A/N: So, it's been a hot minute hasn't it? Anyway I've written this because in the upcoming chapters of this and a couple other stories the use of body language will increase, and verbal communication will decrese between characters. This is the guide to how horses act and how they understand each other: Body language, sound, and smell. Enjoy and hope this helps!

Disclaimer: I own none of the recognizable characters, Disney/Pixar does.

Horses are complicated creatures for those that don't know how to listen. To watch. However if you do know how to watch and listen, they are quite simple to understand.

Starting with body language, this is the most difficult to decipher. However as said, if you watch it isn't all that difficult. Horses understand each other with just a twitch of a muscle, or shifting. Pinned ears, head jerking and stomping are also vital movements to understand. Firstly, we will be looking at horses ears.

Ears are mostly used to reference moods. Pinned ears usually mean a horse is upset, anxious, or angry. Blade uses this in spectacular fashion, and it usually means 'back off'. Flicking ears, from a pinned to forward position usually signals curiosity, interest, or unsureness. It depends on the context of the situation, but majority of the time it's to express curiosity. This is usually accompanied by tensed muscles and a lowered head, but we'll get to that in a bit. Forward ears signal complete interest and focus, while also being alert and attentive. But, if a horse is cautious (yet interested) his or her ears will sill be placed forward, only with body shifted away from the cause of the interest. Ears to the side, normally accompanied by a cocked hoof or eyes closed, means the horse is relaxed and trusts everyone around them to protect them or let them know when danger arrives. Ears to the side can also show the horse is bored or sick, keep in mind the head position. Lastly, with ears, if a horse has its ears slightly pointed back, with head raised, it means they are scared and very wary. Be careful - in Dynamite's case, unsureness can lead to striking.

Now onto nostrils. This is a relatively short subject, as they're are only two possibilities. If nostrils are flared, the horse is breathing harder - enabling him or her to take in more oxygen as well as scent his or her surroundings. Watch out, though. Nostrils flaring when no exercise has been given or when they aren't scenting the wind can mean they are sick or colicing. When nostrils are not flared, they are breathing normally. They can still smell a lot, as their sense of smell is more enhanced than humans.

As with smell, horses can see a lot better than humans. They can see almsot fully around them - except for directly in front or directly behind. While some horses are fine being approached from these 'blind spots' some are not. Dusty, Drip, Pinecone, Cabbie, and Patch can safely be approached from behind or directly in front and most of the time will often not have a problem with it. The rest of the team on the other hand, if they can't hear or feel you, will jump, kick out, or whirl and strike. This can get dangerous very fast, so for your own safety don't approached a horse from behind without at least making sure they know your there. As for what their eyes can tell, if the whites of the eyes are showing, the horse is afraid and untrusting. Usually accompanied by head tossing, back away from the horse or try calming them if you know the horse well. Again, this situation can become dangerous, so avoid the risk by backing away.

The body is an extremely important factor. This is a long one, so stay with me!

The body is the key to understanding a horse. All other aspects are important, but the main body is what really tells the whole story. First off, we have a relaxed body. A cocked hind leg, shifted weight, and head lowered to chest level with eyes closed means the horse is relaxed and trusts others around him or her. Blade is rarely seen doing this, but when he does get caught with this type of body language it's usually when he is surrounded by his team. A rigid body - muscles tensed and head often raised - signals the horse is uneasy and might turn to flee or seek a friend for protection. When a horse is scared of something, they're body will likely be completely tense, and the nose may be raised higher than the horses poll - the spot between the ears, this is always accompanied with pinned or flicking ears. Dusty is quite prone to this next one because of how he was raised - when a horse has all four legs apart and square, with the body balanced backwards, head low or high, he is preparing to both flee and fight. This is not a good sign, as the horse is both confident and unconfident, and when this happens the situation can become dangerous quite quickly. When unsure, horses don't usually hesitate to strike. Before a horse rears, strikes, or bucks, they're muscles get tense and they may pin their ears. It depends on the horse and situation with how many seconds are before the strikes or rears, and a perfect example of this is: Blade and Cabbie hardly give anyone a moment to think before they're either rearing or bucking. However, with Pinecone and Patch, they usually tense up a good five seconds before they do anything, giving everyone a good amount of time to react and prepare. Tensing can also mean they are about to charge, and while an arched neck is usually just to show off in play fights - or to mares in a stallions case - an arched neck and tensed muscles is a signal that the horse is going to charge. Move out of the way as quick as possible, you do not want a horse to bowl you over.Also, when horses begin to prance (with ears pricked) it usually means they are excited and ready to do whatever they are about to do. If they prance with ears back, they're ready to fight or really want to flee. Prancing usually happens when they are being held back from what they want to do. It may be mentally if they are undecided as to what they want to do, or when they're tied or reined in. Sometimes accompanied with prancing comes pawing, and it's usually a sign of distress or anxiousness. Dusty, again, is prone to this. Especially when Blade, Skipper or Cabbie are not in his line of sight.

