Galop 3Knowledge
Contents
- 01WelcomeOverview
- 02Life in natureKnowledge
- 03Bedding and waterCaring for the horse
- 04The points of the horseKnowledge
- 05The hoof and shoeingKnowledge
- 06A full groomingCaring for the horse
- 07Tack and bridleCaring for the horse
- 08The walk and the trotKnowledge
- 09The diagonal at trotIn the saddle
- 10Markings and whorlsKnowledge
- 11Coat colour variantsKnowledge
- 12BreedsKnowledge
- 13The aids to turnKnowledge
- 14The canter strike-offIn the saddle
- 15Position and balanceIn the saddle
- 16Controlling the gaitIn the saddle
- 17Curves and half-voltesIn the saddle
- 18Approach and jumpIn the saddle
- 19GroundworkOn foot
- 20The disciplinesKnowledge
- 21Revision and examRevision
How the horse lives in nature
To look after a horse well, you need to know what it would do if nobody looked after it: eat for much of the day, rest in short spells, and never be alone.
In the exam programme
- Explain how a horse living naturally divides up its day.Common module B
- Explain the herd, hierarchy, dominance, affinities and the herd instinct, and what follows from them.Common module B
In its natural state — free, over a large territory, with no human involvement — the horse divides its 24 hours between activities that meet its vital needs. This division is called its time budget. It varies with the seasons, the weather and the amount of grass, but its broad proportions stay remarkably stable.
- Feeding: about 60%, or 15 to 16 hours
- Resting: about 25%, or 5 to 7 hours
- Moving about: about 7%, or 1 to 2 hours
- Watching: about 6%
- Other activities: about 2%
| Activity | Share of time | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Feeding | About 60% (15 to 16 hours) | It grazes in small mouthfuls, moving on a step or two at a time, by day and by night. |
| Resting | About 25% (5 to 7 hours) | Mostly standing up, dozing on three legs; it only sleeps deeply lying down, in short spells. |
| Moving | About 7% (1 to 2 hours) | Almost always at walk, to go and drink or to find grass, shade, shelter or a place to roll. |
| Watching | About 6% | Head up, ears swivelling, it keeps an eye on its surroundings. |
| Other activities | About 2% | Rolling, scratching, grooming one another, playing. |
Did you know?
Trot and canter are rare in a free horse’s day: they are for play, for quarrels and above all for flight. The horse is a prey animal; its best defence is to leave fast — and in company.
Life in the herd
Wild horses live in small families: a stallion, two or three mares and their foals. At about two years old the young leave their family, which avoids inbreeding; the young males form bachelor groups. At a riding club, people make up the groups: mares and geldings together, or horses kept apart by sex.
- Ears pinned back, neck stretched: the dominant mare threatens
- The lower-ranking horse gives way at the water
- Two friends groom each other’s withers
- The foal stays close to its dam
- The herd
- A group of horses that live together and know one another. The group protects: the more eyes and ears, the sooner danger is spotted.
- The herd instinct
- The inborn need to live in a group. A horse on its own worries and tries to rejoin its companions — it neighs, fidgets, pulls towards the others.
- Hierarchy
- The stable organisation of the group, which sets each horse’s place in the queue for resources: water, food, shelter, the best spot to roll.
- Dominance
- A relationship between two horses: the dominant one goes first, the other gives way. It is settled mostly by threats — ears pinned back, neck stretched out, hindquarters turned — far more than by real fights.
- Affinities
- Preferences between certain horses, which graze side by side, rest together and groom each other. These are real friendships: separating two friends stresses them.
A hierarchy that everyone knows calms the group: each horse knows who goes first. Quarrels start when the order is upset — a newcomer, a scarce resource, a space that is too small. On the move, the group often follows the same horse, which is not necessarily the most dominant.
What this means day to day
- A horse should not live alone: if it cannot go out with others, it must at least see and hear its companions.
- In the field, put hay out in well-spaced piles, one more than there are horses, so that the lower-ranking ones eat too.
- Introduce a newcomer gradually, first from the other side of a fence.
- Do not stand among loose horses when you bring food: a threat meant for a neighbour can land on you.
- In the saddle, the herd instinct explains why a horse wants to follow the others or hurry back to the yard: expect it, in the school as out on a hack.
A word from the instructor
If your horse speeds up on its own on the way home, don’t take it personally: it is thinking of its friends waiting in the field. And quite possibly of its dinner.