Whorl-ology?

[jet3456]

I recently came across the topic of “whorlology”. Then I looked at my own horse and wondered what his whorls might say about him. I have some theories, but I want your unbiased thoughts!

Face: looooong vertical whorl that is slightly to the right of the center of his face (does that make sense?)

Ear: simple, small whorl behind his left ear

Neck: even longer whorl under his neck, almost at his chest. It is at least 3 or 4 inches long.

From what I read most whorls that mean something only appear on the head and neck, but I thought I should mention all of them

Under his belly is speckled with small whorls all over. Most of them are towards his head but he has a few near his parts

Left hip: another long one, about the same length as the other, 3 or 4 inches

What do you think this indicates about his personality? To avoid any prejudice I’m not going to give any information away about him other than his gender - hes a gelding.

What are you’re thoughts on whorls in general? I’m sort of on the fence tbh

[raff]

Where is the facial whorl in relation to his eyes ? The theory is that as the skin arises from the same cells as the brain and so skin patterns can relate to brain development. The higher on the face the whorl the more reactive the horse I think. Double whorls mean a bit nutty if I remember correctly ?

[jet3456]

@raff

Where is the facial whorl in relation to his eyes ?

above his eyes, and when standing straight on to him it appears to lean off to the left

[Maythehorsebewithme]

I have a horse with two whorls between his eyes. On one the hair grows clockwise and on the other the hair grows counterclockwise. There is a barn joke that on good days the clockwise whorl is dominant, and on his bad days the counterclockwise one is at work. Or, “Is it [name or horse] or his evil twin”?

[piedmontfields]

The long vertical swirl line between the eyes is usually seen as a sign of friendliness/sociability. However, your fellow’s is off-center which is more unusual. Generally, multiple swirls on the head and sprinkled across the body tend to mean more erratic behavior/character. However, multiple swirls are very common on certain breeds like Fjords.

None of this is science, but they do seem to be some trends nonetheless.

[Arelle]

List is about halfway down: https://www.horsemanship-journal.com/theory/theory/whorlology

[Sticky_Situation]

I’m pretty sure whorl-ology is no more scientifically reliable than astrology and fortune telling … but it can make for some fun discussions, anyway!

My horse has two whorls right in the middle of his forehead, slightly diagonal to one other, on his white marking. I believe that is supposed to mean he’s unpredictable/difficult/“bipolar”… but in reality, while he’s got the occasional silly spook in him, he’s overall a kind, forgiving, and reliable little guy.

[AnastasiaBeaverhousen]

Temple Gradin had some interesting observations about whorls.
The higher on the neck the more reactive.
Its been a long time since I read her book.
She also had some observations about white markings.

[jet3456]

@Sticky Situation

I’m pretty sure whorl-ology is no more scientifically reliable than astrology and fortune telling …

I completely agree, which is why I’m a little on the fence about the whole thing! And after reading some responses and doing more research I’m starting to believe it less and less none of the whorls my horse has match up to his actual personality. Disappointing but not surprising!

[raff]

Here is some research https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0737080615300551

[Guilherme]

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[Magicboy]

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[shiloh]

@Guilherme - that’s pretty funny. Mean, but funny.

OP, Linda Tellington-Jones wrote a whole book on this particular subject (and got liberally raked over the coals for it). It’s interesting and you can take what you want from it, but yes, whorl-ology ranks right up there with astrology for me. (In the case of mules and donkeys would that be ass-trology? lol sorry)

[raff]

Lol, it seemed like pure bs to me initially too.However I was curious enough to look into it a bit further, and found there is some evidence based on scientific research to show that the link between skin whorls and embryonic development of the nervous system exists. If you don’t want to know that’s fine too.

[Marigold]

@Guilherme

He then shows how application of his miracle GEL permits you, the average horse owner, to change the patterns of these cowlicks and whorls and, thus, change the characteristics that these hair patterns control!

If you think there is a gel on this earth that can re-shape a whorl in the middle of a mane, I’d like some of whatever majykal thing you’ve got!

…that said, I’m obviously off to call the number :lol: what a bargain!

[Guilherme]

@Marigold

If you think there is a gel on this earth that can re-shape a whorl in the middle of a mane, I’d like some of whatever majykal thing you’ve got!

…that said, I’m obviously off to call the number :lol: what a bargain!

Bless you and your supreme common sense!!!

Dr. H.

[jet3456]

love all the responses on this!

I am inclined to WANT to believe in whorls and there are some definite correlations, but just not for my horse

all his whorls point to him being very people orientated, very friendly, “uncomplicated” and a tad spooky :lol: and hes anything but those things! well, let me explain …

He IS very friendly, but only to me and my mom - because we are “his people”. with any other person he is standoffish and seemingly unfriendly. It’s like he detaches himself from his body when other people are around. Someones there, but no ones home. So much for being “people oriented”. as for the spooky part, he is 1/2 Arab, so he is more inclined to be spooky then other horses. But in reality he is one of the most unflappable horses i’ve ever met. sure the random thing will get him now and again, but for the most part he just doesnt care!

I thought whorls/swirls would help me get to the bottom of his (very complex) personality. i guess not!

do any of you have any experience with horses like him? ive owned him for almost 2 years and i’m still struggling to figure him out ;(

[J-Lu]

@raff

Where is the facial whorl in relation to his eyes ? The theory is that as the skin arises from the same cells as the brain and so skin patterns can relate to brain development. The higher on the face the whorl the more reactive the horse I think. Double whorls mean a bit nutty if I remember correctly ?

They both arise from ectoderm. But they differentiate from each other WAAAAAY early in development, when all vertebrates are just a bunch of cells. Hair follicle and brain development really aren’t related, because there’s sooooooo much that happens to pattern each organ

Just my opinion.

[raff]

I don’t really have an ‘‘opinion’’ on it, but found articles such as these interesting and imagine all mammals may have somewhat similar embryonic developmental stages.
https://jmg.bmj.com/content/jmedgenet/13/2/123.full.pdf https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/tera.1420090105
‘‘hair directional slope is secondary to the plane of stretch exerted on the skin by the growth of underlying tissues during the period of downgrowth of the hair follicles, around 10–12 gestational weeks. The posterior parietal hair whorl was interpreted as the focalpoint from which the growth stretch is exerted by the domelike outgrowth of thebrain during the time of hair follicle development. Anomalies such as encephalocele and dicephaly, which must have antedated hair follicle development, showed expected aberrations in scalp patterning.’’

[raff]

THIS is an equine study ,interesting (to me anyway, more things in heaven and earth and so on ) http://www.lundy.org.uk/download/ar52/LFS_Annual_Report_Vol_52_Part_15.pdf

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FACIAL WHORL CHARACTERISTICS AND

TEMPERAMENT