Horses have a reputation for not being especially talkative, even though they are herd animals. Of course, they can certainly make themselves heard when they raise their long neck, thrust their head high, and even get their whole body into an arched bucking movement punctuated with a loud whinny or intense neigh.
But when you have a personal relationship with a horse, they rely on you to feed and care for them, and they can settle into a quiet and placid routine, especially when you both regularly take long rides to enjoy a peaceful time together.
Yet what we forget is that horses are highly sensitive animals
Just ask anyone who’s ever placed their hand gently on a horse’s neck or haunches and felt the immediate ripple of energy that goes through their entire body. Horses are so much bigger than even a tall muscular person, yet they often respond to touch with a physical ripple of energy, or a soft snorting sound and a sideways glance at you.
I mention this because it’s good to remember that all animals, horses in particular, communicate in ways so subtle that people tend to ignore such subtlety. It’s tempting to think of horses as overgrown dogs, who bark and yowl, or giant cats who purr to get their human’s attention quickly. Dogs and cats live indoors with us, so they are very much focused on how strongly humans respond to vocalization— conversations, TV shows with lots of dialog, or their pet’s vocalization.
But horses are different. If they “belong” to a person, they still live essentially outdoors, in a barn or stall, sometimes in a group pasture setting, but not indoors 24/7 with their person.
Bonding between a horse and a person takes more effort because of this. You’ll notice that the more often you visit and interact with your horse outside, riding them, grooming them, training them, or just hanging out with them while patting their nose, or riding for the fun of it— physically letting your energy blend with theirs makes a huge difference in how close you are with each other. It is a known fact that horses have a huge heart energy field, and it encompasses any person near them. This is why we naturally feel so good around them!
Of course, horses know people are a soft touch for attention of many kinds
I am reminded of this because of a client experience I had recently. I’ve been working with a woman named Susan and her two horses, and she had a huge surprise coming that revealed itself only after we had reached our final session. We’ll get to that in a minute.
You may know that horses are often mocked for having a short attention span or being motivated only by the next nibble they can grab on the trail if their rider doesn’t keep them focused.
But in my years of working with horses not only as an Energy Intuitive and Animal Communicator, but also as an Owner, Rider, and Dressage Competitor, I find them highly tuned into whatever vibrations and communication they are picking up.
It makes sense. In the wild they are prey animals and need to be in a herd to protect themselves. The herd mentality lets them sense a danger only one horse may see first, but when the others pick up on that threat it quickly causes them all to run away from it in unison, thus protecting not only themselves as individuals, but their foals and elderly herd members, too.
When you have one or two horses in a domesticated life, that herd wisdom is less obvious. But guess what? You are now part of their herd, as a leader or partner in any given moment. You shelter, feed, and care for them on top of that. And when you give them love, they receive it and flourish. They give back to you with their magnificent hearts full of loving appreciation and wanting to please you as best they can.
But, on a different level, they still see themselves as wanting to take care of you, especially if you have that extra special close bond. That’s why horses make superb therapy animals— but that’s a topic for a different time.
Back to Susan
Susan loves her horses, and they’ve been with her for 3 years and 15 years respectively. She has a holistic vet to help her maintain their health, and she asked for my help in addressing the male horse’s leg issue that needed an energetic assessment to support what the vet was providing. The mare was spooking and unexpectedly threw Susan recently, so Susan felt she needed to find out what was going on with her mare energetically and intuitively.
Some animals are shy at first in our sessions, but both horses were at ease with me. They know I “speak horse” so they let me know they trusted that our sessions would help them as Susan wanted. In fact, both horses relaxed, opening themselves to solutions for their individual issues that have made a difference. We could all sense it in the sessions, especially Susan.
But there was a big surprise that revealed itself in our final Mirror Tandem Healing Session after a gap of a few months: What Susan’s two horses wanted her to know was all about sugar!
As you may be aware, sugar is really bad for us in large quantities. Diabetes is a big problem for many people and many illnesses are exacerbated by sugar. Well this can also be a problem for horses. Many of them also need to restrict sugar in their diet as it can cause laminitis or equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). Susan realized that both her horses have sugar issues which she realized were a reflection of her own sugar intolerances.
What she discovered to her surprise as our sessions progressed, was that her horses were just as concerned for Susan’s health’s as she was for theirs, by mirroring this to her.
Horses let you know things “in the moment” and they had deiced to show Susan that too much sugar was not good. Instead of seeing the issue as just a stubborn health issue in each horse, it became obvious that she herself had a sugar imbalance, too, and it was time to address that within herself.
Now the whole family is getting their sugar issues under control, so they will all live healthier, horse and human.
One takeaway we can all enjoy is thiS…
The next time your horse, dog, or cat does something out of character that you disapprove of, or are confused by, take a closer look at yourself, as well as them. It’s often the energy of discovery and awareness seeking your attention.
Your animal(s) could be doing their very best to mirror what they see in your own behavior or body. You could be getting the chance to learn exactly what you need to know!
I was able to untangle the behavioral elements and help support healthy energy to start flowing freely again to rebalance itself all around, for Susan and her two beloved horses.
I love my work!
Carolyn Osborn
Discover the deep healing and connection, and the relief and freedom that await you, and your animal, with Chiron Energy Medicine.
P.S. Read Susan’s comments about our Chiron Mirror Tandem Healing work together here.
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P.S. Our newest program has been announced and is featured right on our website homepage or in our sessions menu: Chiron Mirror Sessions • Tandem Healing for You and Your Animal. It is designed to help you discover the deep healing that awaits you and your animal when you are guided to release unwanted behaviors and unconscious wounds and patterns of suppressed emotions and traumas that trigger dis-ease or illness if left unattended.
See or learn more about our sessions and packages for people or animals here and view our equine and performance sessions or packages here.
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