Curiosity and Investigative Behavior: Antidotes to Fear

Bronzz spots something strange and alarming

Horses’ marvelous visual memories and keen sense of smell alert them to anything new, odd, or out of place. Bronzz’s alarm shows in his high head, tense body, intense forward focus, and weight back for a quick retreat. Asking him to step forward would raise his anxiety, and possibly trigger his flight reflex. Instead, I let his CURIOSITY guide us. This turns a potential issue into learning that builds confidence, reduces anxiety, and reaffirms his trust in me. Scroll on to watch him go from alarm to curiosity, learning, and confidence.

Note: This article is a very brief overview of Investigative Behavior. Chapters 12 – 14 of my book What Horses Really Want document the entire Investigative Behavior process in photographs, and provide detailed instructions for encouraging it both on lead and under saddle. The science that supports it is explained, and sources cited. References also provided at the end of this article.

Bronzz edges closer

CURIOSITY is a powerful positive emotion that makes horses want to investigate. It’s how their wild ancestors found food, water, and shelter. But no sane prey animal marches straight up to something suspicious, as people often expect horses to do. He wants to check it out first from a distance and ease in carefully. Many horses are anxious and spooky because they have learned to anticipate pressure to approach something too quickly. Notice what I am doing instead. Loose lead, relaxed body as I let Bronzz show me how close he is ready to move, and when he needs to temporarily retreat.

...and closer

Investigative Behavior is self-reinforcing. Horses do it on their own if we stay out of their way. That means loose lead or reins, no pressure, no coaxing, no distracting rewards from us. For most people, taught to be in charge of their horses, the hardest part of Investigative Behavior is doing nothing!

Bronzz circles the suspicious thing

Approach is rarely linear. Horses move forward and back as they investigate. Bronzz has circled behind me several times, and now circles around the tire to inspect it from all angles. I just go with him. Now you might say, "But it's just a tractor tire! How silly!" Not silly at all. Bronzz knows that it is supposed to be ON the tractor, not lying in his paddock. Recognizing something changed or out of place helped his wild ancestors survive.

Bronzz touches the tire

Touch starts with the delicate whiskers on his muzzle. His investigation has now used 4 senses (sight, hearing, smell, and touch). Many horses would also taste the new thing, thus engaging all 5 senses in their discovery process.
Time elapsed: 7 minutes. Calm horse ready to tune back in to my agenda. During this time Bronzz has compared his observations to information he already knows, and generalized what he learned so that in the future he is less likely to worry about any similar situation. Many people do not allow Investigative Behavior because it requires letting the horse make decisions, and they fear that will lead to disobedience. In fact, giving horses the freedom to investigate tells them we are trustworthy because we respect their caution, and it provides learning that overcomes fear. The result is a horse who is more reliable because he trusts you and has confidence in his own ability to cope with the world.

Oops! Not a toy!

NOW my lead goes tight as I quickly stop Bronzz from playing with the tire. Having let him convince himself it's safe, I do NOT want him to get a foot stuck in it! Over time a horse’s default reaction to new things shifts from “Something scary, better run,” to “Something new, better check it out. It might be fun!”

References:
A. Telatin, “The use of the investigative behavior to improve the training of the jumping horse,” Journal of Veterinary Behavior, April, 2013.
Janne Winther Christensen, “Early-life object exposure with a habituated mother reduces fear reactions in foals”, Animal Cognition, January 2016
Christa Leste-Lasserre, “Foals Follow Dams' Leads When Dealing With Scary Objects”, The Horse Nov 1, 2014
F. Heitor, M. do Mar Oom, L. Vicente, “Social relationships in a herd of Sorraia horses Part I. Correlates of social dominance and contexts of aggression”, Behavior Processes, Sept 2006.