I always wondered. Because you would assume that horses just try to get the person off of it and run away. And how did something like the war elephant not just trample anyone to death? They are such smart animals and I’m sure they felt something by the sight of that. If I was a foot soldier I wouldn’t feel so great if there was some giant, armored, living tank berzerking around… Even if they supposedly are on “my side”.
In: Biology
It’s an interesting question. Aside from the “conditioning” responses, I wonder how much is also something along the lines of “loyalty.”
Animals in nature do fight, and fight for each other – sometimes to the death when running away may seem like the most logical choice. Reasons vary too, for survival, for dominance, for the pack. So it doesn’t seem too far fetched that for some animals like horses, dogs, etc. they may have a sense of “team” and once the training / conditioning is set – they are willing participants with some sense of what is going on.
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