A study in 2010 concluded what equestrians already knew: yes, a horse does recognize “their” person and they can differentiate them from other humans. They do that based on olfactory as well as auditory and visual cues, which means by seeing and smelling us as well as by hearing our voice.
They found that not only do horses develop a corresponding relationship to the sound of the human voice, but the horse brain—like that of humans, dogs, and other animals—also categorizes these sounds based on positive and negative associations.
Horses also understand words better than expected, according to the research, and possess "excellent memories," allowing horses to not only recall their human friends after periods of separation, but also to remember complex, problem-solving strategies for ten years or more.
Recent studies have demonstrated that horses can recognize humans based simply on visual information.
Horses recognize the tone and volume of words, but not their meaning. So keep your voice cues simple and don't let your “whoa,” “slow,” and “go” get mixed up.
If a horse is grazing in a field and they come towards you when you are around you can be sure they like you. Horses that follow your movements in their presence show they are focused on and give you 100% of their attention. If your horse follows you around when they see you, they consider you as a friend.
1 Use a Knuckle Touch (your hand in a soft fist, knuckles up) to the horse's Greeting Button to say, “Hello,” followed by an obvious turn to one side. Do this to see if the horse will copy your movement (an offer to follow you).
Prey animals identify predators by smell and sight—including their view of eye position. One look at a human face, and the evolutionary equine brain knows we are predators. Because horses see us as natural predators, human eye contact has a warning effect.
Horses exhibit higher heart rates when separated from a human, but don't show any preference for their owners over complete strangers, the team discovered. Swedish researchers started their work with the theory that positive reinforcement training on a horse was more likely to lead to them forming a strong attachment.
Horses may stare at you when they want your attention. If you are distracted or out of reach, your horse may stare at you to get you to focus on them. If there's a barrier such as a fence between you and your horse, they may stare at you since they can't reach you to nudge you.
A horse may also be very happy to see you if they trot over to you from the pasture when they see you coming. These are two common ways that horses show they are excited and eager to see you. Horses will become very relaxed when they are in the company of someone they love and trust.
Not only is the research robust that horses will remember us, it is also the case that they probably like us and possibly miss us when we are not there. Horses, as herd animals, are evolutionarily designed to be social, to form bonds with herdmates, and to form particular attachments to specific others.
Horses can read human emotions, too, often in uncannily accurate ways; alerting us to our sadness or nervousness, sometimes before we've even consciously registered it.
Many equestrians enjoy talking to their horses. Though it may seem silly to some, both you and your horse can benefit from it. Talking to your horse is not only therapeutic, but it can also help strengthen your bond. In addition, your horse will enjoy your companionship and find your voice relaxing.
Why do horses nudge you? Have you ever been nudged by a horse? Horses use body language to communicate with humans (and other horses), and one of the ways they do this is through touch. Nudging is a way for a horse to get your attention, which can signify affection or impatience.
Moreover, horses reacted in accordance with the valence of the vocalization, both behaviorally and physiologically (heart rate). These results show that horses can cross-modally recognize human emotions and react emotionally to the emotional states of humans, assessed by non-verbal vocalizations.
Horses and humans may develop a connection or trust through contact or riding or by way of grooming / care. They may show signs of recognition when you or other humans approach them.
Horses can identify some colors; they see yellow and blue the best, but cannot recognize red. One study showed that horses could easily tell blue, yellow and green from gray, but not red. Horses also have a difficulty separating red from green, similar to humans who experience red/green color blindness.
Much like other pets, horses use licking as a way to show their love! Breathing on you, licking, and kissing are all ways a horse may be trying to tell you how much you mean to them. They also may grasp you with their lips to pull you in, and then lick.
These recommendations usually involve making the horse move in some manner: backing up, moving their feet forwards or backwards, circling in the roundpen, changing direction online until 'respect' is shown, and so on.
Horses stomp to indicate irritation. Usually, it's something minor, such as a fly they're trying to dislodge. However, stomping may also indicate your horse is frustrated with something you are doing, and if you don't address it, he may resort to stronger signals.