by Eleanor Blythe

Created on: July 25, 2008   Last Updated: June 25, 2009

During a pleasant afternoon on a trail, a horse and rider will view the world in surprisingly different ways.

The eyes of humans work quite differently than the eyes of horses. For instance, people see in color and can make out a yellow cluster of flowers in the distance. People see in detail and can differentiate between a tumbling tumble weed and coyote. People use depth perception to judge how far a fence is from their leg. People have few blind spots.

Equines, on the other hand, don't do any of the above well. Like most prey animals, their eyes are spaced widely apart, high on the sides of their heads. They probably do not see in color. Their distance vistion is weaker than humans. Nor do they see with the detail that humans do. This explains why a tumbling tumbleweed evokes the same flight instinct as a coyote. In addition, equines are also unable to judge how far an object is from their bodies. For this reason, it may very well be that a horse unintentionally scrapes a rider along a fence. Their eyes also have a harder time adjusting to the dark, which may explain why some reluctantly leave a lighted area to enter an unlit area.

Understanding the eyesight of a horse makes a rider, owner, and trainer more sensitive to its abilities and instincts. Understanding this physiology can further bond human and horse, and prevent unnecessary and useless punishment.

Equines also have a blind spot that prevents them from seeing directly in front of their faces until an object is about half a foot from them. Imagine not being able to see what is coming until it is literally "in your face." This is why a horse moves its head around - literally, to see. Consider the prowess and bravery involved in a steeplechase or equestrian jumps, especially since equines are unable to see their own front feet or chests. They also have a blind spot directly behind them, which explains why horses may kick unpredictably.

With this in mind, it is understandable that the eyesight of horses affects their behavior. Given the same set of circumstances, humans would frequently "spook".

In fact, horses have a multitude of vision challenges that might, at first, seem detrimental to their functioning. But this is judging a horse from the selfish human viewpoint of rider, or trainer, or owner. Rather, an unselfish examination of the horse's defense system as a large prey animal reveals the perfect evolution of horses. A working knowledge of their physiology shows that what they lack in certain aspects of eyesight, they make up for in other aspects of vision.

The vision field of equines wraps nearly 360 degrees, meaning they can see all around them.
Their eyes are capable of incredible monocular feats, meaning they can see in separate direction out of both eyes - both to their front and to their back at the same time. They can also "switch" to binocular vision, where both eyes see the same object. In addition, they have a broader field of vision than humans. This equips them nicely as prey animals.

Understanding the eyesight of equines is crucial to understanding their behavior. Every owner, rider and trainer should be trained in the physiology of eyesight to achieve maximum performance and the ultimate riding experience.

Learn more about this author, Eleanor Blythe.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.