If a horse is startled, it could kick you. But it could also rear up and get spooked. Another form of fear is they can put their ears flat, bolt and run, and you can see little whites of fear in their eyes.
Shies is the sudden movement by a startled horse. A startled horse may charge off at a fast run.
The problem with the wording in "Startled by the noise, the alarm clock was knocked on the floor" is that it makes it sound like the alarm clock was startled. It would be better written: "Startled by the alarm clock, I knocked it on the floor."
All organisms respond to a stimulus. An example would be being startled by a loud noise. The noise is the stimulus and the reaction is you being startled.
Yes, "startled" is the past participle of startle.
The spelling is startled, as in The trick STARTLED him.
A horse's first instinct when frightened or startled is to run away. The second instinct is to fight in order to protect itself.
The scale is from 1 to 10 with 1 being the calmest. A horse with a temperament of 1 doesn't spook, doesn't get upset, is very calm and gentle. A horse with a temperament of 10 is wild, spooky and very dangerous.
Startled means to be in shock or amaze of something.
Startled is the verb in your sentence.
Deer and rabbits are easily startled.
more startled most startled
You startled me, because I hadn't heard you come home.