Massage or music meant to be relaxing, result in lowering salivary cortisol concentration in race horses

Abstract

At the beginning of training routine, young race horses are exposed to stressful stimuli. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of a relaxing massage which the horses received in the stable, and the influence of music piped into the stable, on the longlasting stress level of the horses. 120 Purebred Arabian horses were studied. They were examined during first racing season, which lasted for six months. At the beginning of the study, the horses were 28-31 months old. The horses were brought to Słužewiec Horse Race Track (Warsaw, Poland) from their familiar studs and were randomly assigned to music (n = 48), massage (n = 48), or control (n = 24) groups. All horses were regularly trained and competed in official races. Once a month, saliva samples were collected from each horse to determine the cortisol concentration. Both music and massage resulted in significantly lower salivary Cortisol concentration compared to control treatment.

Full text

Pferdeheilkunde 33 (2017)
146
Pferdeheilkunde 33 (2017) 2 (March/April) 146-151 DOI 10.21836/PEM20170206
Massage or music meant to be relaxing, result
in lowering salivary cortisol concentration in race horses
Witold Kędzierski1, Iwona Janczarek2, Anna Stachurska2and Izabela Wilk1
1Department of Biochemistry, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Lublin, Poland
2Department of Horse Breeding and Use, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Lublin, Poland
Summary: At the beginning of training routine, young race horses are exposed to stressful stimuli. The aim of the study was to evaluate
the influence of a relaxing massage which the horses received in the stable, and the influence of music piped into the stable, on the long-
lasting stress level of the horses. 120 Purebred Arabian horses were studied. They were examined during first racing season, which lasted
for six months. At the beginning of the study, the horses were 28–31 months old. The horses were brought to Słužewiec Horse Race Track
(Warsaw, Poland) from their familiar studs and were randomly assigned to music (n = 48), massage (n=48), or control (n=24) groups.
All horses were regularly trained and competed in official races. Once a month, saliva samples were collected from each horse to deter-
mine the cortisol concentration. Both music and massage resulted in significantly lower salivary cortisol concentration compared to control
treatment.
Keywords: animal welfare, cortisol, race horses, massage, music, stress
Citation: Kędzierski W., Janczarek I., Stachurska A., Wilk I. (2017) Massage or music meant to be relaxing, result in lowering salivary cor-
tisol concentration in race horses. Pferdeheilkunde 33, 146-151; DOI 10.21836/PEM20170206
Correspondence: Witold Kędzierski PhD, Department of Biochemistry, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 12, 20-033 Lublin,
Poland; e-mail: witold.kedzierski@up.lublin.pl
Massage or music decrease salivary cortisol in race horses
W. Kędzierski et al
.
Introduction
Young Purebred Arabian horses in Poland are routinely sub-
mitted to race training. At the age of 2.5 years, they are
moved from familiar studs to an unfamiliar race training cen-
tre. Much of the stimuli accumulated at the beginning of trai-
ning routine is associated with transport, change of residen-
ce, physical effort and participation in races, and can elicit
chronic stress in horses (
Alexander
and
Irvine
1998). Moreo-
ver, the commercialisation of race tracks alter the living con-
ditions towards circumstances inconsistent with the biology of
horses (
MacTaggart
et al. 2010). Keeping a racehorse in a
box for most of the day, results in restricted freedom of move-
ment (
Henderson
2007). An unfamiliar environment, isola-
tion, and short feed intake can also deepen the stress level
(
Waters
et al. 2002). It is known that long-lasting stress has a
negative influence on the organism. The factors generating
stress in trained horses, however, can only be partially elimi-
nated. Therefore, negative factors should be controlled and
their effects should be mitigated (
Evans
2003). Various rela-
xing methods may be used, e.g. free movement in the pad-
docks, massage and music. Massage promotes general body
relaxation and increases the sense of an animal well-being
(
Scott
and
Swenson
2009). In horses, the heart rate measured
during and immediately after a massage was reduced, and
improved behavioural responses were noted (
McBride
et al.
2004). Horses are generally sensitive to music. The most visi-
ble sign of the influence of music on horses is the horse’s
ability to synchronise their movement to musical rhythm
(
Bregman
et al. 2012). According to
Carter
and
Greening
(2012), the effect of the music on a horse’s behaviour
depends on the music genre.
