Saturday, June 10, 2017

Horses ask humans to help solve problems




Researchers in Japan have shown that when horses face problems they cannot solve themselves, they use visual and tactile signals to get human attention and ask for help.

The study also suggests that horses alter their communicative behaviour based on humans' knowledge of the situation.

Scientists investigated horses' social cognitive skills with humans in a problem-solving situation where food was hidden in a place accessible only to humans. The experiment was carried out in a paddock belonging to the equestrian club at Kobe University, where eight horses from the club participated with the cooperation of their student caretakers.