When it comes to working with a deaf horse, body language speaks louder than words.

When Colorado reining trainer Devin Warren charges into the arena on Bright Lil Gun, you’ll probably hear him say “whoa” just before the lop-eared mare drops her hindquarters into the ground, creating a wave of dirt and leaving perfect “11” tracks in her wake. Nothing out of the ordinary there, until Warren whispers that the 2004 sorrel overo mare is deaf.