Study: Horse’s Stress Levels Increase During Events

Horses might experience increased stress during equestrian events and competitions, but that stress appears relatively mild and might even be beneficial according to new research by Austrian, German, and French equitation scientists.
Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

Horses might experience increased stress during equestrian events and competitions, but that stress appears relatively mild and might even be beneficial according to new research by Austrian, German, and French equitation scientists.

By measuring cortisol levels in adult horses' saliva before and after various events, researchers noted that stress increased significantly during the event but usually decreased rapidly, said Christine Aurich, DVM, PhD, professor at the Graf Lehndorff Institute and at the University of Veterinary Sciences in Vienna and senior author of the study. The analysis of levels of cortisol–often called "the stress hormone"–has become recognized in recent years as an accurate measure of stress.

Equestrian events investigated in the study included presentation for sale, classical school above-ground presentations, advanced classical dressage, and standard dressage and show jumping competitions. Saliva was collected for testing an hour and a half-hour before the event as well as immediately after the event and then five, 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 minutes later. Cortisol levels returned to their pre-event values within approximately an hour for all events except the competitions, Aurich said. After competitions, levels were significantly reduced, but still not back to pre-event levels even two hours after the competition.

In all cases, the cortisol levels were still lower than those of young horses undergoing initial training under saddle, horses being transported, and especially horses undergoing colic surgery or castration, Aurich added

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Share

Written by:

Passionate about horses and science from the time she was riding her first Shetland Pony in Texas, Christa Lesté-Lasserre writes about scientific research that contributes to a better understanding of all equids. After undergrad studies in science, journalism, and literature, she received a master’s degree in creative writing. Now based in France, she aims to present the most fascinating aspect of equine science: the story it creates. Follow Lesté-Lasserre on Twitter @christalestelas.

Related Articles

Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with

FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com

Sponsored Content

Weekly Poll

sponsored by:

Where do you primarily feed your horse?
304 votes · 304 answers

Readers’ Most Popular

Sign In

Don’t have an account? Register for a FREE account here.

Need to update your account?

You need to be logged in to fill out this form

Create a free account with TheHorse.com!