. And ultimately, without even brushing the thick layer of dust off the box, it was tossed in the trash, still unopened. We thought for a moment about trying to sell it and get some of our money back. But only for a moment. We didn’t want to be responsible for someone else making the same mistake we almost made.
A horse’s whiskers (vibrissae) are actually an incredibly important sensory instrument to them. The whiskers around the eyes and muzzle are extremely sensitive and have a rich nerve supply. Each whisker has a region of the sensory cortex dedicated to it. Equine behaviorist and scientist P.D. McGreevy says, “This dedication of a portion of the cortex to each vibrissa indicates that they must be extremely important to their sensory system and should not be removed for cosmetic purposes.”
Why horses need their whiskers:
They use them to judge texture and distance to things.
Due to the position of their eyes, horses cannot see under their mouth so the whiskers allow them to explore and identify what is under their nose.
Foals use their whiskers to help them locate their mom’s teats to suckle.
The whiskers and lips work together to gather information about what to eat and what not to eat. That means horses without whiskers are be more likely to eat a poisonous plant by mistake.
The whiskers are used to detect how far they are from a surface and thereby aid comfort behaviors such as head-rubbing. Without this sensory tool they will be more likely to bump into objects and injure their faces and eyes by accident. This is especially true for stabled horses, who are surrounded by walls, hooks etc.
The whiskers may even detect vibrational energy, which would explain why horses with whiskers will put them near electric fences to test whether the power is on and thereby avoid an unnecessary shock.
Horses use their whiskers to communicate with a friend while mutually grooming. Whiskers enhance their sense of touch and help the horse to feel the other horse’s muscles contract and relax, thus allowing a mutual grooming horse to assess the mood of the other.
If horses didn’t need whiskers God wouldn’t have put them there and horses wouldn’t grow them. We shouldn’t take away one of their senses without permission just to serve our concept of what looks good.
Ask: What’s in it for the horse, not what’s in it for us.
The story of our journey with horses (to date) is told in the two books that follow: the national best seller The Soul of a Horse – Life Lessons from the Herd and its sequel Born Wild – The Soul of a Horse.
And what a story it is as two novices without a clue stumble and bumble their way through the learning process so that hopefully you won’t have to. If you haven’t read both of these books already please do because with that reading, I believe, will come not just the knowledge of discovery but the passion and the excitement to cause you to commit to your journey with horses, to do for the horse without waiver so that your relationship and experience will be with loving, happy and healthy horses who are willing partners and who never stop trying for you. Horses like ours.
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The highly acclaimed best selling sequel to
The Soul of a Horse – Life Lessons from the Herd
#1 Amazon Best Seller
#1 Amazon “Hot New Releases”
Amazon & Kindle
B&N and Nook
Apple iBooks
Google play
Order Personally Inscribed Copies of Born Wild – $15
Order Both The Soul of a Horse & Born Wild – Save 20%
Both Personally Inscribed – $24
Please list the names for each inscription in the “instructions to Seller” field as you check out!
Read More About Born Wild
Read More About The Soul of a Horse
Watch The Soul of a Horse Trailer
Watch the Born Wild Trailer
“Joe Camp is a master storyteller.” – The New York Times
“One cannot help but be touched by Camp’s love and sympathy for animals and by his eloquence on the subject.” – Michael Korda, The Washington Post
“Joe Camp is a natural when it comes to understanding how animals tick and a genius at telling us their story. His books are must-reads for those who love animals of any species.” – Monty Roberts – Author of New York Timers Best-seller The Man Who Listens to Horses
“Camp’s tightly-written, simply-designed and powerfully drawn chapters often read like short stories that flow from the heart.” Jack L. Kennedy – The Joplin Independent
“Joe Camp is a gifted storyteller and the results are magical. Joe entertains, educates and empowers, baring his own soul while articulating keystone principles of a modern revolution in horsemanship.” – Rick Lamb – TV/Radio host – The Horse Show
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Follow our latest journey with two amazing new arrivals from the wild. Kathleen’s terrific photos are worth the click.
In chronological order:
What an Extraordinary Weekend!
Firestorm’s Amazing First Day in the Playpen
No-Agenda Time – So Much Value!
An Amazing Birthday Gift from a Wild Mustang!
Saffron and Firestorm – Progress and Photos – Lots of Both!
Two Mustangs – Three Mind-Boggling Months!
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[…] Horses Need Their Whiskers […]
I didn’t know it was actually “illegal” in Germany to trim whiskers on a horse.
Yep, I too fell for the logic “Make your horse look trim and tidy”… I never questioned it, because in the show ring, you want to look trim and tidy, right? Therefore your horse needs to be use to the clippers buzzing around their heads. But in the last 10 years or so, I quit showing because of the politics.
All those show ring organizations dictate as if they are the Kings of knowledge and profess to be for the horse’s welfare. They are not. It’s all about the money they get from the memberships and keeping their non-profit jobs. Don’t even get me started on that one…
You are shunned if you want to show barefoot and bitless. Your horses are considered “unkempt” if whiskers, manes and tails are not trimmed, shortened or cut to a specific length. And the poor horses who are blanketed and/or have their winter coats sheared off their bodies. AGH!
In the last couple years, it dawned on me about the whiskers, so I quit trimming the whiskers. But I haven’t thrown out my clippers, yet…
The only thing I trim on the head, is the bridle path, for the horse’s comfort when bridled or haltered, which separates the mane from the forelock, so it doesn’t “bunch up” under the harness. And I trim the fetlocks for ease of grooming the ankles and back of pastern. (They pretty much shed out anyway for the summer, unless you have a draft with heavy feathering.)
But the whiskers stay.
I instinctively knew this had to be true. Thank you Joe, as always, for doing such thorough research for us.
I saw a photograph published in the UK a few years ago that has since haunted me. Having read your words I searched and found it .. ( .. and let it be said that the woman in the photograph was no doubt following instruction and appears to be carrying out the task carefully).
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/6Cq_Yj3hYh0/King+Troop+Royal+Horse+Artillery+Prepare+Leave/YARKiKJLVrl
If you are at all sensitive to the body language of horses this images makes your soul plummet.
My horses often use their whiskers to softly brush my face, a feathery scan of communication. I have loved their whiskers since the moment I saw them, watching them grow longer as they themselves grew. Now I love them even more. Let the word spread ..
Good to hear from you Helen. Hope all is well. Agree completely. Have you read our blog/newsletter on the 90 For Life Program we’re on now that has completely eliminated the arthritis pain in both my knees and both shoulders which have rotator cuff tears. Feel better than I have in decades. We have a distributor friend in Wales been communicating with a lot. And another who was asking for a trimmer recommendation. I think in North Yorkshire. Do you have any contacts there?
Please keep in touch.