Hormone study gives scientists a sense of how animals bond-

i would love to hear horse people's experiences relating to this concept. This article makes me think of how important it is to let horses smell new things if you want them to calm down or trust you. The olfactory nerve has a direct hookup circuit to the amygdala.

http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Amygdala

"the medial nucleus of the amygdala is strongly connected with the olfactory system, and the central nucleus connects with brainstem areas that control the expression of innate behaviors and associated physiological responses. "

ok now check this out

http://www.appliedanimalbehaviour.com/article/S0168-1591(06)00032-3...

i do not see heart rate variability as one of the parameters, but i am speculating because i do not have the full text of this. It was double blind study design so that gives me faith in its objectivity, but i only see heart rate and behavior as measurements used to define horse stress level, and at an ISES conference recently it was stated that definition of horse stress must include heart rate variability to be effectively descriptive.

what does everybody think of the ideas from these papers in relation to horse training?

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Lamm on February 27, 2010 at 8:58pm

my horse doesn't calm down around strangers until they blow in his nose.....

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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Gormley on February 27, 2010 at 10:27pm

yes good point i have seen my horses do this with each other (blowing in each other's noses) when they say hello to each other after being apart for a while, like when they return from a show. Also i have noticed when they are introduced to something new, if i let them smell it until they get bored and remove their nose vs. me only letting them smell for a second, they are less scared of the new item.