Horse Brain Insight from Dog Brain Doc

This week, we visited with Dr. Erin Hecht, assistant professor in Harvard University’s Department of Human Evoluntionary Biology. Hecht’s research on dog brains and how breed can manifest in canine neuroanatomy got our attention here. We talked with her via email of the possible insights […]

Dog Brain Detour

Mammalian brains – horse brains, dog brains, human brains – have many similarities. Since this is so, and since most horse owners love dogs, too, we thought you’d be interested in what folks at Harvard University have found: Researchers there are discovering that dog brains […]

Brain Doc Hits the Road

Dr. Steve Peters is becoming increasingly busy as he ramps up his horse brain science presentation across the country and the world. This October, you can see him at the Best Horse Practices Summit in Lexington, Kentucky. Register here. Here are additional dates and locations: […]

The Autonomic Nervous System: You and your horse

Despite mammoth differences between horses and humans, we share some similarities in the very basic development and composition of our nervous systems. We both have autonomic nervous systems (ANS), the largely involuntary regulators of our organs, muscles, glands, etc.. The parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems […]

Novelty: Key to Horses and Riders

New additions to my herd are Bug and Barry. Bug is a four-year old Utah mustang. During his young life, he’s been passed from one owner to the next, six owners in total, before landing with me. Barry is a ten-year old Tennessee Walker with […]

Peters reflects on Mirror Neurons

Editor’s Note: Dr. Steve Peters, 2017 and 2018 presenter at the Best Horse Practices Summit, received an inquiry recently about mirror neurons. These neurons have been the object of study, confusion, and wild extrapolation in recent years. Here’s the question and reply: Dear Dr. Peters, […]

Your Horse’s Internal Mapping System, Part II

Read Part I In Evidence-Based Horsemanship, Martin Black describes a daunting scenario: One night, I was riding in the dark and two feet of snow. It was overcast, so there was no moon or starlight. Not even the silhouette of the horse’s head could […]

Your Horse’s Internal Mapping System

Part One of a two-part feature: I’m one to celebrate unfortunate events with a positive attitude. So, let me recount a not-too-proud moment with my mule, Jolene: We headed out on what quickly became a treacherous trek, full of bushwhacking and precipitous ups and downs. […]

Attention: Key to Your Horse’s Learning

Sometimes improving our horsemanship – a pursuit dominated by the almighty and intangible “feel” – can be like trying to capture dandelion seeds in the wind or bottle fog. How do we effectively translate what we read or watch cerebrally into our daily interactions with […]

Of Horses, Cows, and Humans

Recently, Dr. Steve Peters traveled to Idaho to visit informally with stockmen and livestock researchers from Treasure Valley Community College, Oregon State University, and the University of Idaho. He was introduced by local and international stockman Martin Black. The pair co-authored Evidence-Based Horsemanship. They will […]