The Journal of Animal Consciousness Vol 1, Issue 2 Vol 1 Issue 2 | Page 40

weapon, being attacked or hit, beaten), serious injury

out its days trapped in body and mind.

or harm, sudden unexpected death of a family

development of a new species-specific PTSD/

member and any other stressful experience (Blake,

Trauma questionnaire is recommended based on the

Weathers, Nagy, Kaloupek, Chamey & Keane,

DSM-V Trauma and Stress related PTSD criteria to

1995). Many of the aforementioned examples create

begin the documentation and understanding of

stressful life events from the equine perspective. It

equine trauma and potential presence of PTSD.

is astounding that chronic stress and trauma have not

Furthermore, this assessment will go a long way

been considered a

towards assessing equine welfare. In the future this

significant aspect in equine

welfare.

The

may be modified for use in other large captive
species.

Future Directions

The recommended structure of the

As presented above anthrozoological and

questionnaire is based on that presented for young

ethological perspectives suggest there is a large gap

children with added species-specific factors (to be

in understanding the psychological functioning of

determined).

the horse. Indeed, there are many in the horse world

published to assess PTSD have mainly focused on

who purport to understand horses and what they are

behavioral and symptomatic aspects, with little

feeling and thinking. However, the majority in the

emphasis on the stressor and subjective responses

horse world fall upon behaviorism as the mainstay

(Dyb, 2005).

for dealing with horses and other large animals in

suggested encompassing an understanding of the

captivity.

The idea is based on the need for

early-forming attachment styles including the

‘control’ and force. More specifically, the idea that

psycho-neurobiological mechanisms that mediate

animals are automata (stimuli in, behavior out) and

adaptive and maladaptive regulatory processes

are devoid of interiority abounds (De Giorgio &

(Maddux & Winstead, 2012).

Schoorl, 2013). In 2012 the Cambridge Declaration

failures without compensatory social structures

of animal sentience is a reflection of a change in

permitting recovery are associated with high risk for

world view. Notwithstanding, the change in beliefs

disorders later in adulthood (Bradshaw et al., 2005;

and programs in the equine-world remain archaic to

Bradshaw & Schoore, 2007).

say the least. They are remnants of the 1950s dogma

prolonged stress beyond the personal threshold may

based on behaviorism and human dominance over

result in changes in behavior or a ‘problem animal’

the natural world.

or ‘rogue’ attacks.

In the mean time the horse is

forced into a state of learned helplessness and lives

Unfortunately, the instruments

Indeed, an integrated approach is

Early attachment

Indeed, with

This is consistent with the

etiology of PTSD (Bradshaw et al., 2005; Bradshaw

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© The Society for Animal Consciousness 2016.

Issue 2, Vol 1, April 2016.