On horses and hikers

[flick]

There's a thing that hikers and dog walkers tend to do when they see a horse.

They get off the path. I know why they do it, but it is Wrong.

Horses are prey animals, and even the most relaxed of them is constantly on the lookout for predators.

If they see a person, with or without a dog, standing on the path in front of them then they go "Ah, a person."

If they see a person, especially with a dog, lurking behind a tree near the path then they go "Ambush!"

Please remember this and pass it on to walkers of your acquaintance.

(We didn't have an oopsie this morning, but only because Benny is a good lad. He was, however, frightfully nervous of the three walkers plus dog that he'd spotted on a cross path several hundred yards before they saw us and who then who kindly stayed in the undergrowth until we'd passed. Even more so when, when we were only a couple of hundred yards away, another horse went across our path at speed close to where they were lurking, in what was *obviously* a sensible reaction of running away from the ambush.)

Comments

[damerell]

Upright tandems are also somewhat notorious for this. As I approach a horse I say "Hello, I'm talking in a human voice to let the horse know I'm a human and not some weird mechanical thingy", and this seems like as good a place as any to ask if that's even a good idea.

[flick]

It certainly won't hurt, and will make sure that the rider knows you're there!

(If you're coming up behind a rider, it's worth a shout of 'Bike!', as well.)

[damerell]

I'm not so worried about the rider [1] who cannot stave in my ribcage with a single kick... or, at any rate, would find it more difficult, especially from the top of a horse, and is more aware of the social conventions that preclude such an act.

[1] yeah, I know really the horse's state is strongly informed by the rider.

[flick]

More from the point of view of warning the rider that you're coming up behind the horse, so that she can get ready for Potentially Scary Thing.