Foal and Mare Behavior Changes during Repeated Human-Animal Interactions in the First Two Weeks after Foaling

This study is important to the equine research field to demonstrate if handling neonatal foals and mares who recently foaled is invasive and may change how the foals and mares will behave around humans. The data showed the effects of repeated blood draws and frequent handling on the foals and mares. The behavior of the foals and mares were documented over two weeks post foaling to determine if a behavior change has occurred due the handling. Results show no significant statistical difference in the behavior of the foals or mares throughout the study. Frequent handling of foals and mares for a research project in the period after foaling did not seem to be detrimental to their behavior.