Is a mare harder to train? Some people in the horse riding population seem to think so.



A new paper published in the journal PLoS ONE has found horse riders are applying human gender stereotypes to horses - a form of anthropomorphism - which could lead them to overlook the merits of mares and fillies.

This gender bias against mares could jeopardise their welfare, said lead author Ms Kate Fenner in the Sydney School of Veterinary Science.

“When riders assume their horses are being ‘bossy’, ‘difficult’, ‘flighty’ or ‘unwilling’ they may be more likely to punish or correct them as a result,” said Ms Fenner.

“A mare disobeying a rider’s signal could be interpreted as the horse having a ‘bad attitude’ and be met with punishment,” said Ms Fenner, a PhD student. “However, when a gelding, thought to be reliable and easy-going, disobeys the same signal, the rider may be more likely to conclude that the horse had not understood the signal and work to establish the signal-response pattern with the horse using reinforcement.”