Horses are smart animals. They usually know what they can or cannot get away with; or, if they don't just yet, they're not going to take very long to find out. Now I'm not at all saying that trainers who stress the prey status of horses don't believe that horses are intelligent; I'm simply saying that I feel they seem to stress the instincts of horses more than their intelligence.
Being a prey animal definitely causes horses to think differently and react differently to things. A horse will often spook at something that you and I may not even notice. They are usually ready to run from something scary, because that is their instinct. And that is OK.
Just don't let your horse run all over you because you're thinking, "He's a prey animal; he's supposed to be doing this, to be acting this way." If your horse realizes you're going to allow him to run away with you every time he gets the notion in his head, he's going to take advantage of it more than likely. It's important to establish that while the two of you are partners, there are limitations on what you'll put up with. You have to be the dominant partner in the relationship. If you aren't, horses are just simply too big, strong, and smart, and not only will you get run over theoretically, but you could get hurt phyisically too. If you've ever played with your horse and he's gotten carried away you know what I'm talking about--horses are enormous, strong animals, and we have to respect that and, perhaps more importantly, not to forget it. It can be an easy thing to forget when we become great friends with our horses.
Something that I like to do with horses is to manipulate my voice somewhat at different times so they know what is going on at that moment. If we're doing something important and I need for him to do something for me, I'll lower my voice a little, speak a little louder, sound a little more authoritative. Animals (and people!) respond to this, usually, right away. They'll generally perk right up and listen. When it's time to relax, and we can play, I'll use my more normal voice, and they know it's OK to relax, that they don't have to listen to me so closely.
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