Horse Volume Control

[Celtic Fringe]

Just for fun really. Does anyone else have horses with variable volume control? Old cob seems to have got more vocal with age - but clever with it! I came in the back gate to the field with young cob the other day. Old cob stood still in the middle of the field and neighed loudly as we came in. As we walked up the field towards him he neighed a few more times, but quieter and quieter each time until I could just see his nostrils quivering and feel, more than hear, a low rumbling.
Son's horse has no volume control whatsoever and just neighs at me at the top of his voice regardless of whether I'm 250m or 25cm away! Perhaps he thinks I'm a bit deaf?

 

[Jo1987]

One of mine only neighs if I'm far away from him, he makes that 'huff' noise with his nostrils if he wants something when I'm next to him.
The other is more shrill the further I am away from him, same volume if I'm closer but a deeper sound.
Interesting OP, I hadn't really thought about this before!

 

[NZJenny]

The gelding in my avatar is LOUD. When I take one of the girls out of the paddock, if he can't see them, he stands by the gate and yells. Drives me nuts!

However, he knows that yelling in my ear gets him a clip around his - so yes he does have volume control, but occasionally he forgets and the look on his face as he tries to swallow his neigh is funny.

 

[I.M.N.]

Of our 5, 4 can alter their neighs pitch, volume, tune, etc. However the 4th can only neigh one tune at full volume and calling it a neigh is a stretch, it's more of a blood curdling scream.

 

[Auslander]

I wish they did have volume control! I've got three with nice quiet voices - and one shrieker!

 

[Gentle_Warrior]

However, he knows that yelling in my ear gets him a clip around his - so yes he does have volume control, but occasionally he forgets and the look on his face as he tries to swallow his neigh is funny.

this made me lol, exactly the same here !!!!

 

[ShadowHunter]

Millie neighs pretty loud if she hears me shutting the back door on my way out to see her and neighs quieter when I'm outside the barn door. However she never neighs when I'm in sight, just lots of snorts and kicks on the door.

 

[godfreyy]

I have two with brilliant volume control (though one has no issue neighing at the top of his voice in my ear if there's something interesting anywhere else) and my third, bless him, just grunts. I think I've heard him attempt to neigh once and it was the most pitiful thing in the world. He has mostly given up trying, but we're now a very vocal grunter and love to walk around grunting putting the world to rights!!

 

[AngelitoCaz]

Mines very vocal about everything, everyone needs her opinion, she starting to learn that neighing down my ear is unacceptable so it now starts loud and reduces volume, she still need to have her say though

 

[Orangehorse]

My horse is very vocal - in fact when he stayed at a livery yard when I was away, on my return they said "he is noisy, isn't he." He yells if his friend leaves - and that can be a friend he has only just met or one of long standing. Luckily he is quite happy to leave them andnot make a fuss. He doesn't greet me with anything in the morning, although if I don't feed him straight away he neighs as though to say "You have forgotten something. I will starve."

He also snorts VERY loudly and several times down his nose if excited/worried, and that can upset other horses. At the same time he sticks his tail and head in the air, everyone swivels round to look and all think he is going to buck/leap in the air/dump me at any minute, but so far (touch wood) he hasn't and I find the best way to stop it is to make him work, like canter in circles until he wants to stop! He also has a range of lower volume noises, from a little whinny when he saw a lamb - "ah, how sweet" - to reminding me that he is still tied up if I walk away from him. "Hey, don't forget me."

 

[[100323]]

My pony can vary the volume, from loud down to only seeing his nostrils move. My friends pony has a loud neigh, but has a wide range of other noises he can make at various volumes. The mini has a volume control too.

 

[muckypony]

Two of mine can. But the third has just 1 volume - scream as loud as possible!

Rarely does it, only if I leave him and the other in the field and bring big pony in to ride. You can just hear him shrieking. He is very cute, picture a super fluffy dinky shetland with an uncontrollable hairdo screaming as loud as he can. I can't help but chuckle at him!

 

[rachk89]

No mine doesn't. If he gets nervous as a horse has left him alone, he will neigh really loudly but unfortunately for him he does also sound like a filly. He has been mistaken for a mare in the past, so it's pretty funny.

 

[Celtic Fringe]

Two of mine can. But the third has just 1 volume - scream as loud as possible!

Rarely does it, only if I leave him and the other in the field and bring big pony in to ride. You can just hear him shrieking. He is very cute, picture a super fluffy dinky shetland with an uncontrollable hairdo screaming as loud as he can. I can't help but chuckle at him!

He sounds gorgeous! Glad to hear it is not just mine then, although son's horse did manage a lovely friendly snicker when I brought him his feed this evening - a nice change from the full volume neigh!

 

[FfionWinnie]

Daisy never makes a sound unless I'm bringing her food and then she does one quiet little wuffle. I love it. Hate noise lol. The Welshies never shut up neighing if you take one away.

 

[Annagain]

My two have volume control if it's my attention they want. M rarely whinnies at me, and if he does it's a little gentle one. A will do more of a wuffle when he sees me approach his stable in the morning, but never in the field.

To each other however, they bellow. Usually, if I've taken them both to a competition / clinic and one's on the trailer and the other isn't. Archie on the trailer and Monty working is ok as M is too polite to be distracted from his work and A is too greedy to be distracted from his hay net. The other way round, however, they scream at each other non stop. I wouldn't mind if they actually liked each other, but they fight like teenage brothers all the time in the field.

At least neither whinnies like a girl though. Eb my old boy was a very macho, arrogant, bolshy, manly Section D...with a voice like Joe Pasquale!

 

[atropa]

Oh dear lord..I don't think my mare has found her volume control yet. She shrieks ALL. THE. TIME. She absolutely loves the sound of her own voice and will whinny and squeal loudly when being brought in, when working in the school, out on hacks, when she's in the stable, when I answer the phone stood next to her.
She also makes an assortment of other noises, including a very convincing pig impersonation, and will make a series of encouraging rumbly whickers when she sees me coming with food, just in case I've somehow forgotten she's there.