Horse Play - ePrints Soton

Goodwin, Deborah and Hughes, Carys F. (2002) Horse Play. Dorothy Russell Havemeyer Foundation Workshop: Horse Behavior and Welfare, Holar, Iceland. 13 - 16 Jun 2002.

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

Evolutionary Origins of Play
Play is widely recognised as a primarily juvenile activity and as such its importance is easy to dismiss or overlook. However, play is often evident in adults of many species, though again, it is often dismissed as “behavioural fat” (Muller-Schwarze et al, 1982) or behaviour of little consequence.
The occurrence of play in juvenile and adult carnivores, omnivores and herbivores rather begs the question, why is play so often overlooked in favour of studies of aggression? Could it be that biologists prefer to study something easy to observe? Or could the reason lie in comparative psychology, in that we are seeking to learn more about ourselves by studying other species (Burghardt, 1998). In reality, we suspect that the answer lies in the comparative ease of securing funding to study aggression over play. Most funding requests to study play appear to be met with incredulity.
Play as an Ethosystem
Fortunately a number of important studies of play have been published which support the role of play as an important factor in understanding the evolutionary and adaptive behaviour of some species, including the horse (Fraser, 1992; Brown, 1988). These studies also allow us to gain some understanding of play in intra and inter-specific interactions.
Play in Other Herbivores
The majority of published studies on play have concentrated on carnivores, where play is generally explained as a functional process in acquiring and refining predatory skills. Obviously this is not easily transposable to understanding play in herbivores. Or is it? Why could play not also be functionally explained in acquiring food handling skills? We believe that in part this may be true. However, play in herbivores also has an important role in social and survival skills (Watson, 1998; Miller and Byers 1998).
Play in Non-domestic Equids
There have been relatively few studies of play in non-domestic equids and where recorded this has generally been anecdotal. Social and solitary-locomotor play has been recorded in Hartmann’s zebra foals (Joubert, 1972) and also in captive juvenile Przewalski horses (Zharkikh, 1999).
Play in Free-ranging and Feral Horses
Social, solitary-locomotor and object play have been recorded in free-ranging and feral horses populations in the UK and USA (Tyler, 1972; Waring, 1983; Berger, 1986). In these groups, the majority of play behaviour was exhibited by foals. Social play behaviour patterns include play fighting, neck wrestling and chasing. Solitary-locomotor play includes gambolling, high speed turns and sudden stops. Object play involves the manipulation of inanimate objects and may occur in a solitary or social context. Free-ranging New Forest Pony foals have been reported to play with sticks and pieces of paper (Tyler, 1972). In general play is reported to be similar in colts and fillies for the first month of life (Waring, 1983). After this time, however, colts are reported to engage in more play than fillies (Tyler, 1972).
Play has been described in domestic horses (Fraser, 1992; Mills and Nanverkis, 1999; Hughes, 2002). Social and object play have also been recorded in juvenile and adult domestic horses, although less frequently than in foals. Social play, as well as behaviours such as mutual grooming, appears to be necessary for bonding and cohesion in equid social groups (Fraser, 1992). Indeed young plains zebra (Equus burchelli) stallions are reported to leave their natal band earlier if they have no playmates and then find playmates in another band (Klingel, 1974). Juvenile and adult domestic horses have been reported to play with a variety of objects including: sticks, footballs, clothing and feed sacks (Hughes, 2002). The role of object play in the behavioural repertoire of equids has not been greatly explored. However, it would appear to function as a means of acquiring information about the environment and feed handling skills (Hughes, 2002).
The Effects of Domestication on Play
Domestication has been associated with progressive retention of juvenile behavioural and morphological characteristics in many species, e.g. the dog (Goodwin et al, 1997) and the cat (Hall, 1998); often with a corresponding increase in play behaviour in comparison with the ancestral species.
Unpublished studies of play behaviour in free-ranging and pastured breeding groups of Dartmoor (Farrelly, 1999) and Exmoor ponies (Capps, 2001) at Southampton University have demonstrated higher incidences of social and object play in pastured ponies than those that are free-ranging in their native environment.
Play in Horse-human Interactions
Fraser (1992) sought to explain most equestrian disciplines in terms of games theory (Maynard-Smith, 1982) with horses learning the rules of a game of play. Other authors (e.g. Rees, 1984) have pointed out that most equestrian activities must appear relatively pointless to the equid participants, e.g. traveling in repeated circles or jumping over easily avoidable obstacles. However, as a social prey species that places great survival value on co-operative behaviour, and one that is highly motivated by play, the horse appears a relatively willing participant in most horse-human interactions. It is a pity, therefore, that much of the history of horse-human interactions has been interpreted by the human participants using a dominance/submission paradigm (Goodwin, 1999).
Restriction of Play Opportunities in Current Management Practices
Horses are generally maintained in conditions convenient to humans, which play scant regard to highly motivated adaptive behaviour of horses. The rise of the leisure horse and single horse ownership amongst owners who do not own their own land has led to a marketing opportunity in providing rented horse accommodation. Such accommodation usually consists of a single use loosebox and limited access to pasture. Generally the population of horses kept in Barns (USA) or at Livery (UK) is often transient and, therefore, social groups are rarely stable. The resultant rate of injury often leads to concerned owners limiting social interactions to avoid the associated veterinary costs.
Owners do, however, generally acknowledge the importance of play to horses and some provide object play opportunities in their stables through commercially available horse toys. Other owners deliberately limit object play opportunities for their solitary housed horses, presumably through a well meaning but erroneous understanding of the factors associated with the development of stereotypical behaviour patterns.
Exploring Environmental Enrichment Using Play
Given the rise in solitary horse keeping and the behavioural importance of play to the domestic horse one approach in enriching the restricted stable environment would be to enhance object play opportunities (Hughes et al, 2000). The aim of providing stabled horses with play objects is to reduce the monotony of the stable environment by increasing its diversity. Several “toys” for domestic horses are commercially available, with little or no research to assess their effectiveness as enrichment devices. As habituation occurs rapidly to play objects in other domestic species (e.g. the cat, Hall, 1995) it is likely that stabled horses will require several toys that can be alternated when habituation occurs.