Final answer:
Horses lack the ability to reason like humans but compensate through associative learning, making them tractable and capable of performing complex tasks when well-trained.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question addresses how horses compensate for their lack of ability to reason. Horses are animals with impressive learning capabilities that allow them to adapt and respond to training and environmental situations. Although horses cannot reason as humans do, they have strong associative learning skills that enable them to remember and perform complex tasks, which makes well-trained horses appear very tractable or obedient. Horses use their senses, instincts, and experiences to interact with their surroundings and form behaviors that can sometimes be misinterpreted as 'tricks', especially when they are in situations that provoke fear or discomfort. The reference to a horse being 'well-broken' suggests the animal is well adjusted to cues from riders and has been trained to behave safely and reliably under saddle, which is contrary to the belief held by some that a more spirited, less predictable horse is preferable. Therefore, through training and experiences, horses develop abilities that, while not reasoning, effectively allow them to interact and cope with the human world.