Horses (Equus caballus) have been domesticated for millennia and are regularly utilized for work, sport, and companionship. Enhanced understanding of human–horse interactions can create avenues to optimize their welfare. This review explores the current research surrounding many aspects of human–horse interactions by first highlighting the horse’s sensory capabilities and how they pertain to human interactions. Evidence exists that suggests that horses can read humans in various ways through our body odours, posture, facial expressions, and attentiveness. The literature also suggests that horses are capable of remembering previous experiences when working with humans. The interrelatedness of equine cognition and affective states within the horse’s umwelt is then explored. From there, equine personality and the current literature regarding emotional transfer between humans and horses is examined. Even though horses may be capable of recognizing emotional states in humans, there remains a gap in the literature of whether horses are capable of empathizing with human emotion. The objective of this literature review is to explore aspects of the relationship between humans and horses to better understand the horse’s umwelt and thereby shed new light on potential positive approaches to enhance equine welfare with humans.

中文翻译：

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增强对马与人互动的理解以优化福利


马（ Equus caballus ）已被驯化数千年，经常用于工作、运动和陪伴。增强对人与马相互作用的理解可以创造优化其福利的途径。这篇综述首先强调了马的感官能力以及它们与人类互动的关系，探讨了当前围绕人马互动的许多方面的研究。有证据表明，马可以通过我们的体味、姿势、面部表情和注意力以多种方式解读人类。文献还表明，马在与人类合作时能够记住以前的经历。然后探索马的认知和马的环境中的情感状态的相互关系。从那里开始，研究了马的性格和当前有关人与马之间情感转移的文献。尽管马可能能够识别人类的情绪状态，但关于马是否能够理解人类情绪的文献仍然存在空白。本文献综述的目的是探讨人与马之间关系的各个方面，以更好地了解马的环境，从而为提高马与人类的福利的潜在积极方法提供新的线索。