Communication Through Breathing Techniques

[horsehype]

:D hellooooo :D
I read in a book about communicating with a horse by breathing through your nose. I have tried it a few times and it seems to be successful in getting the horse to respond 2 or trust you, tho u mite luk a bit stupid :P but i *** wundering if ne1 else had ne info about it or had tried it..?
thanx!!:p

[wildponies]

if u blow down ** nose into another horses nose n he blows back at u then uve gained his trust. apparently..

[Showjumper]

If I blew into Dolly's nose, she would probably be very amused, and would probably lick me. I don't think it would build any more trust though.

[Tor&Warrior]

I blow into Warriors nose all the time, he seems to really like it, kind of relaxes him in a way but never knew it ment anything. We'll just stand there for ages. And he'll breath in as I breathe out and I breathe in when he breathes out. Do it with Vinny but he just try's to bite my face so stopped it as I though it might be like teasing him I can't really tell him off for trying to bite my face of when I'm blowing up his nose!! He'll be better I hope, when he's got over I'm a baby must put everything in mouth including your face, though.

[galadriel]

Originally posted by Tor&Warrior
Do it with Vinny but he just try's to bite my face

Are you sure he's not just making baby face at you? Babies have a funny gesture they make to older horses; they open and close their mouths in an exaggerated gesture at the older horse's chin.

I've watched horses standing nose to nose and blowing at each other, and then often one or both will squeal. I've never really been able to interpret this particular gesture. I think I may not have a large enough sample size; horses I see doing this are usually either meeting for the first time, or one is in heat. I wonder what I'd be able to observe if I had a larger herd around all of the time. If anyone has any clear interpretations of that action/series of actions, I'd find it very interesting.

[virtuallyhorses]

Originally posted by horsehype
:D
I read in a book about communicating with a horse by breathing through your nose.

Umm you say "breathing through your nose " - not the horse's, so do you mean the greeting blow that the posts above are talking about or do you mean using your own breathing as a riding aid? i.e breath in for upwards transitions and out for down...?

In either case yes I do them both.

[Tor&Warrior]

galadriel Yeah it's more like mouthing not really with teeth. I just thought maybe I'd be teasing him him encouraging him to nip. I didn't know.

[galadriel]

Originally posted by Tor&Warrior
galadriel Yeah it's more like mouthing not really with teeth. I just thought maybe I'd be teasing him him encouraging him to nip. I didn't know.

It's still not something you should encourage in a horse. You're right, it might someday lead to nipping. Just because it's natural for a horse to do it to another horse, that doesn't mean it's safe to let a horse do it to a person. I just thought you might like to know that he's probably not trying to actually bite you, now :)

[Silver1]

When ever I want a horse to relax I find that heaving a big huge exagerated loud sigh helps them. It says "I'm relaxed...why aren't you?" It works on Mear and some of the 5 year olds I worked with...and one zaney thoroughbred.

[dophi_arno]

.................

[Peace]

When ever I want a horse to relax I find that heaving a big huge exagerated loud sigh helps them. It says "I'm relaxed...why aren't you?"

Quanah does that same thing to me when he wants me to relax!:o When he was a baby, and occasionally frightened, I'd sigh to get him to calm down. Then, as he entered his adolescent-hooligan stage - and I was spooking more often than he was - he'd sometimes stop in mid-tantrum and sigh at me.:rolleyes: It was as if he was saying, "I don't want you to be scared - I just want things my own way!":p

So I can personally attest that sighing does have a calming effect.:o

But to answer the original question, yes, I often greet horses I know well by breathing into their nostrils. My elderly ex-schoolhorse got me into the habit. With him, it's more like getting artificial rescusitation, though - he stuffs his muzzle into one's nose and really snorts.:D I'd never put up with it from anyone else, but at 34 I figure he's earned the privilege.:)

[cvb]

Also bear in mind that most of us are meat eaters too - and our breath will smell like meat-eaters breath. Be a bit sensitive about how that might seem to a horse :eek: (eg not a good idea after a curry ;) )

[laura jeanne]

It's really weird how sometimes just the things I have been thinking about show up from someone else.

I was wondering if the horse is smelling you when he blows thru his nose on you. Sometimes when I am grooming or walking the school horses I ride, they do this and I do it back and then they do, etc. They seem to like it!

What does it all really mean? It seems kind of special anyway!

[kyanya]

My mum also does the same 'blowing down the horse's nose' thing. I've never asked why, but most horse's do seem to take a 'liking' to her afterwards. Is it a horse's form of a greeting? Perhaps then the horse thinks you 'understand' it, which could possibly be interpreted as gaining it's trust, as wildponies said.

Anyway, I had a lesson the other day, on a new pony, Dibley. When we were waiting in the school to get mounted up, he turned his head round to face me, and raised his nostrils a bit. I decided to gove a gentle blow, and he blew gentley back. Could this have been his form of 'Hi! I haven't met you before!'?

[*HoRsEtArD*]

i had a lesson earlier and i tried horsehypes tecnique and it really worked!! shes lovely tessa (the horse i ride) and it seemed to calm her down a lot as she is normally extremely hyped up to run and jump and play around, it was a much better ride all round...:)

[horsehype]

Thnx Horsetard glad i cud help ;) oh no we r goin 2 kates 2moro (YAWN) but i rode nancy 2day shes so sweet :D but she refused 2 canter :rolleyes: ah well, beta luk nxt time! YAY im on the purple sheet now :D so ill cya there next saturday.. oh and i saw sammy 2day shes well cool :p
Look at the picture attatched!!! it is the cutest thing goin! :p

[ros]

Blowing up each other's nostrils is just another bit of the language horses use among themselves. The softer they do it, the more familiar and friendly the gesture is. So strange horse meeting each other for the first time may start off blowing fairly strongly, to the point of snorting, and if they decide they like each other, one will tone down the blowing and the other will respond likewise by easing up; on the other hand, one or both may decide they're unsure, then you might get a squeal, or a strike-out with a front foot, or they may part company and try again later. Horses that know each other and want to play may signal that it's time for a bit of fun by blowing harder.

