TOKYO -- Welsh-born actor Christian Bale, who has won acclaim for playing Batman and other roles, says he honed his acting techniques by watching horses.

"I love horses. I've learned from them," said the 34-year-old star of the latest Batman blockbuster "The Dark Knight."

"Once you master a horse -- but it also masters you -- you gain more confidence in yourself," he told Thursday's issue of The Japan Times.

Bale, a vegetarian since childhood who takes in stray cats and dogs as pets, told the newspaper that riding horses has "a rhythm that's rather Zen-like."

"When you can mount it and move it and move along with it, that is a hard-won and very real accomplishment," he said.