French scientists have discovered a link between poor stable welfare and a horse’s attitude while under saddle.
Alice Ruet, PhD, welfare science engineer at the French Institute of the Horse and Equitation (IFCE) in Saumur, France, and her colleagues undertook a study of 43 healthy warmbloods. They found that those who exhibited signs of poor welfare in their stables – such as aggression toward humans, a withdrawn, depressed stance or an excessively alert posture – were more likely to show signs of poor welfare when ridden. Horses who were aggressive in their stables showed conflict behaviours under saddle, such as bucking, while horses who cribbed acted more stressed when ridden, with behaviours such as high tail carriage. Horses who were withdrawn and uninterested in their surroundings were more reluctant to move forward under saddle, while horses who showed high alertness were more likely to spook or appear tense when ridden.