Most Common Ways Horses Can Hurt Their Trainers
For those that breed, look after, and train horses, they will know that horses are generally gentle and intelligent, and it takes a fair amount of abuse or provocation before a horse feels ready to start defending itself. But even the most well-tempered horse can sometimes feel threatened enough to attack those around them, and it’s important that a trainer know what kind of injuries that a horse can cause.
Part of the job of looking after horses is knowing when they are starting to look aggressive and knowing how to mitigate the risk as much as possible. It’s also important to keep in mind that horses are large animals and a lot of the injuries that they can cause are often just mistakes. Whatever the reason may be, these are some of the most common injuries that are caused by horses.
Strikes or Kicks
When a horse is feeling particularly threatened and wants to defend itself, it will usually strike with either their front or their rear hooves. Most people think that horses tend to kick back with their rear hooves, but they can just as easily kick with their front hooves, too.
Sometimes, a kick is just accidental, such as when it’s trying to kick away a fly and someone happens to be in the firing line. Sometimes the kicks are intentional, but there will usually be a few warning signs before a horse does this. It’s also common for horses to kick each other while riding, which is why it’s a good idea to stay apart when riding as a group.
Getting Stepped On
Another common injury, especially among trainers, is having a horse step on their feet. This can, as one would expect, quite a painful experience. But it’s almost always because the trainer was not able to move way fast enough, and it’s usually not because the horse did it intentionally.
Regardless, it’s best practise to try and keep an eye on the animal’s legs while close to it. Wearing steel-tipped boots might save those you from potential fractures or other injuries from occurring too. These boots aren’t expensive, and you won’t have to use your wins from playing the CA online slots for real money to buy a pair.
Biting
Horse, like other herbivores, have fairly strong jaws and prominent teeth, and while their teeth aren’t sharp like a carnivore, they can still deliver a seriously painful bite if provoked. A horse will bite its trainer or handler if it happens to be in a bad mood, or if they are getting pushy to have a treat given to them. Often this is down to the discipline of the horse, but it can be serious as they’ve been known to bite hard enough to cause fingers to break.
Falling
The most common type of injury among race horses is falling down, and it can happen for a number of reasons. Not only can this put the rider’s life in danger, but it can also seriously injure the horse, especially if it happens to be a larger breed.