Janet Jones On Understanding Horses Through Neuroscience

There are conversations that deepen the way we relate to our horses, and this was absolutely one of them.

As someone who lives alongside horses every day, I’m always curious about the space where intuition, experience, and science meet. Sitting down with neuroscientist and horse trainer Janet Jones felt like stepping further into that understanding.

Janet is the author of the bestselling Horse Brain, Human Brain, a book that genuinely transformed the way I think about horse behavior, trust, fear, training, and the horse-human connection. In this conversation, we explore insights from her upcoming book, A Horse's World, available now for pre-order before its June 23 release.

We talk about what’s actually happening when horses snort or lick and chew, how horses experience the world through smell, why lighting and vision matter more than most riders realize, and the neuroscience behind helping horses feel safe in new environments.

One part that especially stayed with me was Janet describing a new horse as feeling like “a tourist in a foreign country.” As I’ve been integrating a new mare into my own herd, that perspective felt incredibly grounding and compassionate.

We also explore:
 • Rewarding relaxation instead of only correcting behavior
 • Predator brains vs. prey brains
 • Wild horses vs. horses living in the wild
 • Anthropomorphism in horsemanship
 • Building trust through consistency, calmness, and understanding

This conversation felt less like learning “about” horses and more like remembering to see the world a little more through their eyes.

Pre-order: A Horse's World

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