Effects of handling on fear reactions in young Icelandic horses.

The research article evaluates if brief standardized human handling can affect the fear reactions of young Icelandic horses during different fear tests, some involving human handling and others not. The study shows that previous handling alters behavioral fear reactions when horses are handled by a familiar handler, but not an unfamiliar handler, and does not impact the heart rates.

Research Methodology

• The researchers conducted an experimental study using 24 three-year-old Icelandic horses.
• These were split into two groups, one of which was subjected to a standardized handling procedure (n = 12). The control group (n = 12) was not trained or handled in the same manner.
• The horses were then subjected to two types of fear tests. These included a novel object test and two handling fear tests (HFTs) – HFT-unknown (with an unknown handler) and HFT-known (with a known handler).
• Both behavioral and heart rate responses of the horses were measured during these tests.

Research Findings

• The handling procedure did not have any effect on the horses’ behavioral and heart rate responses in the novel object test or the HFT-unknown.
• The handled horses showed a significantly shorter duration of reluctance behavior compared to the controls in the HFT-known, suggesting they were less fearful when handled by a familiar handler. However, their heart rates did not differ from the unhandled horses.
• The heart rates between the tests correlated significantly, implying that they were unaffected by the handling procedure and may be a more accurate indicator of fearfulness in horses.

Conclusions and Implications

• Handling may impact a horse’s behavioral fear response, but only when handled by their usual handler. An unknown handler does not have a similar impact on the horse’s fear response.
• Heart rates, which were found to be unaffected by handling, could be a more reliable measure of fearfulness in horses.
• The results suggest that handlers known to the horses may ‘mask’ behavioral responses in fear tests. This presents implications for practical testing, suggesting handling by a known handler may not be appropriate for an objective evaluation of fearfulness in practical situations.