The Devil’s horse is in Ozark folklore, the colloquial name for the praying mantis. It is considered bad luck to disturb a praying mantis, because it might spit tobacco juice into one’s eye and cause blindness. In some rural parts, the Devil’s horse is thought, falsely, to be poisonous.
The Encyclopedia of Demons and Demonology – Written by Rosemary Ellen Guiley – Copyright © 2009 by Visionary Living, Inc.