Much training of horses relies on negative reinforcement where the human trainer applies increasing pressure somewhere on the horse`s body and releases when the desired behavioral response is shown by the horse. An objective measure for this ability would be useful in the scientific environment as well as for horse training in practice. In this study, we investigated if an algometer (Prod, TopCat Metrology Ltd, UK) could be used for objectively measuring horses` ability to learn a task based on negative reinforcement. 24 Icelandic horses (3 years old mares and geldings) were tested on their ability to learn to yield from pressure applied on the upper thigh with the algometer (pressure surface: Ø16mm). The force was applied with an approx. rate of 4 N/s (as indicated on the algometer) until the horse moved at least one hind leg laterally away from the pressure. The horses were submitted to 10 trials of pressure on each side on the first test day, 7 trials pr. side on the second test day and 5 trials pr. side on the third day. Preliminary statistical analyses indicated that the average force necessary for moving the horse decreased over the 3 test days (random intercepts model, mean (N); Day 1=24.6, Day 2=19.2, Day 3=18.9, s.e.=2.0, p<0.005), showing that the horses learned to move for lighter pressure over the three days. The data also showed a positive correlation between the three test days (Spearman`s rank correlation, p<0.05), i.e. horses responding to a low average force on test day 1 also responded to lower force on test days 2 and 3, indicating stability in the horses` performance and stability over time in the method of measuring the performance. Furthermore, a positive correlation existed between the left and right sides of the horses (Spearman`s correlation, p<0.01), showing that horses responding to a light pressure on one side also responded to a light pressure on the other side. More statistical analyses are currently being conducted. Layperson`s paragraph: The results of this study indicate that horses can learn to respond to lighter pressure and that an algometer measuring the force of the applied pressure may be used for quantification of this learning.
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