Finally, we have the sounds they make. This is another long one. First, we have a snort. Depending on the length of the snort, it could mean either they're uneasy or content. A long snort, which is just a hard blow through the nostrils means contentment and relaxation. A short snort, usually with a head toss or a raised head, means they are uneasy or sense something new. If it isn't aimed at you, stay out of the way just in case they decided to charge. A sound similar to a snort is between a couch and snort, it's higher pitched and it's air expelled very fast and hard through the nostrils. They usually make this sound when they sense or see something new and are trying to figure out what it is, mostly curiosity drives this noise. Then, we have a whinny. This is a greeting, and is higher in pitch and can be short or long. Jammer has a longer whinny, while Maru has a short one. It depends on circumstance and horse. A neigh - very similar to a whinny and humans often get these sounds confused - is also used for a greeting, but can also mean a challenge between two stallions or two mares. A neigh is lower in pitch but louder, and is held longer than a whinny. Finally, a nicker is a soft, low sound. It's a reassuring sound, used when everyone is nervous or when someone else is nervous and another horse is trying to comfort him or her. Another sound is a scream - a very high pitched sound. It has sent Blade running to the source because it's only used when situations are extremely bad, or the horse is in an extreme amount of pain or surprise.

Along with most animals, horses have specific sounds depending on age and gender. The previous sounds are the sounds that all horses can make no matter age or gender (however foals often don't neigh, theirs voices not being low enough for it yet). A mare has a special sound to call or reassure her foal. It's very similar to a nicker, and some people call it a whicker (though a whicker and nicker are technically the same thing). Only mares can produce this sound, and foals are drawn to it along with yearlings and sometimes two year olds. Foals and their mothers share a special bond and they know the others voice and scent by heart (they can pick thir own mother/foal out from a crowd of identical horses). The sounds only a stallion can make are often nerve-wracking and sends a chill to your bones. Stallions roar - a very loud sound that echoes. It isn't proven that mares can't roar, they just don't. Every stallion save Dusty has made the noise at least once. Blade does it more often than not, and each time it sends the smokejumpers scattering with Dusty and Dipper running to either Cabbie, Windlifter or Maru (whoever's closer). The sound it very threatening, and the sound can be carried for a quarter mile or a bit more depending on the force of the sound. Often heard when a stallion spots another stallion that could threaten his position as a leader (Blade, again, prone to this for this exact reason) or his team/herd. Cabbie has made this sound exactly five times, and each time it was because Blade wasn't around to protect the others.

And lastly for this lesson, we have teeth. Teeth clacking together is usually used by foals but can also be seen in younger horses around older horses. It is a sign of submission, a 'don't hurt me, I'm little' type thing. The smokejumpers do this to Dynamite every once in a while, along with doing it to Cabbie. Dusty (along with everyone else besides Maru, Cabbie or Windlifter just because they don't need to, though they still do it every once in a while) does this to Blade often. Usually, the older horse is calm while the horse doing the motion has his or her muzzle directly under the others muzzle.

Please read that each horse is different and will not have the same reaction to each thing. Horses can get scared of the simplest things because they're prey animals and are naturally cautious.*

Put all these things together with each other and you will know exactly what the horse is feeling. I hope this helped with understanding horse body language!

A/N: Well that wraps that up!! I had fun writing this, Hope y'all enjoyed this! Maybe next time I can do anatomy, if anyone is interested in that? Or injuries/illnesses that horses can get?