The Earth Horse
2026: Year of the Fire Horse!
Officially the year of the Fire Horse doesn't start until February 17, this is the Chinese New Year and we'll move from the year of the Snake to the year of the Horse.And apparently we will be going from introspection to bold outward going energy! Sounds promising!
The Chinese Zodiac has 12 cycles, named after an animal. Every 12 years we have a year of the Horse, but there are other influences, such as the 5 Elements and Yin-Yang and together they make a 60 year cycle. I have always been fascinated by the 5 elements, using there in character typing for horses (but it fits humans as well)
The "5 elements" in relation to horses typically refer to the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) system of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. These elements are used to describe a horse's personality, energetic constitution, and potential health issues, and they are linked to specific meridians and organs. I have used these characteristics in my recent Partnership Challenge, in which we used the 5 Elements to understand more about our horse's personality.
5 Elements, horse personality typing
The five elements of a horse's personality are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. Wood horses are dominant and fearless, Fire horses are expressive and emotional, Earth horses are reliable and calm, Metal horses are competent and responsible, and Water horses are timid and sensitive. Understanding a horse's dominant element can provide insight into its behaviour and needs, and help maintain its health and well-being.
Every horse actually possesses characteristics from all types so often you can see a mixture. Each horse has a basic personality type that can be affected by external factors. For example, training can have one effect on the type, while living conditions can have another. Seasons, aging, even gender plays a part. These influences can even temporarily alter the basic personality so much that it is no longer recognizable. The basic personality is usually best observed when the horse has the space and freedom to be itself which will also benefit its health.
To celebrate the year of the Fire Horse I will explain about each element each day. Today we will talk about the Earth Horse, do you have an Earth Horse?
Earth Horse
Personality: Calm, dependable, loyal, nurturing, and amiable. They are the "rock" of the herd.
Strengths: Steady, reliable, strong sense of responsibility, and an easy keeper. They are great for beginner riders due to their stable nature.
Weaknesses: Can be slow to learn, stubborn, or apathetic. Prone to gastrointestinal issues, weight problems, and oedema.
Organs: Spleen and Stomach.
Preferences: Highly food motivated, loves comfort, a calm atmosphere, and a slow, consistent routine.
Personality description of the Earth Horse
Imposing—that's the best way to describe Earth Horses. They are solid, a leg in each corner, and often loads of hair. Often called good-doers they seem to get fat on just air alone, so watching their weight is often important Physically, these horses have strong bodies with well-developed muscles. They aren't fast, but they are persistent, have a very tolerant nature, and are true all-rounders. They can patiently stand and wait while children spend a long time grooming them. They are the perfect horses for beginner riders, recreational riders, or anyone looking for an all-purpose horse. The Earth Horse is sweet and reliable—everyone loves him. . Because of this, he often ends up with too many children riding him, which can lead to him being overworked. When that happens, the Earth Horse becomes slower and more lethargic. They can seem stubborn when they feel they have had enough, but often they are just trying to set their boundaries. Earth Horses that are well-balanced are able to concentrate well but they do not always learn new things very fast. So it is important to not want too much too soon, mentally, and physically.
Training the Earth Horse
Earth horses have a lot of patience, which the trainer will also need, because earth horses generally learn at a slow pace. On the other hand, what they learn is retained permanently. Because of their patience they are very capable of repeating tasks over and over again. If they have reached the end of their tether because they are overworked they can simply stop and refuse, that might seem stubborn but it is self preservation, which is something an Earth Horse does well. Earth horses are so-called "long slow distance types." They work best at a slow pace and can do this for quite a long time. Short and intense training sessions do not work well for earth horses.
Health awareness for the Earth Horse
Earth Horses love a full belly; eating is their favourite pastime. The Earth type prefers sweet flavours. This type will quickly tempt you to give sweet treats, but that's not good for him. This type should not be fed sugars or starchy feeds as it will upset their stomach, they can be more prone to digestive problems such as (gassy) colic and diarrhoea. Feed according to workload, with high-fibre feeds so that the food is digested gradually, and keep sugar and starch content low. These types can be prone to insulin resistance (EMS) and myopathies such as PSSM1. They can have some skin growths like warts, melanomas and tumours .
Suitable discipline:
Many earth horses descend from cold blood draught horses, so that would be the obvious type of work, but they can do any type of work, as long as we keep the pace low. Many earth horses are amazing in riding schools, hacking horses or low level endurance
My Earth horse: Jules.
Jules (or Juliette) is my warmblood mare. She not a full Earth Type, I think there is Fire or Water mixed in,but she certainly looks an Earth type: A solid mare, super sweet, loves her food and boy can she be stubborn!
She's not had a great ridden life and was pushed a bit too hard it seems. The bad memories of that come back often, though we are slowly getting her to understand that its different now.
