is your horse DEPRESSED?

We know humans experience depression, considered a major mood disorder, but do horses? Yes, evidence indicates that they can experience and suffer from depression. Domestic horses may live in a state of chronic stress, depending on their physical health, living arrangements, social interactions, type and duration of work, training methods used on them, and even their feeding schedule.

Here, we’ll review the pioneering study that identified depression in horses. We’ll examine some of the causes, list signs to watch for, and give tips on how to help alleviate equine depression.

Study Finds Evidence

A study in France evaluated domestic horses for signs of depression by comparing their behavior to that exhibited during depressive states in humans. For six months, researchers observed the spontaneous behavior of 59 working horses in their home environment, focusing on bouts of immobility in which