Isn't it ironic?

[EquestrianSnares 234]

I'm a brony, and yet I have a genuine Phobia of horses and ponies irl

[AVagrant 1,741]

Because they aren't Equestria ponies!

[abronymouse 6,157]

horses are pretty dangerous, so that's not a bad phobia 

although I love em :3

look its liddle horsey face :3

G4 is the horsiest generation in terms of sounds and movement, but the models are still quite anthro, especially the faces. 

 

[Snoopy Fan 17,189]

Here’s something else ironic, I don’t really like bugs, but I love A Bug’s Life.

[Dawnshine Wonder 4,974]

Horses in real life usually they only attack if they feel threatened, not at random, but it can happen from time to time. And due to being herbivores, they're not going to eat us, hippopotamus is in fact a more dangerous herbivore to humans due to how often they become aggressive when approached by other animals, but this is a response to a threat, territorial or otherwise.

and horses in MLP FIM I'd definitely not feel threatened by, most of the time. We can never interact with them because of them being fictional Ponies, but generally they are friendly toward each other. 

 

 

(1) Do horses attack humans? - Quora

[Envy 6,527]

Well, MLP ponies aren't very horselike really, so you don't have to feel too weird about it.

An example I have for me is the fact that I find horror and morbidity absolutely disturbs me greatly, and yet I love British (and some early American) Folk music that is very morbid and disturbing. These songs can be so graphic and grim that I can imagine someone would look at me funny for listening to them if they listened to the lyrics... And yet I have no problem with any of it.

This is such a weird contradiction for me. I suppose it's easier to stomach Folk because it's music and not visually graphic. But still... I find it bizarre that I can stomach these songs regardless.

Some examples:

Spoiler

British:

https://theowlservice.bandcamp.com/track/the-red-barn

American:

 

[Clawdeen 26,481]

Nothing wrong with that. I don’t care too much for horses or ponies myself. 

 

Edited December 14, 2025 by Clawdeen
I wrote too much lol

[Night Sky 1,537]

I will second what others have already said. A certain fear and respect of horses is very healthy and based on several million years worth of instinct. 

Even a pony could kill you under certain circumstances. But a draft horse or Clydesdale, it wouldn't take much at all. You can quite easily get killed or crippled hanging around with horses. 

Look at Superman, even he wasn't exempted from this. Pony magic is poweful magic. The Princesses have all said it, were we listening?

I know people who've owned horses their whole lives. One of them got kicked and has permanent ringing in her ears. Another had to have her jaw entirely rebuilt. My park ranger buddy was inspecting his mount's horse shoes. Next thing he knew everything went black. He had a vague, fleeting memory of a horse nose, and then he woke up totally messed up in the hospital.

And yet. When a horse comes right up to the fence and presses its nose in my face, or when I am feeding them apples, I get the sense that great strength has given rise to great gentleness and innocent belonging, over many more millions of years than us humans have had to learn how to come to terms with ourselves.

Edited April 7, 2025 by Night Sky