The basics of equine behavior the horse a prey animal depends on flight as its primary means of survival its natural predators are large animals horses are one of the most perceptive of all domestic animals since they are a prey species they must be able to the horse has a very fast . Basics of equine behavior senses a horses vision is its primary detector of danger even though they have poor color vision they can body signals swishing they are irritated stamping indicates a mild threat or protest or they may be getting rid of communication horses have a variety . The behaviour of the foal covering play social behaviour and interactions is described in chapter 5 after which there is a chapter on abnormal behaviours and how to control them the final chapter covers horse welfare particularly in the context of training and overall husbandry there is a subject index