Is it a compliment to be told you have Horse Sense?

Horses are a good judge of character. They can feel if a person is unsure or unpure in nature & thought. Once a horse has your confidence & you have theirs...they can clue you into a gazillion things that most people would normally miss. A horse is a sacred being that has gifts of the spirits & brings protection & wisdom to those who have earned it. You earn it by learning FROM the animal & becoming one with it, rather than simply training it to obey blindly. A person with horse sense knows how to listen to the animal & learn their language in a special way that few people can understand or accomplish. A person with horse sense is blessed with a gift. It's like super-intuition!

I'm not a senior (I'm 46), but I've always heard the expression that someone "doesn't have any horse sense". I realize that horses might not seem very smart, but ironically, having horse sense is a compliment, indicating that you are using good judgment and common sense. If someone says that about you, take it as a compliment.

hahahaaha- I suppose if they said it was like a Quarter Horse! I've had a lot of experience with horses and I sure wouldn't want to be compared with some of the over-bred show ring breeds!!!

But I've had two Quarter Horses that had more brains than most people I've known! Calm, smart- knew when to never waste energy, what to be concerned about or not, only had to be shown how to behave once or twice and they'd have it! Safe enough to put up 4 year olds on them!!Gosh, I loved those horses!!!

I guess they mean that you have common sense which isnt a measure of high intelligence. Horses will do what you train them to do, they will shy away from danger, they are reliable and plod along well day after day requiring little but food and water. They seem to be pretty happy loveable friendly creatures but not necessarily bright. I'm not sure that I would feel that this is a compliment.

When I was younger and about to do something daft

my father would say in a very exasperated tone, " For God's sake will you use a bit of horse sense,. " I therefore think it is a compliment to the horse under those circumstances. I was never told I had more sense than the horse

Horses ARE smart. Put some horses and cows in a pasture covered with snow; the cows will starve, while the horses will dig through the snow to the grass beneath. (that's just one example I learned).

Horses are intelligent animals. They demonstrate the ability act sensibly and to avoid situations that might cause them harm such as taking a fall, hence good common sense.

I've been around horses myself and I can tell you, if they decide they aren't going to do something for whatever reason, they won't budge, and usually when that happens I find there was a snake, or a bear, or something close enough for the animal to know not to go there. That's good Horse Sense.

Yes, because there is another saying that states that "You don't have the sense God gave a horse".

And horses, unlike humans, are cautious, will not drink from the water they excrete into, are somewhat intelligent, and can be expected to always find a way home.

Your question grabbed my curiosity -

I have always used that term, but

never thought about it. Even tho

I have had lots of horses, none

were remarkably "intelligent!"

Once I was married to the

wrong end of a horse, and he

wasn't smart at all......

so I looked it up in Yahoo Search

and this makes sense...

The exact allusion in this term,

which dates from the mid-1800s,

is disputed, since some regard

horses as rather stupid.

However, they tended to be

viewed more positively in the

American West, where the term originated.

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On the contrary, horses are highly intelligent animals so I would say that would be a compliment to you. I love horses and find them very sociable creatures. I love their eyes : )