Stachurska
et al. (2015) sho-
wed that relaxation music positively affected the emotional
state in race horses. However, little is known how these kinds
of relaxation methods reduce long-lasting stress in race hor-
ses (
Scott
and
Swenson
2009).
The most common approach used to evaluate the stress level
in horses, is measuring cortisol release (
Peeters
et al. 2010,
Schmidt
et al. 2010a, b). The cortisol is a natural glucocorti-
coid hormone synthetised by the adrenal cortex, which in turn,
is stimulated by sympathetic nervous system activity. The main
function of the hormone is to increase blood glucose level
during effort and stressful conditions. In horses, the blood
plasma cortisol concentration reflects not only the response to
exertion (
Desmecht
et al. 1996,
Nagata
et al. 1999) but also
the mental stress level (
Cayado
et al. 2006,
Fazio
et al.
2008). In recent years, in cortisol determination, more atten-
tion has been devoted to saliva sampling. This form of sam-
pling is less stressful for the horse than blood sampling (
Pee-
ters
et al. 2010, 2011). The level of the saliva cortisol corre-
lates well with its level in the blood (
van der Kolk
2001,
Pee-
ters
et al. 2011,
Bohak
et al. 2013). The salivary cortisol con-
centration was successfully used as an indicator of the stress
level in horses in response to stabling (
Harewood
2005),
road transport (
Schmidt
et al. 2010a, b) and exercise (
Kęd-
zierski
et al. 2013, 2014a). A significant increase in the sali-
vary cortisol concentration was stated in naïve horses during
the initial training. The increase was particularly significant in
response to mounting by a rider (
Schmidt
et al. 2010a,
Kęd-
zierski
et al. 2014b). Thus, measuring the cortisol concentra-
tion in saliva samples was assumed to be a useful marker of
the mental stress in horses.
The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of a rela-
xation massage, and music piped into the stable, on the hor-
se’s long-lasting stress level gauged with the salivary cortisol
concentration.

Pferdeheilkunde 33 (2017) 147
Materials and methods
This article presents data collected within a larger research
project designed to determine the influence of chosen relaxa-
tion techniques on the emotional state of young race horses.
The study tested the hypothesis that relaxation techniques
such as massage and music used over a long period of time,
decrease the salivary cortisol concentration in race horses.
Horses
In the study, 120 Purebred Arabian horses were examined
over two years: 57 horses in the first year and 63 in the
second year. All the horses participated in the study during
their first racing season. Each horse was studied for six
months, which covered the full race season for three-year old
Purebred Arabian horses. At the beginning of the study, the
horses were 28–31 months old. The horses were brought to
Słužewiec Horse Race Track (Warsaw, Poland) from their fami-
liar studs about three months earlier to acclimatise to the new
conditions. After a month of acclimatisation, the horses
began the initial training. On the first few days, they were
bridled and saddled inside their boxes. Next, they were wal-
ked and trotted in an automated horse walker for 30 min a
day. After that, the horses were mounted. The caretaker held
the reins and another caretaker assisted the rider to first lay
over the back of the horse and then to move to a sitting posi-
tion in the saddle. This initial training lasted nine to twelve
days, depending on the horse behaviour. Finally, the riders
walked and trotted the horses in a paddock for 30 min a day
for about six weeks.
The horses were randomly divided into three groups: control
group (n=24), music group which listened to music meant to
be relaxing (n= 48), and massage group (n= 48) which
regularly received a relaxing massage for about 30 min, three
days a week. The only criterion of dividing the horses into the
groups was that the groups were to include a similar number
of mares and stallions. During the whole testing period, the
horses were housed in four stables under comparable social
and environmental conditions. Each horse was kept in a box
stall measuring 3.5m × 4m. Straw bedding allowed the horse
to comfortably lie down. To reduce the influence of nonspe-
cific factors on the animal’s emotional reaction, all the horses
were fed the same diet according to dietary guidelines and
cared for by the same caretakers in a manner which was typi-
cal for race horses. This means that all horses had equal
exposure to all the caretakers. To minimise the influence of
the year and stable factors, the experiment was arranged in a
manner shown in Table 1. For the first year of the study, the
massage was introduced in stables 1 and 2, and the music in
stables 3 and 4. The schedule was revised in the second year
of the study. The control group was also continued in respec-
tive stables in the consecutive years.
