08/08/2025
Your weekend wine read: Are we damaging or repairing our horseās DNA? Or neither A nor B? And other breeder musings.
A couple weeks ago, a book club group on my Facebook popped up with a summary of āIt Didnāt Start with Youā by a Mark Wolynn. I found it utterly curious, this idea of āinter generational inherited traumaā and how literally up to 3 generations back of DNA modifications show up in us. Even if youāve never experienced a traumatic event like famine or war directly, if your grandfather did letās say- you can inherit the modification that that trauma and PTSD was internalized biologically for HIM! YOU can suffer real anxiety in certain circumstances, be trigged as it were, for (seemingly) no apparent reason because your nervous system and brain cannot differentiate between lived and imagined experiences. When itās embedded in your DNA, it seems these traits are part of your identity but they are not your lived experiences. PTSD? ADD/ADHD? It seems everyone has itā¦ but is it your baggage or inherited? You suffer because someone before you did, and it impacted them so much it added genetic markers for elevated stress responses- among other things. Up to 3 generations back is what science in a lab has proven thus far that we can inherit, carry this genetic baggage.
And it can be for better or for worse- because of some of these genetic markers, it can give us āsuperpowersā I say, like being hypersensitive to details, have a greater pain tolerance, greater physical strength, mental resiliency, resourcefulness, etc. things that are actually helpful. But they do come at a price. Emotional disorders, physical and mental health complications, eating disorders, and forevermore on.
And today that really got me thinking.
The tests, after all, were done on lab rodents. They induced stress and opened their brains post mortem and analyzed the dna to conclude protein and enzyme markers were evident even in 2 generations later WITHOUT stress (via abuse) being put on the new gen. Soā¦ it seems logical to me that if we are applying that logic to humans, that it should apply to horses too. But Iāve never heard so much as one discussion about it. So let me ask the question, are our horses suffering from inter generational trauma? Have they inherited trauma-altering behaviors via their biochemistry?
Consider, if 2025 baby has been born to a mare who was beaten with a whip in training, handling, terrified of human interaction. But considered obedient but nuts based on perigee and come to find HER sire was an unruly stallion someone tied to a tree and left to starve for months. I would argue this is basis for genetic damage/modification. The progeny would in theory carry on this modification, even if 2025 baby was doted on and adored by humans since the day of her birth. She would still be predisposed to a skeptical, independent, protective, and perhaps anxious nature. But this may not be HER but a continuation of her previous generationās experiences she has inherited. I see so many stallions that I would not want for my mares particularly because of the anxious, difficult, hot nature they present in their breeding ads. Sad or scared eyes popping out of the skill, nostrils flared, defensive postureā¦ I wonder what each parent has gone thru and how that may* show up in the baby.
So we inherit more than bone, body, and brain. Because on some level, it makes sense that temperament is ghastly subjective based on the human that beholds the horse. All of my horses were āhotā āanxiousā or ānutsā according to other people when in reality they are the most serene, albeit sensitive, but forgiving and fair horses Iāve interacted with. Coolest of cucumbers, itās like we couldnāt be talking about the same horse. ļæ¼The energy exchange between species or even within a herd can influence temperament, and so does our human bias, opinion, and interpretation of the horses and their behavior. Have you realized when you donāt like one of them you tend to form a negative image of them and confirmation bias is a thing so they then fulfill your prophesy? Someone else comes along and has a 180 degree different experience- because the horse is a self fulfilling prophesy.
So we know stress can influence genetic code/makeup. But also temperament, how much of this āhot/anxious/nutsā is REALLY our individual horses? āBut Iāve done nothing to himā thatās exactly the point! We donāt have toā¦ itās been done for us, before all of us. He may not truly be his motherās sonā¦ but is expressing what we inherited from her known experiences.
The silver lining? The same science experiments have shown just as PTSD and stress can negatively modify DNA, it is just as possible to modify DNA in general, to letās say, reverse those markers. How much can they be reversed or changed? Iām not sure science has figured that out yet. But If the horse is not constantly under stress āfor no reasonā and genetically we can achieve balance, shouldnāt we really focus more on making interactions less stressful for the horse? Genes will give the chemical playbook for the brain so itās in everyoneās best interest that the horse is wired for a calm temperament, willing, curious, and naturally trusting. Most horses are exactly this by definition imo. But humans tend to ruin it. And for this reason too, I like to choose mares and stallions for breeding that to the best of my ability with the information available, have had limited stress or abuse in their lives because it predisposes them, in theory, to a less stress induced state by nature. And we are finding all the ways in which stress affects the body physically.
So shouldnāt we strive to keep the stress down for everyone? I cringe when I hear āMake him!ā In training circles. Make him what? Shut down and change his genetic code because he cannot cope with stress any other way than just giving up and trying to do whatever the thing is youāre asking? Itās not much a partnership at that point, is it? It is not weakness. It is not babying. It IS putting pride aside and admitting the horse doesnāt need to go thru something in order for you to feel heās ātough enoughā to do so. Maybe he is, because his predecessors had to be, but that doesnāt mean we need to contribute to negative experiences for the sake of feeling superior. I think we as a society need to get this dominating, machista vision of horsemanship out of our heads that the horse HAS to do what we say, or else!!! Horsemanship isnāt a one way.
Listening to your horse, exploring different ways or answers, but being careful to be a clear but kind leader, friend, and caretaker is not less than. It shouldnāt feel shameful, labeled ā too softā, a wus, or āletting him take advantage of youā. Because we hold the key to genetic code, our own, and our animalsā and THAT my friends, is a responsibility we should relinquish if we are not in a place to fulfill it.
