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Author Krueger, K.; Trager, L.; Farmer, K.; Byrne, R.
Title Tool Use in Horses Type Journal Article
Year 2022 Publication Animals Abbreviated Journal Animals
Volume 12 Issue 15 Pages 1876
Keywords crowdsourcing; horse; innovation; mule; management; tool use
Abstract Tool use has not yet been confirmed in horses, mules or donkeys. As this subject is difficult to research with conventional methods, we used a crowdsourcing approach to gather data. We contacted equid owners and carers and asked them to report and video examples of â&#65533;&#65533;unusualâ&#65533;&#65533; behaviour via a dedicated website. We also searched YouTube and Facebook for videos of equids showing tool use. From 635 reports, including 1014 behaviours, we found 20 cases of tool use, 13 of which were unambiguous in that it was clear that the behaviour was not trained, caused by reduced welfare, incidental or accidental. We then assessed (a) the effect of management conditions on tool use and (b) whether the animals used tools alone, or socially, involving other equids or humans. We found that management restrictions were associated with corresponding tool use in 12 of the 13 cases (p = 0.01), e.g., equids using sticks to scrape hay within reach when feed was restricted. Furthermore, 8 of the 13 cases involved other equids or humans, such as horses using brushes to groom others. The most frequent tool use was for foraging, with seven examples, tool use for social purposes was seen in four cases, and there was just one case of tool use for escape. There was just one case of tool use for comfort, and in this instance, there were no management restrictions. Equids therefore can develop tool use, especially when management conditions are restricted, but it is a rare occurrence.
Address
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title Animals
Series Volume 12 Series Issue 15 Edition
ISSN 2076-2615 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6695
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Author Krueger, K.; Schwarz, S.; Marr, I.; Farmer, K.
Title Laterality in Horse Training: Psychological and Physical Balance and Coordination and Strength Rather Than Straightness Type Magazine Article
Year 2022 Publication Animals Abbreviated Journal Animals
Volume 12 Issue 8 Pages 1042
Keywords balance; body asymmetry; equitation; horse; motor laterality; sensory laterality; stress; welfare
Abstract For centuries, a goal of training in many equestrian disciplines has been to straighten the horse, which is considered a key element in achieving its responsiveness and suppleness. However, laterality is a naturally occurring phenomenon in horses and encompasses body asymmetry, motor laterality and sensory laterality. Furthermore, forcibly counterbalancing motor laterality has been considered a cause of psychological imbalance in humans. Perhaps asymmetry and laterality should rather be accepted, with a focus on training psychological and physical balance, coordination and equal strength on both sides instead of enforcing “straightness”. To explore this, we conducted a review of the literature on the function and causes of motor and sensory laterality in horses, especially in horses when trained on the ground or under a rider. The literature reveals that body asymmetry is innate but does not prevent the horse from performing at a high level under a rider. Motor laterality is equally distributed in feral horses, while in domestic horses, age, breed, training and carrying a rider may cause left leg preferences. Most horses initially observe novel persons and potentially threatening objects or situations with their left sensory organs. Pronounced preferences for the use of left sensory organs or limbs indicate that the horse is experiencing increased emotionality or stress, and long-term insufficiencies in welfare, housing or training may result in left shifts in motor and sensory laterality and pessimistic mentalities. Therefore, increasing laterality can be regarded as an indicator for insufficiencies in housing, handling and training. We propose that laterality be recognized as a welfare indicator and that straightening the horse should be achieved by conducting training focused on balance, coordination and equal strength on both sides.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title Animals
Series Volume 12 Series Issue 8 Edition
ISSN 2076-2615 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6670
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Author Schwarz, S.; Marr, I.; Farmer, K.; Graf, K.; Stefanski, V.; Krueger, K.
