In this video I think it's demonstrated incredibly powerfully what importance needs to be placed upon anti-horse tools.
The horses do the bulk of the work in creating space that allows the police line to tighten the noose here. Without them they never would have controlled these crowds with people on multiple sides of them. They could not have maintained control.
There must be simply and effective methods to spook these horses without causing a danger to them. Something that could be deployed that would make the riders tell their superiors "we can't deploy because the horses would be spooked by x".
Anyway. What are other people's thoughts here? Obviously this protest was unprepared for a fight (although several police have been hospitalised). What could small groups of 1-5 have done in the wider engagement to make things go differently?
Most police horses are trained to be spook-proof so things that would come up in a training would not likely spook them. I.e loud noises, sudden pain, crowded spaces, large sudden movements, etc.
My first suggestion would be a large bundle of balloons released in conjunction with air horns, since loud pops and whistles would be trained for de-spooking. But balloons are not practical to have around during a protest lol
Gotta be some things that spook em. There must be surfaces they'd not like crossing or unusual objects that they wouldn't like. I was thinking plastic bright blue ground covering to lay in front of protesters. Or foam machines? Cheap, mess free, would fly around a bit. Not sure if it would work, only one way to find out.
That's the ticket, trying to find something that wouldnt be trained to destimulate.
Since they are prey animals sudden intense stimulation that is unfamiliar is the highest chance of producing a spook as you dont want a freeze response.
Since they are shoed I dont think that a ground based response would yield the reaction.
I'm wondering if protesters could design their own version of that heat-ray thing the US cops have been testing. Directional heat that would make the horses back up regardless of rider.
Stick a fork in the door latch of a microwave and hook it up to some car batteries
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Cutting neck reigns may be an option but that requires proximity and finesse to not hurt the horse
Shit for the environment but a large mass of plastic bags propelled by a leaf blower may work but bags on a stick is a common training.
Maybe a modified leaf blower tip to make a loud sound
Not the most practical, but a wacky tube man would be hilarious
Fire.
I would try large sheets tied to poles. Waving them back and forth would create large, billowing shapes that the horses probably aren't used to seeing.