Heavy metal is not a music genre you’ll likely to find in traditionally equestrian venues, like a dressage freestyle, for instance. But for one chestnut mare, it’s music to her ears.

Meet Pretty Runaway, a seven-year-old Quarter Horse mare owned by Bogar Farms, a Quarter Horse racehorse breeder in Lindsay, Ontario. Pretty has developed a habit of enthusiastic head-tossing in rhythm to heavy metal music being played in the barn. Videos of her headbanging, metal-loving ways have gone viral and resulted in the mare and her groom Autumn Purdy featured in several media stories, including this video on CNN.

Videos show Pretty standing at her stall’s half-door as she shakes her head up and down as the music blasts. But she’s particular; the team at Bogar Farms tried country and Pretty turned around and showed them her butt in protest. “Metal was her go-to headbanging music and she loves it,” Purdy tells the reporter. “She’s always [on beat], no matter what song we play, slow jams she’s slow, heavy songs she’s going with the beat.” Purdy intends to post online music reviews with Pretty giving her nod of approval or not.

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