Why Do Horses Yawn?

Описание: In this Video we explore why horses yawn. We all yawn, you yawn, I yawn, and the chances are if you with a friend and you inadvertently yawn, they will follow suit. However, science suggests that groups of animals yawn as a way of signalling to others in the group a change in either the Internal or External environments.

When we observe horses in the wild they will yawn in response to a stress stimulus, such as Stallions Fighting over dominance can yawn after battle, while wild horses will also yawn in response to being stalked by a predator. In fact there is a really interesting YouTube Video showing a Zebra in the wild who is yawning in response to a predator stalking his herd, obviously signalling a change in his external environment. I will pop a link to this video below.

Why does the domesticated horse yawn, well as I said previously it is a stress response, so when we take a herd animal and keep him in a stable for a large amounts of the day, this can lead to a stress response, contributing to a lot of yawning behaviour. Stress is a part of normal life, however, with the domesticated horse it is important to keep the stress to a minimum, so if you find that your horse is yawning a lot while stabled aim to give him plenty of paddock time with his friends, this will help to reduce his stress.

Horses may also yawn from a release of tension in their body, I am a Chiropractor for both humans and horses and often if I am working on an area of the horses body that is particularly tight, there will be a release of tension in the horses body as I work through the problem area, leading to a lot of licking and chewing and when there is a big release, the horse will often lower his head and neck and give a couple of yawns. So you can often witness your horse yawn in response to having body work done.

Another time horses may yawn, is during training. If you think about it, we are a predator, that is taking a prey animal and training them to do things we want them to do, that they wouldn’t necessarily do in the wild, that in itself can be stressful. The whole point during training is to take things slowing and keep the stress to a minimum. When Natural Horsemanship people train their horses, like most of us, using pressure and release, as horses don’t learn from Pressure, they learn from the release of pressure. These trainers will often look for a lick or a chew and there can even be a yawn when the horse has learned something new and has a big Aha moment. So Training is another occasion you may witness a yawn.

The other time you may witness a yawn is when there is a change in the horses Internal Environment, this can be due to some sort of illness. If you have a good stable and field routine for your horse and you notice that your horse has begun yawning more than usual, it might be a good idea to have your vet come over to check him over to make sure there is no underlying issue or illness, that could be contributing to his behaviour.

RECAP: Why do horses yawn? They yawn in response to stress or a stressful stimulus, such as stallions fighting in the wild or the herd being stalked by a predator; They yawn when being stabled a lot because they are a herd animal and confinement will increase stress for them; They yawn when there is a release of tension in the body, during Chiropractic or Massage; They may yawn during training, after they have a big aha moment; and they can also yawn when there is a change in their Internal Environment such as an oncoming illness.

Well that’s all for this time, below is the Link to the Video of the Zebra Yawning in the Wild. Also many thanks to Ben sound for the royalty free music used in our video. Until Next Time, To Your Equestrian Success.

Zebra Yawning in the Wild:
   • Zebra Yawns  
Music
www.bensound.com