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PloS one2019; 14(6); e0218954; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0218954

Animal behaviour in a human world: A crowdsourcing study on horses that open door and gate mechanisms.

Abstract: Anecdotal reports of horses opening fastened doors and gates are an intriguing way of exploring the possible scope of horses' problem-solving capacities. The species' natural environment has no analogues of the mechanisms involved. Scientific studies on the topic are missing, because the rate of occurrence is too low for exploration under controlled conditions. Therefore, we compiled from lay persons case reports of horses opening closed doors and gates. Additionally, we collected video documentations at the internet platform YouTube, taking care to select raw data footage of unedited, clearly described and clearly visible cases of animals with no distinct signs of training or reduced welfare. The data included individuals opening 513 doors or gates on hinges, 49 sliding doors, and 33 barred doors and gateways; mechanisms included 260 cases of horizontal and 155 vertical bars, 43 twist locks, 42 door handles, 34 electric fence handles, 40 carabiners, and 2 locks with keys. Opening was usually for escape, but also for access to food or stable-mates, or out of curiosity or playfulness. While 56 percent of the horses opened a single mechanism at one location, 44 percent opened several types of mechanism (median = 2, min. = 1, max. = 5) at different locations (median = 2, min. = 1, max. = 4). The more complex the mechanism was, the more movements were applied, varying from median 2 for door handles to 10 for carabiners. Mechanisms requiring head- or lip-twisting needed more movements, with significant variation between individuals. 74 horses reported in the questionnaire had options for observing the behaviour in stable mates, 183 did not, which indicates that the latter learned to open doors and gates either individually or from observing humans. Experience favours opening efficiency; subjects which opened several door types applied fewer movements per lock than horses which opened only one door type. We failed to identify a level of complexity of door-fastening mechanism that was beyond the learning capacity of the horse to open. Thus, all devices in frequent use, even carabiners and electric fence handles, are potentially vulnerable to opening by horses, something which needs to be considered in relation to keeping horses safely.
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Publication Date: 2019-06-26 PubMed ID: 31242266PubMed Central: PMC6594629DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0218954Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research was focused on collecting and analyzing cases of horses independently opening different types of doors and gates. The results showed a surprising level of capacity for problem-solving and learning, with no door mechanism found to be too complex for a horse to eventually learn to open.

Research Purpose and Methodology

  • This study aimed to investigate the capabilities of horses to open different kinds of fastened doors and gates. This helps to understand their problem-solving capacities despite not having similar mechanisms in their natural environments.
  • Primarily using crowdsourcing, the researchers compiled case reports from lay individuals and video documentation from YouTube, making sure to select cases where there were no signs of the horse being trained or being under conditions of reduced welfare.

Findings

  • The study found that horses are capable of opening a variety of mechanisms, ranging from hinge doors to twist locks, electric fence handles, carabiners, and even locks with keys.
  • Most of the time, horses open these mechanisms to escape confinement or to access food and other horses, suggesting an understanding of the results of their actions, but sometimes it also appeared to be driven by curiosity or playfulness.
  • While a majority of the horses could only open one type of mechanism, a significant minority could open two or more types, with the maximum being five different mechanisms.
  • The complexity of the mechanism significantly increased the number of movements a horse had to make to open it, with door handles requiring the least movements and carabiners requiring the most.
  • How a horse learns to open these mechanisms was also explored, with results suggesting a mix of individual learning and learning from observing other horses or humans. For the latter, the more experience a horse had, the more efficient it became at opening doors and gates.

Implications

  • The researchers failed to find a door or gate mechanism that a horse could not learn to open, suggesting that all common mechanisms are potentially vulnerable.
  • These findings have importance for horse keeping, as it suggests that special care has to be taken when choosing door and gate mechanisms in order to prevent horses from escaping confinement.

Cite This Article

APA
Krueger K, Esch L, Byrne R. (2019). Animal behaviour in a human world: A crowdsourcing study on horses that open door and gate mechanisms. PLoS One, 14(6), e0218954. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0218954

Publication

PloS one
ISSN: 1932-6203
NlmUniqueID: 101285081
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 14
Issue: 6
Pages: e0218954

Researcher Affiliations

Krueger, Konstanze
  • Department Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.
  • Department Equine Economics, Section of Agriculture, Economics and Management, Nürtingen-Geislingen University, Nürtingen, Germany.
Esch, Laureen
  • Department Equine Economics, Section of Agriculture, Economics and Management, Nürtingen-Geislingen University, Nürtingen, Germany.
  • Department of Animal Welfare, Ethology, Animal Hygiene and Animal Husbandry Section of Veterinarian Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, München, Germany.
Byrne, Richard
  • Centre for Social Learning & Cognitive Evolution, School of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Behavior, Animal / physiology
  • Crowdsourcing / methods
  • Female
  • Horses / physiology
  • Humans
  • Male

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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