January Newsletter: The Best Enrichment Toys for Your Horse

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The Best Enrichment Toys for Your Horse

Highly intelligent horses can quickly become bored without adequate mental stimulation. Unfortunately, boredom can lead to unwanted behaviors, like cribbing, weaving, and biting. Toys keep your horse's mind engaged and could reduce or stop troublesome behaviors.

Choosing Toys for Your Horse

Just like people, horses have personal preferences regarding entertainment. A toy that challenges or amuses one horse may be ignored by another. Offering a variety of toys gives your horse plenty of options and helps you determine which type of toys/activities your horse finds most interesting.

Keep life interesting by offering toys on a rotating basis. If your horse has the same old toys available every day, it may soon lose interest and become bored.

Looking for enrichment toy ideas? Try a few of these popular options:

Balls. Balls may seem like a basic choice, but these simple toys are a favorite of many horses. Kicking and chasing the balls will keep your horse entertained and active for hours. Balls with handles make it easy for your horse to grab and carry the toy.
Treat Balls. Treats are more fun when you have to work to earn one. Treat balls must be rolled or shaken at precisely the right angle to allow treats to fall through the holes. Although you won't have trouble finding treat balls online or in stores, homemade treat balls offer a cheaper option. Best Friends Animal Society recommends creating a treat ball by drilling holes in an empty drink jug and placing treats inside.
Hanging Treat Dispensers. Switch things up by adding a hanging treat dispenser for your horse. Attach the dispenser to the ceiling or wall. Treats pop out when your horse nudges the dispenser.
Puzzle Feeders. Like treat balls, puzzle feeders also release treats or food, but require a little more strategy. For example, your horse may need to turn the feeder in several different directions before it releases a treat.
Lick Mat. Licking helps calm anxious horses and offers a fun way to pass the time. Spread applesauce, honey, molasses, yogurt, peanut butter, or pureed vegetables on the lick mat or come up with your own concoction.
Mirrors. Mirrors help horses feel that they aren't alone and can help reduce anxiety and stress. Placing mirrors in stalls significantly reduced weaving in stabled horses in a research study published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science in 2002. Some horses love mirrors, while others may react aggressively to their reflections. If your horse doesn't seem to like the mirror, move on to another enrichment option. Use shatterproof acrylic mirrors to prevent injuries from broken glass.
Slow Feeders. Grazing occupies hours of your horse's pasture time. That's not the case when your horse spends time indoors or confined to a paddock. Adding slow feeders extends the feeding process, allowing your horse to eat small amounts of hay or feed throughout the day. Slow feeders offer built-in mental stimulation, as your horse must work to free hay from the feeder. Several types of slow feeders are available, including net hanging bags and troughs with grates on top.
Scratchers. Textured scratchers relieve boredom and help your horse scratch that itch. Scratchers can be attached to posts inside or outside and provide gentle stimulation without damaging your horse's skin or hair.