Horse learning and training abilities
Domestic horse has evolved to adapt to man and the environment he provides. Adaptation to domestication in any of the animal species has been largely dependent on the degree of developmental plasticity of the animal and compatibility of roles the animal was expected to play with typical behavioral and learning patterns of the animal in the wild. This is especially true for working animals, such as horses and dogs, who are assigned tasks that vary widely not only in their complexity, physical demands, memory and attention span requirements, but also in degree of cooperation (feedback) and communication with the master.
The areas of interest that have been targeted for detailed research in the horse include: learning, training, feral behavior, stereotypies, breeding behavior, and temperament assessment.
Although domestication and human interaction have been benefited horses in terms of veterinary care, protection and survival, some potential disadvantages and conflicting practices have also developed. The latter include social isolation, restricted breeding opportunities, breaking techniques, and some modern training practices.
Modern companion and performance horses are often required to perform tasks that wild or feral horses do not normally encounter in the wild. Some of the current competition and equine husbandry systems present conditions where horses have to deal with unnatural obstacles and perform in circumstances that feral horses would rather avoid. Such activities as jumping, maneuvering around series of impediments of various complexity or entry into dark or narrow areas such as stocks, starting stalls or trailers require horses to suppress their natural evolutionary adaptive behavior.
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There are three major categories of learning: (1) non-associative learning (habituation and sensitization), (2) associative learning or conditioning (establishment of a relationship between at least two stimuli), and (3) complex learning or insight. Classical conditioning focuses on association that builds up between stimuli. An example of classical conditioning is when stallions exhibits breeding behavior in association with the breeding barn alone. Operand conditioning focuses on the effect of certain responses. Most training systems use operand conditioning, which relies on reinforcement and punishment.
In terms of learning behavior, no evidence has as of yet been produced to suggest that horses learn any differently than any other species. Learning efficiency in any species is also critically influenced by the time interval between exposure to the stimulus and introduction of the reinforcer in order for the association to be formed reliably. Different animal species vary widely in their tolerance to increasing time intervals.
Positive reinforcement involves the addition of a primary reinforcer. Food reinforcement is widely used as a positive stimulus in equine learning and behavioral experimental trials. Studies of equine pattern discrimination (using a food reinforcer) have shown that horses are capable of quick learning. However the introduction of temporal delay (of only 10 seconds) appears to cause a significant degree of difficulty for the horses. This characteristic shortcoming on part of the horse poses a significant challenge for horse trainers. Experienced handlers have been astutely aware of the necessity to apply reinforcement immediately or as close as possible to the demonstration of the desired behavior in the horse. Training and subsequent learning in the horse are particularly aggravated by delayed, conflicting or meaningless cues and reinforcements. Positive reinforcement alone does not lend itself to safe equitation, effective training or prolonged maintenance of extreme postures.
Within the disciplines of equitation, learning of the desired behavioral processes is almost totally dependent on using negative reinforcement strategies. Negative reinforcement is based on the removal of stimulus (typically aversive). During their early training, domesticated horses learn that the pressure of the bit via reins disappears when they stop or slow; that the pressure of the rider's legs or spurs disappears when they go forward. To be effective, horse training must involve subtle application of pressure and its immediate removal once the animal complies.
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Coming from a military background when traditional horse training aimed to develop horses that were so compliant they would loose all sense of self-preservation, modern horse is often expected to be submissive to many simultaneous, sometimes contradicting and harsh stimuli. Failure to apply principle of negative reinforcement correctly and confusing stimuli used for the negative reinforcement strategy with punishment can force the horse into conflict state and lead to trials of getting rid of the rider by, for example, bucking and rearing, or to emergence of apathy and learned helpessness. Thus, inappropriate training practices can jeopardize the safety of riders and handlers and negatively impact the horse's welfare, learning potential and shorten its working life.
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