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Assessing equine prospective memory in a Y-maze apparatus
1School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland. Jack.Murphy@ucd.ie
Veterinary Journal (London, England : 1997)
|April 29, 2009
Summary
Horses demonstrated prospective memory, successfully recalling food locations even after delays. This suggests trainable memory in horses, but training delays may hinder equitation progress and welfare.
Area of Science:
- Equine cognition
- Animal behavior
- Prospective memory
Background:
- Understanding equine memory is crucial for effective training.
- Prospective memory, remembering to perform an action in the future, is less studied in horses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate horses' prospective memory capabilities.
- To assess the impact of delayed reinforcement on memory recall in horses.
Main Methods:
- Eight horses were tested in a Y-maze using immediate release (IR) and delayed release (DR) trials (3s, 6s, 9s, 12s).
- Horses observed and heard food delivery, then chose the correct side after a delay.
- Log-linear analysis of frequencies was used to analyze data.
Main Results:
- Horses successfully made correct choices in immediate release trials.
- Horses also succeeded in delayed release trials, indicating memory retention over time.
- Performance showed marginal improvement during a re-test conducted a week later.
Conclusions:
- Horses possess a trainable form of prospective memory.
- Incremental memory training may benefit equine learning.
- Excessive delays in reinforcement can negatively impact horse training and welfare.
