Inhabiting the World Together: Enrichment as Relationship
Freely Living with Minimal Human Intervention, Exmoor Ponies in the UK. Photo by Anthrozoology Researcher, Irene Perrett
Inhabiting the World Together: Enrichment as Relationship
By Désirée Braganza, Alana Somerset, and Lluc Pedrero
Alana and I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Lluc Pedrero from Barcelona, Spain, who specializes in equine ethology with a focus on enrichment. Our conversation crossed three countries and opened many roads of discussion, so many, in fact, that we decided to share them with you as a series of articles. This collaboration is especially meaningful to all of us because under normal circumstances, distance and language barriers might have kept us from connecting. Yet here we are. These articles will be available in both English and Spanish.
What Is Enrichment?
The idea of offering enrichment opportunities for domesticated horses is now fairly mainstream. Still, definitions and practices vary widely. To frame what enrichment might look like for horses in domestic settings, it helps to look at their wild, semi-wild, or free-living counterparts.
An Enriched Life in the Wild
In the wild, the concept of enrichment is blurry. It may not exist at all. For wild equines, what counts as enrichment is individual and situational. Life itself is enrichment. Challenges, curiosities, social interactions, hunger, choice, shelter, weather, risk: these elements create conditions that build sensory health and resilience. To borrow Andrew Solomon’s words to describe our mamamlian condition, “we are students of adversity.” Our senses are the gateway to that learning, whether equine or human.
Sensory Health as a Foundation
We often speak about physical and mental health, but sensory health is their foundation. How we perceive the world creates our umwelt - the unique world that surrounds each of us based on our sensory input and experience. That experience is shaped by species, environment, history, and memory. Horses may perceive movement on the horizon before we register it. We may hear a sound in the distance before they do. What matters is paying attention to each other’s strengths, preferences, and challenges and making our own needs known in return. Beyond collective species specific sensory experiences, we all have our individual experiences of our world. No two horses nor two humans are the same. Even if cloned, they would not share the same sensory consciousness.
Enrichment in Domestic Life
The way we define enrichment for domesticated horses is often shaped by how society views horses. Language matters. Words and phrases like “it” or “owned by” perpetuate mechanistic views of horses. In the words of trainer Laura McEvoy, horses become “bicycles with hair.” Health becomes the exclusive domain of allopathic veterinary professionals, whose life-saving work cannot be overstated. Yet we invite you to engage your own sensory intelligence and curiosity here. How can you tell how your horse perceives the world? How do you perceive it together? What inspires you? What seems to energize or comfort your horse? This is your shared ground.
Rethinking Traditional Enrichment
Common examples of enrichment include stall toys, treat puzzles, mirrors, or rotating new feeds. These may hold a horse’s attention briefly but often lose novelty. Some may even cause frustration. Imagine trying to eat a chocolate bar swinging from the ceiling. Social enrichment is another common focus, but it is worth asking: how would you feel if someone picked your friends for you?
Connection Is the Enrichment
Enrichment is not something you give to a horse. It is something you cultivate together. Your presence and participation are part of the experience. In a herd, enrichment arises from interaction with others - human and nonhuman - and the environment. When humans are involved, it becomes a shared endeavor. You help your horse try something new, support them in forming positive associations, and take the time to learn from what they initiate in return. With time and trust, your horse may invent a game, start a ritual, or guide your attention to something they want you to notice.
Some Practical Approaches to Try
True enrichment is not about more objects or more activities - it is about more life. Below are categories commonly studied in animal enrichment, each followed by a way to stretch that idea in a more relational direction. These categories are not stand-alones. Said another way, there are usually multiple interconnected benefits from engaging in each:
1. Environmental Enrichment
If your horse lives in a relatively static environment, offer small but meaningful variations. Environmental enrichment includes both natural elements, such as your horse’s interaction with their surroundings, and horse-human interaction. Horse-human enrichment might mean visiting at a different time of day, walking together at liberty, or letting your horse choose the route. Follow their curiosity. You can also combine both forms by introducing areas with different textures such as logs, mud, gravel, deep straw, moss, or sand. Consider adding sheltered spaces, even within pasture.
In Spain, building self-autonomy with a horse who has experienced much adversity by allowing them to lead while providing supportive companionship.
2. Nutritional Enrichment
Scatter feeding is a good start, but diversity matters too. Introduce forage types approved for your horse’s digestive system. Observe preferences. Eating is a social behavior for both horses and humans. If your horse enjoys apples or carrots, share them. Eat alongside them. Or, give them a chance to eat with their friends whether human or interspecies. Watch how they eat, what they savor, what they leave behind. It reveals more than taste; it reveals comfort, curiosity and even memory.
Communal meal time at The Liberty Barn Sanctuary in Palm City, Florida, USA
3. Cognitive Enrichment
Clicker training and puzzle feeders are common, but there is much more to explore. Research shows horses learn human words, read emotional cues, and recognize individuals. In one study, horses remembered learned object names even after months without reinforcement. Teach your horse hand signals. Learn their body language in return. Build a shared vocabulary, one gesture or sound at a time.
