
At Borg Farms, our mission is simple: create happy, healthy horses by understanding their natural instincts, senses, and needs. A key part of this is recognizing how horses see the world and ensuring their environment supports their well-being.
Horses experience vision very differently from humans. Their wide field of view, unique depth perception, and motion sensitivity all play a role in how they interact with their surroundings. By understanding equine eyesight, we can help our horses feel safe, confident, and comfortable—whether in the pasture, arena, or barn.
How Good Is a Horse’s Vision?
Horses have the largest eyes of any land mammal, but their vision is naturally blurry compared to humans.
👁️ Human vision: 20/20
🐴 Horse vision: 20/30 to 20/60
This means that what we see clearly from 60 feet away, a horse may not recognize until it’s only 20 feet away!
🔹 23% of horses are nearsighted, meaning they have trouble seeing things far away.
🔹 43% of horses are farsighted, which helps them excel in disciplines like jumping, where they need to judge distances between obstacles.
🔹 The best eyesight occurs at age 7. Before this, vision is still developing, and after, it begins to decline.
🐴 What this means for your horse:
Your horse relies more on movement than fine details when recognizing objects.
They may hesitate when approaching something unfamiliar because they need time to focus on it.
Understanding their natural vision limitations helps us provide a safer and less stressful environment.
Horse Blind Spots: What Your Horse Can’t See
Even though horses have an incredible 340° field of vision, they also have blind spots:
🚫 Directly in front of their face
🚫 Above their neck and back
🚫 Directly behind them
🚫 Underneath their belly
💡 Why is this important?
A horse cannot see a treat or object right in front of their nose—this is why they use their whiskers!
Dogs, children, or low-hanging objects may be completely invisible to a horse if they’re in a blind spot.
A bird flying overhead can startle them because they don’t see it until it’s very close.
🔹 Natural Whiskers Are Important!Horses use their whiskers to detect objects in their blind spots. Shaving whiskers puts them at a serious sensory disadvantage, making them more likely to startle or struggle with food detection. At Borg Farms, we believe in preserving a horse’s natural abilities, including allowing their whiskers to remain intact.
Horses See Motion Better Than Details
Horses’ eyes contain rods and cones, just like humans. Rods help with low-light vision and motion detection, while cones help with color and detail focus.
🐴 Horses have far more rods than humans, meaning:
✅ They are incredibly sensitive to movement, even off to the side.
✅ They see well in the dark, but it takes about 45 minutes to adjust when moving from bright light into a dim barn or arena.
❌ They have poor focus and fine detail vision.
💡 What this means for your horse:
Your horse may spook at something that you don’t even notice—it’s because they saw movement in their peripheral vision!
If your horse hesitates when entering a dark barn, they aren't being stubborn—they just need time to adjust.
At Borg Farms, we design our pastures and facilities with this in mind, ensuring smooth transitions between bright and dark areas to minimize stress.
Why Do Horses Spook at Puddles? (Depth Perception Problems)
Horses have poor depth perception, which means they have trouble judging distances and how deep an object is.
For example:
🐴 A small puddle might look like a huge crack in the ground!
🐴 A shadow on the trail could appear as a deep hole.
💡 How we support horses at Borg Farms:
We provide natural turnout areas so horses can develop better spatial awareness.
We take time to desensitize horses to common obstacles, helping them build confidence.
We ensure that pastures and paths are safe to navigate, reducing the chances of unexpected spooks.
What Colors Can Horses See?
Horses are red-green color blind, meaning they cannot distinguish between red and green shades.
However, they see bright yellow and teal the best!
🏇 Why this matters:
Jumps and obstacles should be high-contrast colors (yellow, blue, or white) to be more visible.
Trail markers and fencing should avoid blending into the environment with reds or greens.
At Borg Farms, we use strategic color choices in our facility to make it easier for horses to navigate and feel comfortable.
How We Support Natural Equine Vision at Borg Farms
Our mission is to provide a natural, stress-free environment where horses feel safe and thrive as a herd. We take equine vision into account by:
✔️ Designing pastures and barns with their blind spots in mind to reduce sudden spooks.
✔️ Encouraging natural whisker growth to enhance their sensory awareness.
✔️ Using high-contrast fencing and safe trail markers that are easier for horses to see.
✔️ Minimizing sudden light changes in our barns and arenas, allowing horses to adjust more comfortably.
✔️ Providing a calm, herd-based environment that aligns with their natural instincts.
By understanding how horses see the world, we create a safer, happier, and healthier boarding experience for them—and peace of mind for you.
🐴 Looking for a boarding facility that truly understands horses?Contact Borg Farms today to learn more about our pasture board, natural horse care, and supportive environment!
📍 14150 Herring Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80908 | 📞 309-351-4917 | 🌎 BorgFarms.com
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