The silliness of goats can be endearing to humans and other animals. Goats make great companions for humans and horses alike. The way that goats calm horses down though is a little strange to anyone who has never been around this companionship.
Goats calm horses down by becoming their friends. Horses are herd animals and get nervous when they are on their own. Having a goat or other friendly animal around calms lonely horses almost immediately.
We will further discuss this topic in the sections below.
How Goats Calm Horses
Horses and goats are herd animals. It doesn’t matter to them who is in the herd so long as they are friendly and kind. Herd animals need friends. So when a herd animal is experiencing anxiety from loneliness all you need to do is put another herd animal close by. This is when isolated herd animals need what’s called a companion animal.
Goats make excellent friends with horses because they are very friendly. When you put goats and horses together the goats will basically stick by the horse. The horse loves this. The goat is big enough for the horse to see and hear it without being a horse.
If the goat is small enough then it might even climb onto the back of the horse and stay there. Horses love this too because the hooves scratch their hard-to-reach backside. This feels great to the horse.
Goats will talk to the horse, call out for it if the horse is out of sight, stay under the horse (or at least by its feet), and may even travel in the same stall as a horse to ease travel anxiety.
Basically, the goat is an emotional support animal for the horse. The goat will get attached to the horse, who in return gets attached to the goat. This is how the goat calms the horse, by being loving and friendly to the horse.
Practical Uses For Goat Friendship
Goats are typically used as companion animals for horses that are isolated. Such as in a small barn that can only support one horse or when a horse is separated from the rest of the herd because of aggression or illness.
Another common use for this is when a horse travels. Racehorses, for example, do a lot of traveling. This means that they would be alone a lot. For a barn to be able to accompany the typical two-horse companionship, it would need to double in size.
Easier said than done. That requires contractors, permits, and space. The first two aren’t always hard, but the reality is that sometimes you just don’t have space. That’s where goats come in.
Goats are tiny when compared to a horse. So the barn that is boarding the racehorses can stay the same size because goats and horses can share stalls with ease. If the horse lays down, the goat will simply lay on top of it. It eats the same food as the horse and makes virtually no waste. So you won’t even notice during clean-up.
Anytime a horse is alone, for any reason, just stick a goat next to it. It’s no problem. They’ll both love it.
Other Animals Used To Calm Horses
While goats are great companion animals for horses and very useful when trying to calm down a horse experiencing anxiety, there are plenty of other animals that also make great companion animals.
Cats for example will bond very easily with horses. This might be just because of the cat’s ego, but it’s still an easy solution. Cats are double-win because they’ll also keep rodents down in the barn and the feed area. They will feed themselves and follow horses around.
They’ll even talk to horses, rub against them, and climb on them. Cats don’t travel well though. So if your horse is doing a lot of that, do not consider a cat a suitable traveling companion.
Dogs are great because they do travel well. Dogs make horses feel secure just by being around the horse. Dogs are very vocal and will stay in sight of a horse. If the dog chases a horse though, there will be some problems. It takes more for a dog and horse to bond.
Dogs are also excitable which might not be a good match for your horse. Your horse might need a more calm companion. That’s where you’d want a cat, goat, donkey, or smaller equine.
Donkeys are a lot like goats. There’s not really much more tell about how they are as companion animals. They’re just bigger.
Small equines such as ponies or smaller horses are also a great option. For all the same reasons that goats are.
But why do horses experience anxiety and why do they need a companion animal? How does the goat really help calm the horse?
Herd Animal Anxiety
Herd animals are very social creatures. They’re comparable to humans in a lot of ways when talking about their social structures. So imagine you’ve been living alone without any outside social interaction. No social media, no pets, not humans, no tv, no books, and no computer. You’d get pretty antsy right?
You’d probably get anxious, paranoid, skittish, and depressed. Well, that’s exactly what happens when herd animals are isolated. A horse will start prancing around their stall, destroying things, talking a lot, and express mood swings.
They might even panic when they hear a new sound or see a new animal. Well, that’s herd anxiety.
Now imagine you get one friend who is everything you need to be happy. You’d probably be nervous at first, but pretty soon you calm down and start enjoying their company. Then your friend leaves. You start to experience all those bad things again after a little while.
That’s what happens when a lonely horse bonds with a goat. They get that one friend who is everything they need. In essence, they become family. It’s a very dependant relationship unless more animals are introduced.
That’s how goats calm horses.
Let’s make this clear though. Just like some people are just fine being alone, some horses are just fine not having companion animals. It really depends on the horse. So get to know your horse, then decide if they need a companion animal.