Title Does Carrying a Rider Change Motor and Sensory Laterality in Horses? Type Journal Article
Year 2022 Publication Animals Abbreviated Journal Animals
Volume 12 Issue 8 Pages 992
Keywords laterality; horse; rider; sensory laterality; motor laterality; novel object; side preference
Abstract Laterality in horses has been studied in recent decades. Although most horses are kept for riding purposes, there has been almost no research on how laterality may be affected by carrying a rider. In this study, 23 horses were tested for lateral preferences, both with and without a rider, in three different experiments. The rider gave minimal aids and rode on a long rein to allow the horse free choice. Firstly, motor laterality was assessed by observing forelimb preference when stepping over a pole. Secondly, sensory laterality was assessed by observing perceptual side preferences when the horse was confronted with (a) an unfamiliar person or (b) a novel object. After applying a generalised linear model, this preliminary study found that a rider increased the strength of motor laterality (p = 0.01) but did not affect sensory laterality (p = 0.8). This suggests that carrying a rider who is as passive as possible does not have an adverse effect on a horse&#65533;s stress levels and mental state.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6667
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Author Krueger, K.; Esch, L.; Farmer, K.; Marr, I.
Title Basic Needs in Horses?--A Literature Review Type Magazine Article
Year 2021 Publication Animals Abbreviated Journal Animals
Volume 11 Issue 6 Pages 1798
Keywords abnormal behaviour; active responses; horse; movement; passive responses; roughage; stress; social contact
Abstract Every animal species has particular environmental requirements that are essential for its welfare, and when these so-called “basic needs” are not fulfilled, the animals suffer. The basic needs of horses have been claimed to be social contact, social companionship, free movement and access to roughage. To assess whether horses suffer when one or more of the four proposed basic needs are restricted, we examined several studies (n = 38) that reported behavioural and physiological reactions to these restrictions. We assigned the studies according to the four types of responses investigated: (a) Stress, (b) Active, (c) Passive, and (d) Abnormal Behaviour. Furthermore, the number of studies indicating that horses reacted to the restrictions were compared with the number of studies reporting no reaction. The limited number of studies available on single management restrictions did not allow conclusions to be drawn on the effect of each restriction separately, especially in the case of social companionship. However, when combinations of social contact, free movement and access to roughage were restricted, many of the horses had developed responses consistent with suffering. Passive Responses, indicating acute suffering, and Abnormal Behaviour, indicating suffering currently or at some time in the past, were especially clearly demonstrated. This provides further evidence of the usefulness of assessing behavioural parameters in combination with physiological measurements when evaluating horse welfare. This meta-analysis of the literature confirms that it is justified to claim that social contact, free movement and access to roughage are basic needs in horses.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title Animals
Series Volume 11 Series Issue 6 Edition
ISSN 2076-2615 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6645
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Author Marr, I.; Preisler, V.; Farmer, K.; Stefanski, V.; Krueger, K.
Title Non-invasive stress evaluation in domestic horses (Equus caballus): impact of housing conditions on sensory laterality and immunoglobulin A Type Journal Article
Year 2020 Publication Royal Society Open Science Abbreviated Journal Royal Society Open Science
Volume 7 Issue 2 Pages 191994
Keywords
Abstract The study aimed to evaluate sensory laterality and concentration of faecal immunoglobulin A (IgA) as non-invasive measures of stress in horses by comparing them with the already established measures of motor laterality and faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGMs). Eleven three-year-old horses were exposed to known stressful situations (change of housing, initial training) to assess the two new parameters. Sensory laterality initially shifted significantly to the left and faecal FGMs were significantly increased on the change from group to individual housing and remained high through initial training. Motor laterality shifted significantly to the left after one week of individual stabling. Faecal IgA remained unchanged throughout the experiment. We therefore suggest that sensory laterality may be helpful in assessing acute stress in horses, especially on an individual level, as it proved to be an objective behavioural parameter that is easy to observe. Comparably, motor laterality may be helpful in assessing long-lasting stress. The results indicate that stress changes sensory laterality in horses, but further research is needed on a larger sample to evaluate elevated chronic stress, as it was not clear whether the horses of the present study experienced compromised welfare, which it has been proposed may affect faecal IgA.