Massage or music decrease salivary cortisol in race horses
W. Kędzierski et al
.
Before the study, all of the horses were clinically sound accor-
ding to a veterinarian. All the horses showed normal beha-
viour according to the trainer. Not all of the horses remained
in training for the whole racing season because, in some
cases, the owners decided to end their horse’s career before
the end of the season. Thus, the number in the data for each
month was lower than the number of horses included in a
group, and amounted to 62.5% – 89.6%.
Training and Racing
The experiment was performed according to the regular race-
training schedule, and for two race seasons. The training ses-
sions were performed for about one hour a day, six days a
week. The riders saddled the horses then walked the horses
for approximately 10 min as a warm-up exercise. The primary
race training was conducted on the sand track. The speed
and duration were individually adapted to the level of each
horse’s performance. An exception was made for the measu-
rement days. On the measurement days, each horse had to
cover a distance of 1800m at a speed of 6.4m/s. After the
exercise, the horses were put on an automatic horse walker
for 45min. At the end of the third month of the study, the hor-
ses started to compete in official races at least once a month.
A day before and two days after the race, the horses were
only given 60 minutes of exercise in the automatic walker. On
those days, they were not examined. All persons included in
the training and maintaining of studied horses didn’t know the
purpose of the study.
At the end of both race seasons, the horses’ performance was
estimated with four parameters based on official race
records: (1) number of races, in which a horse won; (2) prize
per race, i.e. sum of prizes won to the number of races a hor-
se took part; (3) success coefficient, i.e. sum of prizes won by
a horse to sum of prizes won by all horses at the same age in
respective race season; (4) general handicap, i.e. theoretical
weight (in kg) a horse should carry in a race to equal the hor-
se’s chance to win the race, with the chances of other horses
at the same age.
Listening to Music
For approximately five hours a day, music group listened to
music piped into their stalls. The music was played in the sta-
ble from 1 to 6 o’clock p.m. The music used was specifically
composed and recorded by J. Marlow, the specialist in the
music for animals. The rhythm and sound frequency of the
composition were intended to be within the sensitivity of the
equine hearing range (
Saslow
2002,
Wells
2009). The rela-
xation music CD contains 10 movie-like soundtracks of New
Age genre, played with J. Marlow’s ten-string guitar. The
music was heard in the stable through a loudspeaker (My Pet
Table 1 Organization of the groups of horses
Year of the study
Stable 1
Stable 2
Stable 3
Stable 4
1st
Massage n=14
Control n=6
Massage n=10
Control n=6
Music n=11
Music n=10
2nd
Music n=14
Music n=13
Massage n=14
Control n=6
Massage n=14
Control n=6
!

Pferdeheilkunde 33 (2017)
148
Speaker®, Pet Acoustic Inc, Washington, USA) also designed
to be within the range of horse-hearing. The tool limits sound
frequencies into 200Hz~ 12 KHz and features a soft bass
designed for listening comfort. The CD was played every day
in the “Repeat All” mode. The volume was set in the mid-ran-
ge; at about 65–70 decibels.
Massaging routine
In addition to the training routine, the horses from massage
group were subjected to special long-lasting, relaxing physio-
therapy. The horses received an overall-massage for
25–30 min, three days a week. The horses were always mas-
saged after the training session and after collecting the saliva
samples. For one week prior to the actual study, the horses
were massaged to get them used to the technique. The pri-
mary massage session included: (1) laying hands on the hor-
se, which is not, in fact, a proper massage technique but was
used more to accustom the horse to contact; (2) friction, i.e.
massage with a circular stroking motion applied across the
horse's muscle, instead of restricting it to the direction of the
muscle, tendons and ligaments; (3) petrissage, i.e. kneading
some areas of the body to increase the circulation in the tis-
sues. Petrissage helps soften and prepare the horse's muscle
tissue for deeper equine therapy movements; (4) shaking
used for increasing the local circulation and for improving the
stretching of the horse’s limbs; (5) and tapotement applied for
stimulating the horses at the end of the massage session. The
massage focused on four body areas: (1) the neck area (M.
trapezius, M. rhomboideus, M. splenius, M. serratus ventralis
thoracis and M. brachiocephalicus); (2) the scapula, forearm
and back (M. supraspinatus, M. infraspinatus, M. triceps bra-
chii and M. latissimus dorsi); (3) the buttock (M. gluteus
superficjalis, M. gluteus medius, M. biceps femoris, M. semi-
tendinosus and M. semimembranosus); (4) the hind limb (M.
extensor digitorum longus and M. flexor digitorum superficja-
lis). The massage was performed by four masseurs. They were
well-trained specialists in the area of horse physiotherapy. The
masseurs did not massage only one horse each but rotated
amongst the horses.
