The benevolent leader

It’s interesting to watch how horses communicate with each other. There is a definite hierarchy to any herd. The higher ups dictate to those below them in the pecking order. The body language is often subtle, but obviously clear to the horses.

Buddy’s first companion, Laddie, was a bully. He used to chase Buddy off the piles of hay, repeatedly, just to be mean. But Utah is a benevolent leader. He chooses which pile of hay is his, but he leaves Buddy alone with the other pile. Sometimes–if Utah feels like it–both horses eat off the same pile.

If Utah decides he wants something, he gets it; if Buddy is in his way, he moves him. He does it with an eyeball. He has a look that clearly says get out of my way. But he’s good-humored about it. He’s got this confident air about him, as if he just goes where he’s going and assumes that anyone else will get out of his way. Of course.

They are a goofy pair. When I open the barn door so they can come in and get in their stalls, Buddy usually comes in first: is there food? Invariably he walks into Utah’s stall first, just to check if he left any food in his manger the last time. Then Utah comes in and, without hesitating, saunters into the same stall. I don’t know how they manage it, but there’s Utah going in and Buddy going out the same door at the same time. They are as calm as can be, going through the steps of their routine.

Sometimes they play Chinese fire drill. After they finish their supper and I open the stall doors again, they switch places.

My favorite though is when Utah moves Buddy in the pasture and you can’t see anything at all. His body language is so subtle and Buddy is so in-tune with it that all you can see is them starting, turning, and stopping in synchronized motion. It’s a communication that horsepeople are constantly striving after and so rarely master.