The horse-human dyad: can we align horse training and handling activities with the equid social ethogram?

The study explores the similarities and differences between horse-horse interactions and human-horse interactions and elaborates on the limitations of applying the social behavior model of equids to human-horse relationships, especially during riding.

Research Scope

The research focuses on examining:

• The equid ethogram – a catalogue of all the known behaviours exhibited by horses in their natural environments and during social interactions.
• Analogues of social interactions between horses and how they may take place in human-horse relationships.
• The beneficial, unusual, or abnormal effects of specific horse-human interactions that mirror natural horse-horse interactions.

Major Findings

The major findings of the research include:

• Some horse-horse interactions have a corresponding horse-human interaction.
• However, not all interactions are beneficial for the horse; some might be unusual or abnormal.
• Some corresponding behaviours might even become inappropriate in human-horse interactions due to their duration, consistency or context.
• The limitations of applying any model from horse-horse interactions to human-horse interactions can sometimes overshadow the intended result of the intervention, particularly when the horse is being ridden.

Potential Impact

The information from the research can:

• Aid to examine the validity of extrapolating intra-specific interactions to the inter-specific setting – a popular approach in horse training methods.
• Shed light on the shortcomings of human playing the ‘alpha mare’ or leader role in horse handling and training.
• Provide a productive framework for further debates and empirical research into the essential aspects of successful intra-specific interactions.

Conclusion

The study, thus, emphasizes on careful application of equid social behaviour models in horse-human interactions. The limitations, especially during riding, significantly impact the outcome. Further study is needed to better understand the dynamics of such interactions and to improve horse handling and training methods.