Long-Term Horse-Owner Relationship Helps Horses Cope With Change

 object, the horse reacted differently depending on whether they were with a familiar owner or with a stranger. Horses were shown a fluffy stuffed toy by either their owner or an unfamiliar researcher. The horse had one minute in which to freely come and interact with the toy. Then the person approached the horse and tried to touch its neck with the toy

Similarly, horses that had spent their whole life with their owner agreed more often to be touched with the new toy than horses that had had several owners during their lifetime. These horses presented more stress behaviours and refused more often to be touched with the toy.

“Horses often have to change ownership, which restricts their ability to make a long-term bond with specific humans. We were particularly interested in studying how the length of the relationship between the horse and the owner affects the horse’s behaviour in new, potentially stressful situations,” Liehrmann says.

The results showed that horses with shorter relationships with their owner were more reluctant in novel situations and presented more stress behaviours when asked to interact with novel objects and surfaces. On the contrary, horses that had at least six to eight years of relationship with their owner were mostly very calm when introduced to the surfaces or the stuffed toy.

Horses older than 17 years old refused more often to step on the tarp or the blanket when they were led by a stranger, while they almost all agreed to do so when they were led by their owner.

“Geriatric horses often suffer from poorer eyesight, and it has been shown that they may feel more anxiety towards new situations than younger horses. Therefore, older horses may perceive someone familiar as a secure base, feeling safer to walk over an unknown material when led by a familiar person.”

The study shows that having a shorter relationship with the owner, multiple handlers, and numerous changes of owner can increase the horse’s reluctance to interact with novel objects and surfaces and therefore may negatively impact the horse-human interactions in new situations.

“Our findings suggest that a positive horse-human relationship may take time to develop as it is shaped by multiple factors, such as the horse’s previous interactions with humans. Overall, the results show that animals’ relationships with their human caretakers should be better considered in animal welfare and its research,” Liehrmann concludes.