Aggressive Behavior in Horses: Biting and Kicking
  by Robert N. Oglesby DVM

Aggression toward humans is a natural event for horses and related to social interactions between the horse and his surrounding herd, including you. When you watch foals, play in the pasture you see them play this game: nip and bolt, kick and bolt, rear, paw and chase. Adults continue to play these games, with much more subtlety for the most part. When the subtlety fails, deadly force is generated. Horses are social animals that live in a social hierarchy, that is fairly complex. Some horses are more dominant at the dinner table, more aggressive mothers, others are leaders during time of movement.

The hierarchy is not static either. It changes and the games horses play are designed to constantly test and try to improve the horse?s position in the herd. When herd position is well determined and everyone accepts their position everything settles down and horses can quietly graze and groom. Aggression toward humans is an indication the horse believes it is dominant or wants to achieve domination. This article explains how to deal with aggressive behavior in horses.

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