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Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2024; 14(4); 536; doi: 10.3390/ani14040536

The Behavioral Cost of Care: Changes in Maintenance Behavior during Equine-Assisted Interventions.

Abstract: This study examined human-animal symbiosis in an animal-assisted intervention through observations of animal maintenance behaviors. The rise of psychotherapy, learning, and recreation incorporating animals warrants exploration of the welfare of the animals involved in these interventions. The analysis of welfare in multispecies engagements can be discussed in terms of symbiosis. Regarding an intervention's animal provider (e.g., therapy horse) and human recipient (psychotherapy client), the balance of cost and benefit is important. Research describing human and animal during interventions is limited, whether focusing on client outcomes or animal welfare. The present study adapted ethological methods to study humans and animals in an equine-assisted intervention, observing equine maintenance behaviors and equid-human interactive behavior. Maintenance behaviors were recorded before, during, and after equine-assisted (psychosocial) learning sessions with youth, providing 1600 observations. Equine alertness, eating behavior, and ambulation varied significantly before, during, and after the equine-assisted sessions. Such interruptions of typical behavior are an important aspect of welfare and unit of analysis when examining symbiotic relationships. A total of 267 sequences of equid-human approach-response behavior were also recorded, indicating that human-animal interaction was predominantly from humans toward equids. Equids' dominant response to human approach was no response, followed by avoidance, while humans' dominant response to equid approach was reciprocation. The findings are discussed in terms of symbiosis and animal welfare.
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Publication Date: 2024-02-06 PubMed ID: 38396504PubMed Central: PMC10886210DOI: 10.3390/ani14040536Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

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.

Overview

  • This study investigates how therapy horses behave during equine-assisted interventions, focusing on the changes in their natural maintenance behaviors and interactions with humans.
  • The research aims to understand the balance of benefits and costs between humans and animals in therapeutic settings, particularly considering animal welfare during such sessions.

Background and Purpose

  • Equine-assisted interventions are increasingly used in psychotherapy, learning, and recreation to benefit human clients.
  • While the focus is often on client outcomes, there is limited research on the well-being of the animals involved, despite their central role.
  • The study uses the concept of symbiosis—the mutually influential relationship between humans and animals—to analyze welfare and interaction dynamics.
  • Specifically, the study evaluates the “behavioral cost” for horses by observing changes in their typical maintenance activities (behaviors related to self-care and comfort) during therapeutic sessions.

Methods

  • The researchers adapted ethological techniques, which are methods used to study animal behavior in naturalistic settings, to observe both horses and humans during equine-assisted psychosocial learning sessions.
  • Maintenance behaviors of horses were observed during three distinct time periods: before, during, and after the interventions.
  • The study involved youth participants and recorded a total of 1,600 observations of horse behavior.
  • Additionally, 267 interaction sequences between humans and horses were recorded, focusing on approach and response behaviors from both species.

Key Findings

  • Horses showed significant variations in several behaviors across the different phases:
    • Alertness—how attentive or watchful the horses were.
    • Eating behavior—horses’ feeding habits were interrupted during sessions.
    • Ambulation—movement or walking patterns changed.
  • These interruptions suggest that typical maintenance behaviors were disrupted during equine-assisted interventions, indicating a behavioral cost related to the sessions.
  • In terms of interaction patterns:
    • Humans primarily initiated interaction by approaching horses.
    • Horses most often responded to human approach with no change in behavior, or by avoiding the interaction.
    • When horses approached humans, people tended to reciprocate the interaction.

Interpretation and Implications

  • Changes in maintenance behaviors provide important insight into the welfare of therapy horses, as interruptions to normal self-care activities may indicate stress or discomfort.
  • The asymmetry in interactions—with humans mostly initiating and horses frequently avoiding or not responding—highlights potential imbalances in the human-animal relationship during interventions.
  • These findings underscore the importance of monitoring animal welfare in equine-assisted interventions to ensure that the therapeutic benefits to humans do not come at undue cost to the animals.
  • The study contributes a novel approach to evaluating welfare by combining behavioral observations of both partners in the therapeutic dynamic within a symbiosis framework.

Cite This Article

APA
Fournier AK, French M, Letson EA, Hanson J, Berry TD, Cronin S. (2024). The Behavioral Cost of Care: Changes in Maintenance Behavior during Equine-Assisted Interventions. Animals (Basel), 14(4), 536. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14040536

Publication

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 14
Issue: 4
PII: 536

Researcher Affiliations

Fournier, Angela K
  • Department of Psychology, Bemidji State University, Bemidji, MN 56601, USA.
French, Megan
  • Department of Animal Welfare Science, Ethics, and Law, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, UK.
Letson, Elizabeth A
  • Eagle Vista Ranch & Wellness Center, Bemidji, MN 56601, USA.
Hanson, Joy
  • Eagle Vista Ranch & Wellness Center, Bemidji, MN 56601, USA.
Berry, Thomas D
  • Department of Psychology, Christopher Newport University, Newport News, VA 23606, USA.
Cronin, Sarah
  • Department of Psychology, Bemidji State University, Bemidji, MN 56601, USA.

Conflict of Interest Statement

E.L. was owner and J.H. worked at Eagle Vista Ranch & Wellness Center at the time of the study. S.C. served on the board of directors of the local Boys and Girls Club at the time of the study.

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