Hi Cherry,

My off track thoroughbred descends quite often when I groom him. I was told from my coach that is because he thinks he is the boss of me however, I'm not sure that is true. He has never bit or pushed or tried to kick me and he responds and is willing to my cues when riding. He also exhibits affection for me. When he usually does this, his eyes are calm and his whole body demeanor is relaxed.

My question is should I take this as just a compliment that he enjoys my grooming and very gentle quiet way with him? Or is there some truth of him thinking he is the boss? Or is there some previous race track training going on that I'm not aware of?

Thank you Cherry, I just love your books. - Lesley

Hi Lesley,

When a gelding drops his penis from its sheath when you are grooming, it is a sign of trust and relaxation. Especially given your description of calm eyes and relaxed body demeanor, it is hard to imagine it could mean anything else.

All of my geldings do this and it makes cleaning the sheath and penis possible without the use of a tranquilizer.

You can go here to read about sheath cleaning or use the photographic guide in my book Horse Health Care.