Horses

[Bitter Ashes]

Not the kind of animal I have much experiance with at all. To be honest with you, they freak me out. They're twice your size and you know that if they're upset they can kill you very easily. It's a fear I'm trying to get over.

I've got no intention of harming the animals, but I'd feel a lot better if I were to know that I know a way to calm one down, or make it avoid me.

I recognise that different horses may be trained and desensatised in different ways, but is there anything universal that they will respond to? A smell of smoke on your clothing, or flashing lights, or something like that?

Again, really don't want to know any ways that would harm the animal.

[MarxSchmarx]

You mean like the horses some cops ride at demonstrations and stuff?

[Bitter Ashes]

Well in general really. I think it'd help me a lot if I wasn't shaking like a leaf whenever one is near. I figured the best way for me to do that is to know that they're not unbeatable.

[Mumbles]

TBH, I thought your avatar was a picture of a girl holding the reins to a horse before I looked really close haha

The main thing I think you should remember to help you stay calm is that if a horse is trained to be a warhorse, it'll more than likely already be in a frantic mood. I don't think they train them with "on/off switches" so if you see someone riding or holding onto one it'll more than likely stay calm and not be fierce.

On the other hand, things will still spook out a horse, but I think police horses are trained to avoid that. So my guess is that you should be more afraid of the pig riding the horse than the horse itself since it's broken to obey them.

Also, if you want to like try and get near one, they :wub: sugar cubes and carrots. Just make sure you hold your hand flat the whole time cause it'll tickle :D But ask around and see if any friends have horses or know people who do, because if they own them they more than likely love them and want to help others get to too.

[Axle]

Horses are bourgeois animals :D

[Joesky]

I heard Marbles are a great Anti-Horse weapon, apparently they will not walk over marbles.
I think the tactic was used in the battle of cable street.

[El Rojo]

also, i once heard, not confirmed tho, that punching a horse in the teeth will stop it.

furthermore, a reinactor once told me that if faced by a guy on a charging horse, go for the horse. if the guy goes down, the horse keeps going, with predictable consequences when several hundred kilograms of meat and animal fear hit ye. however, when the horse goes down, the rider is generally rather preoccupied w his collapsing steed, hence two birds w one stone.

on the nice side, they also like a handful of grass. do keep yr hand flat, i know a horse owner who is missing a finger.

and never walk behind a horse. it spooks them and the buck. byebye compete caranium.

warhorses used to be trained to bite, and i read an anacdotal story abot a french majors horse bitting a russian soliders face off. sorry if this doesnt help w the fear.

make them go away? any sudden movement. a shout, a twitch, clap yr hands. although if you are then in the way its not look good for you.

[Stand Your Ground]

Generally I think they're pretty calm. I wouldn't say they're too much to worry about.

[No pasarán]

Horses are bourgeois animals :D

Ever heard of Dublin's Ponyboy's, the gypsies who still commonly use and keep them or the many cowboys, or any other working class people there still are keeping horses?

Anyways.. I think they are alright, but then again when I was a kid and lived in dublin most of me mates had one. And I'm part traveler/gypsy.

[Kowalski]

General things scares horse are sudden flashes, loud sounds, fast movements, but really warhorses and good sporthorses are trained to disregard all this. And even if horse is scared don't be sure that it'll run away from you. Maybe it'll beat the source of fear, or run through you :cool: The behaviour of scared horse usually isn't very predictable...

And riders are usually trained to control scared horse too - just because in any riding lesson horse can be scared by something and rider have to control it or to fly on ground or to fly fastly somewhere to unpredictable place with eyes like these :blink:

The same thing about tasties for horse. Well trained horse simply ignore them.

The best thing is to jump on the horse and to throw down the policeman but I bon't think it's enough real for untrained protester =)))
Horse is dangerous for you only when it charging on you, do not fear calm standing horse. But if it charging I don't think you'll can stop it by claps, flashes or sugar)))) Flashes maybe, but it's very doubtful (only if the police doesn't train horses very well). But if you'll can beat police rider by a long log it'll be very nice for him :lol:

[Tifosi]

Well if the fear of horses keeps your mind off the dogs I would say it's a good thing:lol:. Do a Kanellos and get the animals on our side, elephants and all that shit man.

[pastradamus]

Moved to Mutual Aid and DIY.

