b'Is Your HorseHurting?NANCY S. LOVING, DVMA s you unlatch the paddock gate, expecting your horse to come running for breakfast, you notice him standing in the back of his run-in, head and neck lowered, with his right front leg extended ever so slightly. He raises his head at your entry but remains where he stands. Although hardly dramatic, this is not his usual behavior. If your horse had words, hed shout, Look! He is, in fact, speaking loudly through his posture and facial ex-pressions, conveying hes in pain from an injury incurred overnight. Horses can be demonstrative in how theyReduced weight-bearing on a painful limb;communicate with humansthey nuzzle forFlank-watching, pawing, rolling;affection, and they display certain body postures Restlessness; when resisting or acquiescing to an interaction Depression;or event. Somewhat unique among other species Decreased activity;in the animal kingdom, they can make facial and Diminishing interest in surroundings;eye expressions that convey volumes if you un- Retiring to the back of the stall orpaddock;derstand what you are seeing. In this article well Standing with head lowered;explore how you can use these expressions and Decreased appetite;body language to pick up on painful conditions Decreased socialization;your horse might be experiencing. Self-mutilation, such as chewing on a painful leg;Behavioral Signs of PainChange in attitude and/or performance;During a visit to the doctors office, you might Rearing when ridden; have seen a wall chart with multiple faces,Hypersensitivity of the flanks; andexhibiting big smiles, deep frowns, tears, and Aggression.everything between. Physicians use this Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) of 1 to 10 to score pain inPhysiologic Signs of Painpeople who can verbally communicate what theyOther pain indicators include an elevated are feeling. Because we cant rely on horses to tellheart rate and increases in blood cortisol (the us what theyre feeling, we use other observa- stress hormone) and/or -endorphins (a natural tions to determine if a horse is in pain and, if so,pain suppressor). Elevated oxytocin (a social how much. bonding and reproduction hormone) levels can Historically, the main implement in our equinealso indicate reduced well-being.pain detection toolbox has been behavior. ALea Lansade, PhD, and her colleagues at horse that acts out might do so for no reason orthe French Horse and Riding Institute and the a reason unrelated to pain, such as social factors.National Institute for Agricultural Research, in Or his behavior might indicate true discomfort.Tours, France, have been studying oxytocin in Indicators that all is not right can include: horses.12December 2019The Horse|TheHorse.comDetectingPain.indd 12 11/4/19 3:24 PM'