The Behaviour of Horses

by Marthe Kiley-Worthington

A look at horses' behavior, thought processes, how they communicate, and how we can communicate with them.

Genres: Horses

284 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1997

Reviews

[Dark-Draco]

I am such a fan of this author ... after a lifetime of owning and watching horses, she has formulated her own views on how they cope and adjust to life in a human world. Some of what she says go against the established views, but her justifications are presented in a clear, concise way that at least makes you think. I agree with so much of what she says and, while not always easy, I strive to give my horse a life that suits him as much as it does me. A lovely book that everyone who owns a horse, or any sort of stable yard, should read.

[Sydne]

A very good book on horse behaviour. It takes the horse's nature and origin into account and describes how flawed and damaging to the horse the modern keeping of horses is.
In my opinion the chapter on learning theory is not quite there; I do not agree with her advocacy of a mixture of positive and negative reinforcement for training, though I was very pleased with her stating the importance of restricting negative reinforcement in training. I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt here as this book is 30 years old and horse training with positive reinforcement has come on substantially since then.
I'd highly recommend this book to anyone who is trying to understand horses' behaviour and is trying to keep their horse as species-appropriate as possible.

[Sarah]

I just found a list of books I read as a teen. I have to admit I don't remember this one, but I rated it very highly at the time.