Handling your Horse

Recent research suggests that horses prefer to be handled from the left side, possibly due to the way they interpret things seen with the eye on that side.

Scientists in Austria compared horses trained predominantly from the left with those trained and handled equally from both sides. Most horses, regardless of training, favored the left eye and tried to keep people in the left line of vision. The left eye is the “rapid-reaction” eye, according to the research report.

The researchers advise that horses should be handled from both sides, and they state that behaviors such as refusing to longe to the right may not be stubbornness but simply wariness of things seen with the right eye.

Patience is advised until the horse gains confidence and realizes a handler on the right is not a threat.