Horses are born with a surprising number of instinctive skills!
• Standing: Within minutes of birth, a foal attempts to stand, crucial for accessing milk and avoiding predators.
• Nursing: Foals instinctively find and latch onto their mother's udder.
• Walking: Within hours, most foals take their first wobbly steps to follow their mother and explore.
• Social behavior: Foals understand basic social cues and herd dynamics, staying close to their mother and herd for safety.
• Flight response: Horses naturally run from perceived threats, essential for survival.
• Sleeping: Foals alternate between short REM sleep and long light sleep, helping them stay aware while resting.
While these skills are instinctive, they are refined through interaction with the mother and other horses.