Horses might spook at sun spots or shadows on the ground because they look like a change in terrain. | Photo: Keith Larson

A: I think one reason horses spook at sun spots or shadows on the ground is because these things look like a change in terrain. If left on his own, a horse would probably slow up, put his head down on approach, and perhaps even use his muzzle to investigate or assess it. When he is at work, a horse is not completely free to do so. The tricky thing about sun spots or shadows is they will change position depending upon the time of day, so they might be coming up in unexpected places as you ride on different schedules.

I don’t have one pat answer to address this problem, but I do have a number of suggestions. I would really like to know if this mare is generally a spooky type horse or if it’s just this one thing that disturbs her. Does she just shy and move on or does she act terrified to some degree? Has she had a good ophthalmic exam by your veterinarian to look for defects in the cornea, subtle signs of uveitis, “floaters,” or any other number of things that could be hampering her vision?

As a means of just avoiding the situation, one aid that can be used is the shadow roll. This is a large rounded piece of foam covered in fleece that looks like a big fluffy noseband and is positioned usually somewhat above where the regular noseband sits. What it does is physically interferes with the horse’s line of sight towards the ground. It not only hides things from view, it also tends to encourage the horse to put her head down, in order to try to see over it. So this might work, however I don’t think it’s as satisfying as trying to actually solve the underlying problem. Also, practically speaking, you might not be able to use it in competition, and as with any tack change, there might be unintended consequences in how your horse responds and it just might not work out well