Is 'blink rate' a stress indicator in horses?
Researchers from a university in Canada conducted a study of 23 horses who were observed during three known stressful situations for horses: 1) separation, 2) food restriction and 3) the introduction of something the horses deem scary. They captured the horse's blinking patterns on video to enable them accurately compare the blink rates of the subjects with horses at rest. In addition, they also monitored heart rates and behavior on both sets of horses.
The results indicated that the rate at which a horse blinks says a lot about his stress level. Associate professor/Equine Program Coordinator Katrina Merkies, PhD was quoted as saying “Horses in our study showed a reduced amount of half and full eye blinks along with an increase in eyelid flutters when exposed to certain stressful situations.”
If you’ve not heard of the HGS (Horse Grimace Scale), it’s a scale used to indicate the presence of pain based on the following facial expressions:
· Ears held backward stiffly
· Tightening around the eyes and tension above the eye area
· Strained chewing and facial muscles
· Muscles strained; and
· Pronounced chin.
In the Merkies study, the eye fluttering they witnessed related to the appearance of “worry wrinkles” and/or a more triangular eye shape like that which occurs with pain.
What is interesting to me is that with our Masterson Method bodywork, horses often blink several times when we near a spot where there is tension that needs releasing. Typically, this blinking is the predecessor to the release—via yawning, stretching, sighing, or licking and chewing… an interesting addition to our diagnostic toolbox!
#horsehealth #equineanxiety #healinghorses #blinkrates