Relationship of horse temperament with breed, age, sex, and body characteristics: a questionnaire-based study

Abstract

Background: Temperament is an important issue that must be taken into consideration when purchasing horses for leisure, racing, or even work in the fields. Those who work with horses have various opinions about the relationship between a horse’s body characteristics and its temperament, but few scientific papers on this issue have been published. The objective of this study was to clarify the relationships of horse temperament with sex, breed, age, and body characteristics to help purchasers when selecting a horse with the desired temperament. A web-based survey consisting of a 32-item questionnaire was used to clarify the associations of sex, breed, age, and body characteristics with a horse’s temperament. The owners of a total of 112 horses from different countries (Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, and Iraq) were recruited to fill in the questionnaire about their horses. Results: The results showed statistically significant associations of sex and breed with temperament with 89.7% and 108.3%, respectively (p values < 0.001), while there was no significant association between age and temperament (chi-square p value 0.58). The results also clarified significant associations between body characteristics (color, head and body marks, leg marks, and whorls) and temperament (all chi-square p-values < 0.001). Conclusion: Purchasers can predict a horse’s temperament from its sex, breed, and body characteristics, including coat color, body and leg marks, and whorls