I don't do it all the time, but quite often Merly will blow gently up my nose, and of course I respond by blowing gently back. He likes that.

I really believe that if you can learn even a couple of the gestures horses (and other animals, for that matter) use between each other, and respond in a way that shows you're trying to understand what they're saying to you, they feel much more confident around you; and once you've broken the ice, they really do make allowances for the fact that you're only a simple human being who can't be expected to understand everything they say, but who at least has proven that they're willing to make the effort. Try it with cats - a slowish and positive blink (NOT a quick blink, or at the other end of the scale a stare) is a cat greeting, and most strange cats who look as though they're about to dive for cover as you approach will hesitate and give you a second glance if you can catch their eye and blink at them before they make their getaway. Often you'll see them blink back at you. It's a fascinating experiment.

[Hyper]

This is a continuation of the original post btw. I had often very guardingly "breathed" in the way I expect you mean.

However, to my absolute shame, one day (after I had been taught never to do this) I expressed my emotions!!!!

I could never explain to anyone why..............I just did. I got angry when I was with Kerry and I "BLEW" down my nostrils at hers.............sounds awful and it was believe me.

My gorgeous mare turned killer.........................don't anyone else ever try to do this for goodness sake.

I am not name-dropping at all by the way. But I can honestly say that if I had never ever had the short contact (in time and with Kerry) with Mike Peace that I had had (probably a couple of years before this event) - I think I would have ended up dead and I would certainly never ever have regained any respect from my mare at all - ever.

[Yann]

Me and Rio sometimes end up breathing up each others noses, makes me feel all tingly inside:D

[Ginger Thing]

Know what you mean Yann - I do it every time I go to see Thomas.That's how he says hello to his friends, so I do too!

[galadriel]

Originally posted by ros
The softer they do it, the more familiar and friendly the gesture is.

Aha! Thanks for sharing :)

[horsehype]

aww dats so sweet, im gona do it softer from now on.. :) jiggy seems 2 like it neway + bob is just funny.. he nips me if i blow 2 hard :p

[*HoRsEtArD*]

hiya, horsehype, whos sammy and whos the horse in the pic?????? omg i cant wait til saturday, horseriding again! i have got to beg my mum to get me a horse, i cant wait a year!!! :( anyway i really did try the breathing thing on tessa and she loves it! SHES MY SPECIAL LIL FRIEND NOW!

[horsehype]

Its just a random horse lol..Sammy is the girl hoo helps out + goes 2 r skewl,rememba????? neways itll b so kewl wen u get a horse :( i want 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! its bloody unfair :(
i just got sum new jods and a hat off ebay :D cnt w8 till they cum ill be werin them all the time 4 no reason lol..
neway ill cya soonio probs on sat :D IM ON ** PURPLE SHEET!! :D

lol cya then neway
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!! x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x :D

[*HoRsEtArD*]

o yeah sammy! :p jumping was cool on saturday but i wish jenny had but them higher, and we usually have the double cross jump, o well !I LOVE PENNY! she just randomly streps over the stupid jump, shes gorge tra hunxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[Tootsie4U]

This weekend I saw Chris Cox ride a lady's horse who was completely freaked out by the arena, lights, sounds, etc. and the rider had absolutely no control. Chris got on and after three minutes of some foundational stuff, he took the bridle off and rode with absolutely nothing on the head. He had the mare w/t/c/gallop and HALT with nothing more than his seat. When he wanted the mare to halt, he let out a loud exhale, which relaxed every bit of his body which signaled to the horse to stop. So yes, I believe it. It was amazing.

[Sarah]

Do take care with breathing into a horse's nose. Barbara Woodhouse did that on telly at the end of teh 70's or early 80's (she was an animal behaviourist who trained dogs mainly but also worked with horses). Apparently a lot of people ended up in Casualty with bitten faces after watching her on telly!

[Hyper]

From firsthand experience as I reported above (because I was impatient/cross for once - and only once in her presence - in my relationship with Kerry), I would most definitely stick with Sarah's advice. I've heard one or two people mention Barbara Woodhouse - wish I'd seen what happened at the time because it may well have prevented me from being so foolish.

[darling_dyllis]

ahaa....glad im not the only one! non-horsey people seem quite disgusted when they see you do this! the facial and spoken responses are quiet funny, but im used to funny looks from people :D they really do seem to think youre nutty! i love doing it, it feels so nice and you feel as if you are truly communicating with the horse, using methods of the equine world, rather than communication methods that we impose on the horse. :) I greet all horses in this way.

~AnnA~ :cool:

[Bucephalus]

Your own breathing is a good indicator of your own mood.
Without ever realising it, you breathe in shallow gasps when you're stressed, and if you safely get over an 'ordeal' (even if that's just jumping something a bit higher than you have before) you'll breathe out slowly and luxuriantly.
How many times have you 'breathed out' and relaxed while in the saddle and found the horse has done the same thing, relaxing his neck at the same time?
It's probably those many little human subconscious signs, along with body tension, that horses are able to read so well.

[chapsi]

Also bear in mind that most of us are meat eaters too - and our breath will smell like meat-eaters breath.

Interesting point here. As a vegetarian, I have wondered whether I smell different to my horse than most people.

Most of the time, I greet my horse by gently blowing in his nose, but so far, I have never received a similar returning compliment.