Sensory & Social Stimulation – Creating a Well-Rounded Horse

Author: Olivia’s Mom, Jackie - @minilivy | Brand Ambassador

Horses thrive on variety, including both physical and mental enrichment. Our equine family consists of a very smart half Arabian/half Quarter Horse pony, Sierra, and an incredibly curious Miniature Horse, Olivia. To keep them happy and enriched, I make sure my girls have plenty of opportunities to explore their senses.

One of our favorite activities is playing games. Games help you bond with your horse while engaging their brains. Olivia is the game-player of our family. Her favorites include “Pony Soccer,” “Ready, Set, Go,” and “Touch!”

“Pony Soccer,” employs Olivia’s favorite toy, her big red ball. She stands at the top of the hill while I kick the ball to her from the bottom. She loves to chase after it and kick it back. She will also push it around with her nose, bite at it, or even roll on it. I just make sure to monitor her play so she doesn’t injure herself.

“Ready, Set, Go!” only requires a pony and their person. Olivia and I stand in the field, I say the magic words, and we race to the barn together. This helps her practice vocal cues and get exercise. It’s important when playing this game to be sure your horse knows where you are at all times, and that you keep a safe distance from their backend, no matter how big or small they are!

“Touch” uses a bit more of Olivia’s brain-power. Through positive reinforcement training, Olivia has learned to touch an item we’re focusing on for the session. This item can be anything in your barn; we usually use a flag, jolly ball, or even her favorite stuffed unicorn. We start by letting her sniff/play with the item so she knows this is the “target.” Then we move the item a few feet away, point and say “touch.” Olivia’s goal is to “boop” the item with her nose, and once she does she gets a reward.

Sierra is not as much of a game fan, but thanks to an online friend, we finally found one she likes that also works her sense of smell - “Treat Cones!” I set out several small cones and place treats under just one. Sierra then uses her sense of smell to locate the “treat cone!” She knocks the correct cone over and gobbles up her reward. Horses have such a keen sense of smell that Sierra quickly figures out how to find the cone, but it doesn’t keep her from enjoying the game!

Another way to enrich your horse’s great sense of smell is by allowing them freedom to sniff various horse-safe items. For example, Olivia LOVES to explore her big sister’s saddle pads and tack. I also offer them the option to sniff their brushes and other grooming supplies, even some of their grooming products! Sierra’s absolute favorite is her Equiderma dry shampoo.

Obstacle courses (big or small!) are a great way to allow your horse to explore all of their senses at once. Incorporating items they have never seen before that they can sniff, touch, step on and over will make for a great experience. We set these up in the barn aisle or in the arena and use things such as jumps, cones, pinwheels, pool noodles, or a tarp for them to walk over. Carefully introducing them to items they wouldn’t normally come across in the field while in a safe environment helps broaden their experiences and make them feel more confident when exposed to new things.

Of course, playing outside when there are extreme temperatures can be hard, and we may not always have time to spend at the barn, but luckily horses are herd animals and find social enrichment just by spending time with their friends. We adopted Olivia in 2018 with the hopes that the two of them would become forever friends. The girls have bonded and now have a special relationship. Allowing your horse to have friends helps fulfil their social needs.

For those times they may find themselves on their own, resting in their stall, using hay nets and leaving toys for them to play with (such as jolly balls) can also keep them engaged.

We hope this helps you come up with some enrichment ideas for you and your horses. Check us out on Instagram @minilivy, @sierra.dream, and @livys.mom!