Saliva Cortisol Measurement
The saliva samplings were conducted six times a year. The first
sampling took place in March, i.e. at the beginning of race
training, and just before introducing the music and massage
in the experimental groups. Samples were taken every 28–35
days. Two saliva samples were collected from each horse: (1)
in the early morning at rest - before the training session; (2)
and immediately after the return of the horse from the track.
The samples were collected with a small piece of sponge
which was inserted into the horse’s mouth and then, after
soaking in the saliva, the sponge was placed in a plastic tube
and stored at -20ºC until assayed, as described by
Strzelec
et al. (2011).
Before the laboratory analysis, the saliva samples were cen-
trifuged at 500×g for 15 min at room temperature. Next, the
sponge with the straw was removed and the saliva was trans-
ferred to test tubes. The concentrations of cortisol in the saliva
samples were measured by the enzyme-immunoassay method
Massage or music decrease salivary cortisol in race horses
W. Kędzierski et al
.
using the CORTISOL EIA kit (Diagnostic System Laboratories
Inc., Webster, TX, USA). All the samples were analysed in
duplicate. The absorbance was measured by a Multiscan
reader (Labsystem, Helsinki, Finland) using the GENESIS V
3.00 software program. The intra- and interassay CV for sali-
vary cortisol determined in the laboratory amounted to 9%
and 11%. The results were expressed in nmol/L.
In spite of complying with the strict procedures, in some
cases, the analysis of the cortisol level did not give any results
because the absorbance was about the maximal value of the
range of this method.
Statistical Analysis
The data were statistically analysed with the use of multivari-
ate analysis of variance (ANOVA GLM; SAS software packa-
ge, 2003) which considered the effect of the group (the con-
trol, music and massage groups), sex (stallions, mares), and
the year of the study (first year, second year) as well as the
interactions between those factors. The year of the study and
the sex factors turned out to be insignificant and were not the
subject of the study, hence only the group factor was discus-
sed. The results are presented as the means with the standard
deviations (SD). Tukey’s multiple comparison test was used to
identify the differences between the groups. Statistical signifi-
cance was accepted at the level of P< 0.05.
Results
In the first measurement taken at rest, the groups did not dif-
fer with regard to the cortisol level. The salivary cortisol con-
centration determined at rest was significantly lower in music
and massage groups, as compared to control group, in the
second, third, fourth and sixth measurements (Figure 1). In
the fifth measurement, the cortisol level in massage group
was significantly lower than in music group. In the samples
collected after training sessions finished for the day, the
results of control and music groups did not differ significantly
(Figure 2). However, in massage group’s, the second and
sixth measurement results were significantly lower than the
results of control group. Moreover, the fifth and sixth measu-
Fig. 1 Salivary cortisol level determined at rest in studied groups
of horses during following months of the training season
(means±SD). 1, 2, 3 … = following months of the study; *= means
in Control Group differ significantly in comparison to other groups;
+= mean in massage group is significantly different than in music
group.

Pferdeheilkunde 33 (2017) 149
rement results of massage group were significantly lower than
the results for music group. To simplify the graphs, in both
Figures, the values of SD are presented as only upper or
lower bars, nevertheless, each value of SD above the mean
was equal with those below the mean.
The race performance parameters are presented in Table 2.
Horses in massage group achieved better results than those
in control group with regard to the number of races won, pri-
ze per race and success coefficient. Music group had signifi-
cantly higher prize per race than control group. All the stu-
died performance parameters did not significantly differ bet-
ween music and massage groups.
Discussion
The results of the present study clearly show that both stress-
coping methods (music meant to be relaxing in the stable and
relaxing massage), brought positive effects. Introducing those
methods significantly decreased the release of cortisol. The
amount of cortisol was estimated on the basis of the salivary
cortisol concentration. The use of this kind of stress-level esti-
mation is commonly accepted in current research (
Schmidt
et
al. 2010 a and b,
Peeters
et al. 2010).
