On the Chinese calendar, the Zodiac sign of the horse is considered lucky, promising opportunities for growth, prosperity and achievement.
The horse’s high profile presence as the Zodiac poster animal for 2026, following the Year of the Snake (’nuff said), offers a stage for considering what we can do for horses, beyond what horses can do for us in terms of competition, work, earning power and yes, prestige. The Year of the Horse also is a good time to give the public a positive view of the importance of horses, and showcase the way we treat them when we do it right.
We are seeing many innovative concepts on the welfare front. Let’s not rein in the possibilities. This is a perfect time to focus on equine care, giving horses priority. Why not approach them in a different way, thinking of their needs before your own?
British scientist Marian Dawkins believes animals should have a choice about what they prefer. That could mean more time turned out or a different type of feed. Her approach requires careful observation to see what horses want. She also suggests studying consumer demand. How hard will your horse work to get something? If the horse tries very hard to get something, that would demonstrate they really want it. Start thinking about things from your horse’s perspective, delving into an equine viewpoint.
There are five varieties of the Zodiac horse: wood, water, metal, earth and fire. That last, as intimidating as it may seem, is the one we have this year (the Chinese new year doesn’t begin until February, but why not get an early start?) So let’s use that fire horse (the featured image on this page) as the symbol for fueling a renewed commitment to equine welfare.
Part of the Year of the Horse should involve finding a way for those who would like to ride a chance to do so. That will strengthen the base of the sport in the process. It’s worth the effort, because as less people have experience with horses, the more chance there is for misunderstanding. That can give a leg up to those who don’t believe horses should be used for work, sport, or even ridden.
Unfortunately, as costs rise, lesson barns disappear, so it will take lots of creative thinking to find a way that lessons and riding experiences can be available. Some very good people are working on that now. In the coming weeks and months, I am confident we will be hearing many interesting ideas on how to make everything on the equestrian front better.
The more experience the public has seeing well-cared for horses, the more sympathetic people will be to enabling the continuation of horses as a key element of our society. That can only help with issues such as farmland preservation, preventing restrictions on farming and breeding, or even having land set aside for trail riding.
So how about a creative new year’s resolution: Do your best to make 2026 truly be the Year of the Horse. It can be a time in which we achieve not only a better life for horses, but also present a better understanding of what they mean to us and our civilization.