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Publisher Royal Society Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
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ISSN ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes doi: 10.1098/rsos.191994 Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6608
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Author Bernauer, K.; Kollross, H.; Schuetz, A.; Farmer, K.; Krueger, K.
Title How do horses (Equus caballus) learn from observing human action? Type Journal Article
Year 2020 Publication Animal Cognition Abbreviated Journal Anim. Cogn.
Volume 23 Issue Pages 1-9
Keywords
Abstract A previous study demonstrated that horses can learn socially from observing humans, but could not draw any conclusions about the social learning mechanisms. Here we develop this by showing horses four different human action sequences as demonstrations of how to press a button to open a feed box. We tested 68 horses aged between 3 and 12 years. 63 horses passed the habituation phase and were assigned either to the group Hand Demo (N = 13) for which a kneeling person used a hand to press the button, Head Demo (N = 13) for which a kneeling person used the head, Mixed Demo (N = 12) for which a squatting person used both head and hand, Foot Demo (N = 12) in which a standing person used a foot, or No Demo (N = 13) in which horses did not receive a demonstration. 44 horses reached the learning criterion of opening the feeder twenty times consecutively, 40 of these were 75% of the Demo group horses and four horses were 31% of the No Demo group horses. Horses not reaching the learning criterion approached the human experimenters more often than those who did. Significantly more horses used their head to press the button no matter which demonstration they received. However, in the Foot Demo group four horses consistently preferred to use a hoof and two switched between hoof and head use. After the Mixed Demo the horses' actions were more diverse. The results indicate that only a few horses copy behaviours when learning socially from humans. A few may learn through observational conditioning, as some appeared to adapt to demonstrated actions in the course of reaching the learning criterion. Most horses learn socially through enhancement, using humans to learn where, and which aspect of a mechanism has to be manipulated, and by applying individual trial and error learning to reach their goal.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 1435-9456 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Bernauer2019 Serial 6590
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Author Marr, I.; Farmer, K.; Krueger, K.
Title Evidence for Right-Sided Horses Being More Optimistic than Left-Sided Horses Type Journal Article
Year 2018 Publication Animals Abbreviated Journal Animals
Volume 8 Issue 12 Pages 219
Keywords
Abstract An individual's positive or negative perspective when judging an ambiguous stimulus (cognitive bias) can be helpful when assessing animal welfare. Emotionality, as expressed in approach or withdrawal behaviour, is linked to brain asymmetry. The predisposition to process information in the left or right brain hemisphere is displayed in motor laterality. The quality of the information being processed is indicated by the sensory laterality. Consequently, it would be quicker and more repeatable to use motor or sensory laterality to evaluate cognitive bias than to perform the conventional judgment bias test. Therefore, the relationship between cognitive bias and motor or sensory laterality was tested. The horses (n = 17) were trained in a discrimination task involving a box that was placed in either a “positive” or “negative” location. To test for cognitive bias, the box was then placed in the middle, between the trained positive and negative location, in an ambiguous location, and the latency to approach the box was evaluated. Results indicated that horses that were more likely to use the right forelimb when moving off from a standing position were more likely to approach the ambiguous box with a shorter latency (generalized linear mixed model, p < 0.01), and therefore displayed a positive cognitive bias (optimistic).
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 2076-2615 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ ani8120219 Serial 6439
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Author Krueger., K.; Farmer, K.
