Is my horse in pain? Signs every owner should know

Photo credit to Manon (Nita) Hynes, DVM, ACVB Resident

Most horse owners know what an injured horse looks like. What's much harder to recognise, without special training, is a horse who is in pain without any obvious injury.

Thankfully, how a horse behaves can tell us how they feel. Resistance, tension, irritability, a change in character - these aren't personality traits. They're often a message.

Why identifying pain in horses can be hard

Horses are a prey species, meaning predators may consider them a food source. And because even the strongest predator, like a wolf or cougar, will target the horse least likely to injure them, horses have evolved to hide any sign of weakness. This is why a horse can be in significant pain and still appear completely fine to the untrained eye.

Signs of pain in horses

Whenever a horse is behaving badly, pain should be the first thing considered. For example:

• Resistance or reluctance under saddle can indicate pain triggered by certain movements, by saddle fit, or by how the horse is being ridden or trained

• Girthiness or aggression when being tacked up could be caused by painful gastric ulcers

• Tension, spookiness or irritability that is new or worsening can occur when a horse anticipates pain in a specific context, or when they are living with chronic pain

• Changes in posture or movement can happen when a horse compensates in an attempt to relieve pain somewhere in the body

• Withdrawal, depression, or dullness, often missed, can be a sign of chronic pain

• A horse who is aggressive towards people, or other horses can indicate they are struggling to cope with pain they are experiencing

• Sudden, explosive behaviour can occur when a horse experiences sharp, intense pain, such as nerve pain

• Subtler signs, such as changes in mouth or nostril tension, wrinkles above the eye, and ear position, have all been shown to occur in horses experiencing a wide range of painful conditions

Because pain cannot be trained away, any time a horse is behaving in unwanted or unusual ways, it should be considered as a cause or contributing factor. Non-verbal animals are entirely reliant on the people caring for them to notice signs of pain, and to act on them. If your horse's behaviour is pointing to pain, your first call should be to your veterinarian.

What if the pain has been treated but the behaviour hasn't changed?

Once pain has been treated, many horses will behave more normally. But some may continue to show unwanted behaviours even after pain has been fully addressed. This is often because the horse has developed a pain memory: a learned, negative emotional response connected to the context in which they experienced pain previously. In these cases, a qualified horse behaviour professional can help your horse move past that association, calmly and effectively, without adding further stress to the situation.

If you're not sure whether pain is behind your horse's behaviour, that's exactly the kind of question I can help you answer.

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