[jake williams]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2377/2767364775_73495f8663.jpg

[HamishFTW]

Not walking behind a horse is one good rule.

They don't charge blocks, hence infantry regiments forming squares when facing cavalry. Just swerves around them.

[Dr Mindbender]

i know from experience horses are freaked out by bright, dayglow colours.

When i was still active in SWSS i made this bright dayglow orange banner for the 'Globalise resistance' project (Orange was their unfortunate choice of colour, it has nothing to do with NI ok? :bored:)

One time we brought the banner to the mayday demo and as i was walking around this horse starts freaking out and spinning around at the sight of it. The pig on its back nearly fell on her arse!

:lol:

[An archist]

I once saw two people keeping one cop on, a horse busy form about fifteen minutes.
One of them would run in sight of the horse and run away. Then he would stand still, and the other would start running around in sight of the horse. The horse kept. chasing the guy that was moving and the cop couldn't control it.
But that was in a wide open field, so I doubt it would work in city streets.
Other then that: marbles, but you'll probably hurt the horse. Loud bangs and bright flashes also scare horses, but they might hurt themselves and/or the people who are riding them.

[Ocean Seal]

Generally a horse won't run you down unless you've pissed it off and yeah don't stand behind them don't get close or make sudden movements. If no one is riding it just keep your distance and if it is galloping make sure your not in its way.

[Nuvem]

Horses are fairly tame creatures so long as nothing spooks them. Generally what scares them can vary from horse to horse and from whether or not they've been trained, but usually they're frightened by any sort of serious natural conditions like storms. As far as purely human elements go, simply avoid acting unnaturally. Be calm, be welcoming to the horse. Treat it as you would an equal human and never be rough with it (don't tug on its mane, don't shout around it). Most horses will react well if your first encounter is pleasant. Just give it a good rub on the snout and speak to them softly and they'll treat you with the same gentle attitude, especially ponies, mares and gelded (neutered) males.

Stallions can be a different matter depending on their personal temperament and upbringing. While all animals will react better to humans when we have treated them well throughout their lives, stallions will often act irrationally around mares in heat. It is necessary to be dominant around stallions, who will always try to take control of any situation unless they have been taught deference. Stallions are usually best kept around those with experience.

When it comes to being attacked by a horse, there is unfortunately not much an unarmed human can do to protect themselves. They are bigger than us, stronger than us, thicker-skinned, and their hooves and bite can seriously harm or kill. Generally if a horse is truly out of control your best bet is to simply stay away. If you're already in its vicinity or you are the object of its aggression, go limp and immediately play dead. The horse is smart enough to know that you're alive if you're just curled up quietly on the ground, but it will sense your deference and it is unlikely it will try to harm you further. Trying to run simply will not work; the animal IS faster than you and you can NOT outrun it. Fighting back is a poor choice if you are unarmed. Horses have thick skin and dense muscles and the most you can do is cause it surface pain. I saw someone proposing to punch it in the teeth earlier, but I suspect that would result in broken knuckles as well as a very angry horse. Going for the eyes could seem to be a viable option, but the first thing an attacking horse will do is rear up and kick you in the chest or face, putting its eyes out of reach and you injured or dead.

Luckily, horse attacks are very, very rare. Horses should be treated with respect, not fear. If you fear the horse it will not respect you. I wouldn't say that they are Bourgeois animals, more like that they have been exploited by the Bourgeoisie just like the workers have. Let us not forget their vital role in the Russian Civil War with the Red Army Cavalry and their long history of toiling alongside peasants and workers. The poor animals don't have the mental capacity to be Bourgeois or Proletarian, they're simply the servants of one or the other.

[Red Lion]

Find access to a horse with the owners permission (preferably someone you know as people will get dodgy about letting you near their animals).

Go and sit in the middle of the field its in, and wait. Wait for the horse to come to you, it will eventually get curious. Do nothing until you are calm. Then slowly but surely touch it gently on the side of the head. Don't approach it's head from the front with your hand, horses have a blind spot there and you don't want to scare it, because thats when things go wrong. Be confident and slow with it, make sure the horse can see what you're doing. Stroke the side of it's face gently. This is the first step in what is called parelli, a natural horse training system and undisputed as the best. Parelli is a way of taming a horse with mutual respect, love and leadership. Should be right up your street and put you well on the way to learning to not fear horses :)