Title Social learning in Horses: Differs from individual learning only in the learning stimulus and not in the learning mechanisms Type Abstract
Year 2018 Publication 14th Meeting of the Internatinoal Society for Equitation Science Abbreviated Journal 14th Meeting ISES
Volume Issue Pages
Keywords horse; individual learning; learning mechanisms; learning stimuli; social learning
Abstract Equine welfare can be enhanced by applying species specific training. This may incorporate social learning, as horses are highly social and social stimuli are of primary importance. Social learning is comparable to individual learning in its learning mechanisms, differing primarily in the way it is stimulated. Our initial study showed that horses of different breeds (N = 38) follow humans after observing other horses doing so, but only if the observed horse was familiar to and higher ranking than the observer (Fisher's exact test: N = 12, P = 0.003). A second study showed that horses and ponies (N = 25) learned to pull a rope to open a feeding apparatus after observing demonstrations by conspecifics, again, only if the demonstrating horse was older and higher ranking than the observer (Fisher's combination test, N = 3, v2 = 27.71, p = 0.006). Our third approach showed that horses and ponies (N = 24) learned to press a switch to open a feeding apparatus after observing a familiar person (GzLM: N = 24, z = 2.33, P = 0.02). Most recently, we confronted horses and ponies (N = 50) with persons demonstrating different techniques for opening a feeding apparatus. In this study we investigated whether the horses would copy the demonstrators' techniques or apply their own. Here only some horses copied the technique, and most of the successful learners used their mouths irrespective of the demonstrators' postures (Chi Square Test: N = 40, df = 2, &#967;2 = 31.4, p < 0.001). In all the approaches social stimuli elicited learning processes in the test horses, while only a few individuals in the control groups mastered the tasks by individual learning. The following behaviour observed in the initial study may have been facilitated by a social stimuli (social facilitation), and the opening of the feed boxes in the subsequent studies appear to be mostly the result of enhancement (social enhancement). Some horses may have used the social stimuli at first and continued their learning process by individual trial and error. However, the horses were also selective in whom and some in how to copy. This may have been conditioned (socially conditioned) or the result of simple forms of reasoning on the reliability of the particular information provided by demonstrators of certain social ranks or social positions, as high ranking and familiar horses and familiar persons were copied and some imitated exactly.

Lay person message: Traditional riding instructions suggest that horses learn by observing other horses. For example, older, more experienced driving horses are used for initial training of young driving horses. We have shown that horses indeed use learning stimuli provided by other horse, as well as by humans. Horses readily accept stimuli observed in high ranking and familiar horses, and familiar persons. Such stimuli elicit learning processes which are comparable to individual learning. We suggest applying social learning whenever possible, as it is much faster and less stressful than individual learning, where learners experience negative outcomes in trial and error learning.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6405
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Author Farmer, K.; Krüger, K.; Byrne, R.W.; Marr, I.
Title Sensory laterality in affiliative interactions in domestic horses and ponies (Equus caballus) Type Journal Article
Year 2018 Publication Animal Cognition Abbreviated Journal Anim. Cogn.
Volume 21 Issue 5 Pages 631-637
Keywords
Abstract Many studies have been carried out into both motor and sensory laterality of horses in agonistic and stressful situations. Here we examine sensory laterality in affiliative interactions within four groups of domestic horses and ponies (N = 31), living in stable social groups, housed at a single complex close to Vienna, Austria, and demonstrate for the first time a significant population preference for the left side in affiliative approaches and interactions. No effects were observed for gender, rank, sociability, phenotype, group, or age. Our results suggest that right hemisphere specialization in horses is not limited to the processing of stressful or agonistic situations, but rather appears to be the norm for processing in all social interactions, as has been demonstrated in other species including chicks and a range of vertebrates. In domestic horses, hemispheric specialization for sensory input appears not to be based on a designation of positive versus negative, but more on the perceived need to respond quickly and appropriately in any given situation.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 1435-9456 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Farmer2018 Serial 6386
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Author Krueger, K.; Marr, I.; Farmer, K.
Title Equine Cognition Type Book Chapter
Year 2017 Publication Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior Abbreviated Journal
Volume Issue Pages 1-11
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Abstract
Address
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Springer International Publishing Place of Publication Cham Editor Vonk, J.; Shackelford, T.
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN ISBN 978-3-319-47829-6 Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Krueger2017 Serial 6181
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