Old Wives’ Tales & Superstitions About Horses

We’ve all heard plenty of old wives’ tales and superstitions over the years, such as saluting lone magpies, not crossing the path of a black cat, smashing a mirror bringing bad luck, and horseshoes bringing good luck. Here are some horsey ones that are a mixture of absurd and bizarre (and totally without proof!), that people used to believe and, I’m sure some, still do….

Luck & Good Fortune…

Horseshoes, as mentioned, are widely considered lucky. They can bring luck, thwart evil and even prevent nightmares according to some superstitions!
A shoe from the hind leg of a grey mare is luckiest of all
To keep the luck in, you should hang a horse shoe with the points facing up (if you hang it upside down, the luck runs out)
Talismans made from a horseshoe nail that has been bent into a circle are seen as lucky too!
Changing a horse’s name is bad luck
Placing a cowboy hat on a bed will bring bad luck
Stepping in manure is good luck
A horse will go lame if it steps in a wolf print
Leading a horse (especially a grey) through your house, will banish evil and bring good luck
A horse with an indentation in it neck is seen to be lucky…this indentation is often called a Devil’s thumb print, and the horse is seen as lucky as it supposedly survived an encounter with the Devil!
If a bride or groom see a grey horse on their way to a church it is considered a good omen and lucky for their marriage

‘Good’ horse, or ‘Bad’ horse?…

One white foot, buy the horse. Two white feet, try the horse. Three white feet, be wary of the horse. Four white feet, avoid the horse!
Horses with two whorls on their head will be more tricky to train
Chestnut mares are temperamental/crazy
Roman nosed horses are stubborn
A horse with ears that curl will be feisty and hot-heated
A horse is only any good if it can roll all the way over

(Some of the nicest horses I’ve looked after over the years have been roman-nosed, chestnut mares or had four white stockings, so can’t say I agree with these!)

Sicknesses & Cures…

Moody mares can be cured by putting copper coins in their water
A horse neighing at the door of a house is a bad omen for the inhabitants; they will become sick
Whooping-cough can be cured by inhaling the breath of a horse
Worms can be cured by eating hair from the forelock, or by eating chopped horse hair in bread and butter
Sitting backwards on a horse or donkey will alleviate toothache and cure snake bites
Many years ago people even thought they could cure cancer by drinking fresh milk mixed with dried and ground horse’s chestnuts!
Warts and sarcoids can be cured by circling them with horse hair

(Maybe the last one has a little truth to it, if used to cut off the blood supply?)

Protection from Witches & Evil…

Witches and warding off the Devil seems to have been a real concern in the ‘olden days’…

Wearing the tail hair from a black stallion as a bracelet will protect you from witches
Horse brasses protect the home, and whoever wears it, from witches, and reflects the Devil’s eye away
Carrying a wooden whip prevents a curse being placed on your horse
Braiding a horse’s tail with ribbons will protect it from witches
Horseshoes hung above a doorway repel witches and evil

What Else…

It’s going to rain if you see horses standing with their backs to a hedge
If a stallion dips his nostrils deep into water, he will be a good sire
You can tell the sex of an unborn foal by tying a nail to a hair from the mare’s tail – hold it above the mare’s hindquarters, if it swings in a circle it’s a filly, if it swings back and forth it’s a colt, and if it doesn’t move the mare isn’t in foal
When you see a white dog you should stay silent until you see a white horse
When you see a white horse you should make a wish (although in some cultures, white horses are seen as an omen of death!)
When gelding a stallion, one testicle should be thrown eastward, and the other westward, without looking, or you will end up with a rig, or ‘proud cut’ horse

So there you have it… some truly bizarre horsey superstitions and old wives’ tales!