The Liberty Barn in Palm City Florida, USA, encourages freedom of expression. While their equine residents are likely enjoying the texture of the plastic canvas cover and the sensory novelty of licking the liquid underneath, it’s an activity that engages both horse and human and results in original co-created art.
4. Sensory Enrichment
Try gentle grooming with different textures. Allow mud rolling and rain soaking. Explore quiet nature walks with few human cues. Let your horse sniff the air and track scents. Play soundscapes of birdsong or water. Let them observe safely from a distance if they are alert to new animals. Sensory health is about meeting the world with confidence and capacity.
Textured brushes and cloths can provide sensory stimulation as a means to get to know what types of stimuli individual horses prefer or avoid.
5. Social Enrichment
Social needs are individual. Some horses enjoy large groups. Others prefer one or two close companions. Take time to observe who your horse chooses to stand near, groom with, or call to. If your horse is kept alone, consider safe ways to allow shared fence lines, soft introductions, or visual contact with others. Time spent with you can also be social enrichment, provided you meet one another as equals.
An indicator that friends are chosen is when horses move in synchrony. Their movemehents look like one another.
6. Physical Enrichment
Allow movement beyond circles. Offer uneven terrain, obstacles to step over or around, and environments that require adjustment and balance. Encourage short sprints, stretching, or meandering walks. Rest together, too. Variety supports proprioception and bodily confidence.
This log puzzle is a challenge for both horse and human to find their footing. These logs are not permanently affixed to the ground.
7. Occupational Enrichment
Some horses enjoy having a “job.” Others thrive when they are free to invent their own. Be careful not to impose roles but remain open to them. Some horses become guides to newcomers. Others may show caretaking behavior or initiate shared play. Notice what your horse offers. Help them find dignity in their daily life.
And some equines and their canine buddies are poised to take over human jobs! Photo courtesy of the Liberty Barn in Palm City, Florida, USA.
Enrichment Is Relationship
We do not offer a rigid definition of enrichment. You will know when you and your horse feel enriched. It is not just delight, and not quite love. It is something closer to a deep sense of belonging. Like recognizing beauty. Like feeling seen. Like being part of a conversation in which both of you matter.
We would love to hear from you.
Further Reading and Resources
Books:
Equine Behavior: A Guide for Veterinarians and Equine Scientists by Paul McGreevy
The Expanse of the Equine Mind by Maddy Butcher
The Art of Enrichment by David Shepherdson et al. (zoo context but widely applicable)
The Emotional Lives of Animals by Marc Bekoff
Articles:
Lesimple, C., & Hausberger, M. (2014). “How accurate are we at assessing others’ well-being? The example of welfare assessment in horses.” Frontiers in Psychology
Young, R. J. (2003). Environmental Enrichment for Captive Animals. UFAW Handbook
Jørgensen, G. H. M., Liestøl, S. H. O., & Bøe, K. E. (2011). Effects of enrichment items on activity and social interactions in domestic horses (Equus caballus). Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 129(2–4), 100–110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2010.11.004
Bini de Lima, A.C.; Sebastião da Fé, V.C.; Palermo Hernandes, M.S.; Oliveira dos Santos, V.M. Olfactory Stimulation as Environmental Enrichment for Domestic Horses—A Review. Animals 2023, 13, 3180. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13203180
About the Authors
Désirée Braganza, EdD, EBQ, received her equine behaviorist qualifications from the Natural Animal Centre, then located in the UK and South Africa. As a member of Bodhi Horse Practice, she collaborates with equine professionals worldwide on research projects specific to experiences of domesticated horses from an ethological lens. She is a horse partner, a rider, and has cared for and supported numerous horses over the years. Désirée recently relocated from Northern California and is now based in Athens, Georgia, USA. She consults internationally in-person and virtually.
Alana Somerset is a Veterinary Physiotherapy student at Plumpton College which is part of the Royal Agricultural University in the UK. You can connect with her through her Instagram: @wild_tensegrity.
Lluc Pedrero is currently collaborating with FAADA in Spain as an ethologist for equestrian events. He has developed a scientifically based training course on equine rescue, inspired by the Loops system and the pioneering work of Dr. Madigan in this field. Lluc began his journey at the Centaurides Center for Hippology, under the guidance of Willka Pasqual Neumann. There, he learned the foundational principles of ethology and the practices of the Centaur Method, which focuses on personal growth. He has also studied exercise physiology at TOCES and continues to advance his professional development through courses with other specialists and seminars in various areas. In Lluc’s words: “It is our responsibility as a species to care for horses.”
We are grateful to The Liberty Barn sanctuary in Palm City Florida, USA, who allowed us to share their photos and some of the numerous everyday enriching activities their residents and volunteers engage in. To learn more about their work and to become involved, here's their Facebook.
Friendly Reminder: These articles are meant to spark thought, not replace expert guidance. Consult equine professionals for individual advice.