Do the horses in funeral procession look stressed?

[Gozleme]

Don’t know a lot about horses and am just musing while watching tv… but I noticed one in particular throwing its head around a bit and they like a bit out of step with each with quite a bit of head throwing at times

This must be a stressful situation for them with all the people and music.. or are they specific “parade horses” that are used to this sort of thing?

@DrNo007 bit less bridles can also be extremely harsh. Depends on rider, type of bridle etc.

I'm not sure what bits are used in ceremonial bridles tbh other than standard doubles or a type of Pelham? If it's a stronger bit then that's not ideal. Really shouldn't be necessary to have anything harsh

Bit less bridles work for some, not others. They can be very harsh too, they can put pressure on the horse’s very delicate nose.. The military bits used can be very harsh though. Most general riding horses would be ridden in much gentler bits.

I figured military horses probably have something pretty harsh. I think these days they could be adapted to have a standard bit with ceremonial looking sides like a rugby Pelham/double dupe

Here's an explanation about the Police horses:

George, Elizabeth, Darby and Sir John, gifts to The Queen from the Canadian Mounties. George is 22 now so doing well.
The King, The Princess Royal and The Prince of Wales ride them at Trooping of the Colour.

Leading the way on her final journey, four horses given to the Queen by the Mounties.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/67203108-36bf-11ed-906e-b1c0a42b1514?shareToken=1fafcd7debd57bea6de91751d0d4a7800_

Some animals do work. Police horses and police dogs are some of those and yes I imagine there is stress/andrenaline involved in pressurised situations .

All horses taking part today will have been carefully chosen and are highly trained however this doesn't stop them experiencing stress. Crowds are usually very stressful for horses but again these horses will have had a lot of exposure to such environments.
The shaking of the heads is most likely due to them having to walk at a slower pace and they are expressing their impatience.

😂

I thought that too. They looked uncomfortable

They are fit horses in top condition, full of energy. They are being asked to walk slowly, much like people walk their dogs on short leads and much slower than the dog would like, when the need arises.

These horses are domesticated and love and trust humans, and interact with humans just like your pets are.

Give or take cats.

Tbf the London comment may well have been because the horses in the household cavalry are a common sight, being exercised etc. and well used to the environment.

Depends where you live though. We see them a lot, my sister never does.

I don’t live locally to the horse guards but I have seen them often when out and about in central London.

I would think they were taken out for a bloody good gallop afterwards. They certainly earned it.

The bit is only as strong as the hands on the end of the reins. A snaffle can be much harsher with a novice than a Pelham/double etc is in experienced hands.
As others have said,it will be a combination of having to walk slowly (impatient toddler) and flies annoying them.

Don't know the answer to the OPs question but random fact I learnt today is that sailors pull the gun carriage because, at Queen Victoria's funeral, something went wrong with the horses that were supposed to pull the carriage, so they substituted sailors at a late stage. And then it became tradition.

Wondering what a happy horse looks like 🤔 😂
Perhaps the 'horse community' rep would know 🤣

This.

Wondering what a happy horse looks like 🤔 😂
Perhaps the 'horse community' rep would know 🤣

There are several of us here.

A happy horse looks relaxed not tense, and not trying to go faster than the rider wants, nor go sideways, nor have their head up trying to evade the bit, trying to canter, tossing their head and swishing their tail (other than occasionally if there are flies). An experienced eye absolutely can tell what a happy horse looks like.

Some of the horses today looked tense - it's hard work trying to walk at a consistent pace that is slower than your natural pace for that long, and the head tossing and tail swishing was an expression of their frustration at the pace. I was relieved that they were for the most part coping, though. That hasn't always been the case at Royal occasions! No matter how well selected for temperament and how well trained they are, you can't fully prepare a horse for the atmosphere of a large state occasion before they take part in it. They are at the end of the day flight animals, which means when something is scary they want to run away. Of course they have strong bits in their mouths, army and police horses always have.

The bit is only as strong as the hands on the end of the reins. A snaffle can be much harsher with a novice than a Pelham/double etc is in experienced hands.
As others have said,it will be a combination of having to walk slowly (impatient toddler) and flies annoying them.

I've never understood the point of this phrase. Under the same rider, same hands, some bits are easier to apply a painful amount of pressure with than others. These horses are wearing the harsher type, because it is catastrophic if somebody loses control in a crowd in this situation. Some of the riders will be riding more sympathetically than others; some of the horses will need more firm contact to stay under control than others. Some of the head tossing and tail swishing will be an attempt to relieve body tension, some of which will have happened because that particular horse's rider needed to exert a stronger contact in order to maintain the slow pace.

Horses cannot distinguish behaviour from emotion, they are first and foremost emotional beings they aren't the labels many place on them. Moody, naughty, grumpy and much worse names. A horses face ears and body will tell you a lot about their threshold but sadly so many are used to seeing a traumatised horse and not recognising it thinking it's normal, a trained horse can be a shut down horse. The traditional horse community don't notice or in many cases I've seen care or tell you you're wrong.

When you've spent time observing, asking nothing of them and studying them you can't then unsee the now obvious.

They aren't a commodity they are sentient beings who whilst loved by many are also asked a lot of. We really need to change the conversations around horses riding and their overall care.

The fundamental problem with changing the discussion though is that you would have to end horse racing ie backing of yearlings and the fact most are finished or broken down by 5 years old plus the mortality rate at every track. Due to the sheer amount of money involved in the racing industry that will never happen. If the general public cared about horses then they would stop betting on horse racing. Hence you can't have a meaningful discussion about horse welfare at a national level.

In part @twistyizzy I agree, however conversations are changing slowly and the more people who begin to take an active interest in understanding horses and why they behave the way they do without needing to use force or pressure to correct it the better. Only then when more people begin to speak up do things change at a National level.

Yes I agree and I'm definitely not saying we dont need to change, but it will still be limited to more niche parts of the Equestrian world that the general public don't really get to see. Which means that the largest numbers of horses won't see the benefit. The FEI also needs an urgent overhaul, many of their rules are archaic and reward the use of gadgets/severe tack over skilled riding.

Hahaha if you try to force a horse to do something it doesn't want to you won't be on it very long!

They looked fed up and just wanted to be out of there. It was a long walk at a very slow pace.