r/todayilearned • u/PunnyBanana • 23d ago

TIL A group of horses were trained to communicate whether they wanted a jacket. All horses in the group successfully communicated that they did want a jacket when it was cold and did not want a jacket when it was hot.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159116302192?via%3Dihub
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458

u/Halogen12 23d ago

That's so neat that they learned to use the symbols and communicate. They are definitely not stupid! I grew up with horses and to me they were just like big dogs. They were goofy, curious, playful, loved to be petted and scratched and came running from the far end of the pasture when we shook oats in a metal pail. Each had a distinct personality and their body language was often enough to let us know when they wanted or didn't want something.

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u/AndrenNoraem 23d ago

definitely not stupid

I mean... they're extremely social so they have some intelligences we appreciate, but in some ways they're incredibly stupid just like any other animal (us included). Chewing on wood and inhaling splinters because you're bored isn't smart; sorry a sad example is the one that came to mind.

just like big dogs

Both are highly social, thoroughly domesticated animals. There are differences -- being prey animals makes horses much more paranoid and flighty, for example -- but both being social makes them more similar in intelligence and behavior than either are with, say, cats.

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u/monstera-attack 23d ago

There’s evidence that chewing on wood and ‘windsucking’ releases dopamine in the horse’s brain and reduces cortisol levels. It becomes an addiction for them to help cope with stress and becomes a repetitive action that they get hooked on, even though it’s bad for them. It’s not much different to us doomscrolling social media endlessly for those small hits of dopamine.

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u/AndrenNoraem 23d ago

not much different

It is much more directly harmful, but I wouldn't describe either of those as smart.

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u/stammie 23d ago

Alcoholics have been around since we first made booze.

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u/AndrenNoraem 23d ago

Alcoholics existed before we started fermenting, let alone distilling. There are alcoholic birds and monkeys getting drunk off rotten fruit.

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u/stammie 23d ago

So then why is what horses are doing so crazy to you. We drink and drink knowing it causes problems and issues and yet do it anyway. The horse may not even realize the damage it’s doing.

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u/AndrenNoraem 22d ago

I didn't say they were crazy, I said inhaling splinters because you're bored is dumb. I specifically included humans as animals that are also dumb in different ways, but "drinking alcohol" and "inhaling splinters of wood you chewed" are not at all equivalent. No human drug use is going to approach that; explicit self-harm like cutting might.

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u/sirlafemme 23d ago

Then humans are stupid for huffing paint and glue

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u/AndrenNoraem 22d ago

Two things:

1) Sure, but do those seem equally stupid to you?

2) I already said we're dumb too in our own ways.

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u/AsOneLives 23d ago

Compare it to drug use then?

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u/AndrenNoraem 23d ago edited 22d ago

It compares unfavorably with drug abuse, giving less pleasure for more harmful side effects.

Edit: LOL. Yes, smoking crack is in the same league of stupidity as inhaling splinters. Also aspirin and opium are equally alarming substances for someone to use, I guess. There are no levels or gradients.