The most interesting results concerned the determination of
the cortisol level in saliva samples, taken at rest. The lack of
differences in the first measurement taken at rest, showed
that, as was expected, the three groups showed similar corti-
sol levels at the beginning of the study. The similarity of the
groups was in accordance with the trainer’s opinion on the
normal behaviour of all of the horses. Both of the relaxation
methods significantly decreased the cortisol release as com-
Massage or music decrease salivary cortisol in race horses
W. Kędzierski et al
.
pared to control group, during the whole racing season,
excluding the fifth month of the study. It is worth noticing that
the massage was performed after the training sessions, so the
horses were massaged at noon, and they listened to music in
the afternoon. The horses were investigated at rest, in the ear-
ly morning, hence the influence of the relaxation methods was
analysed many hours after the relaxation treatments. Our
results indicate the long lasting effect of the relaxation
methods on the salivary cortisol level in the race horses. The
positive effect the massage had on the salivary cortisol level
determined just after a treatment, was described earlier (
Scott
and
Swenson
2009). In other study, massage reduced the
stress level which had been evaluated on the basis of heart
rate and behaviour of the horses also during a treatment
(
McBride
et al. 2004). In the fifth month of the study, the hor-
ses which listened to music had a significantly higher salivary
cortisol concentration than those horses which received a
massage. An analysis of heart rate variability in horses which
listened to relaxation music, also showed that the effective-
ness of this method decreased after some months of the tre-
atment (
Stachurska
et al. 2015). Perhaps animals get accu-
stomed to the music as time passes. Moreover, the horses in
general get accustomed to the training. A tendency to decre-
ase in resting cortisol values was seen in control group during
the study. Thus, probably, the salivary cortisol concentration
dropped in music group in sixth measurement in comparison
to the fifth measurement, because of a general tendency to
adapt to the environment. However, the adaptation effects of
long-lasting music treatment in humans and animals have
been studied less. In fact, many reports describe beneficial
effects of short-time use of relaxing music (
Kıyıcı
et al. 2013,
Bowman
et al. 2015,
Linnemann
et al. 2015, 2016).
The analysis of those salivary cortisol samples taken after the
daily training sessions, and taken in the fifth and sixth month
of the study, showed the clear positive effect of the massage
treatment over the music treatment. Exercise performed by
race horses during training increases the salivary cortisol con-
centration (
Kędzierski
et al. 2013, 2014a), however, enduran-
ce exercise has a stronger effect (
Desmecht
et al. 1996). Some
studies suggest that salivary cortisol level determined after
exercise, can indicate the relative intensity of exercise in race
horses (
Kędzierski
et al. 2013). Generally, the intensity of exer-
cise increases with the duration of training. Therefore, the
values of salivary cortisol obtained after the end of training
sessions tended to increase, especially in control and music
groups. In the following months of the study, we compared
horses which were subjected to similar amounts of intensive
exercise. Thus, the differences in the salivary cortisol concen-
tration found between massage group and other groups were
the evident effect of the massage treatment. Listening to music
only appears to influence mental relaxation in the horses, whe-
reas massage has an effect on both the mental and muscle
Fig. 2 Salivary cortisol level determined after the end of training
sessions in studied groups of horses during following months of the
training season (means ± SD). 1, 2, 3 … = following months of the
study; *=means in Massage Group are significantly different than in
Control Group; += means in Massage Group differ significantly, in
comparison to Music Group.
Table 2 Race performance parameters of the studied horses (means ± SD)
Group of horses
Number of races
in which the horse won
Sum of prices to number
of starts ratio
Success coefficient
General handicap
Control
0.54 ± 0.38 a
301 ± 142 a
0.90 ± 0.09 a
55.9 ± 10.5 a
Music
0.77 ± 0.29 ab
554 ± 141 b
1.36 ± 1.28 ab
61.1 ± 12.2 a
Massage
0.89 ± 0.14 b
723 ± 95.9 b
1.26 ± 0.31 b
63.8 ± 11.5 a
Sum of prices is given in Euro. Success coefficient - the sum of prizes won by a horse, divided by the mean sum of prizes won by all horses at the same age
in current race season. Means in columns marked with the same letters do not differ significantly at p<0.05
!

Pferdeheilkunde 33 (2017)
150
relaxation (
Haussler
2009). It is not surprising that the estima-
ted cortisol release after physical activity showed that massage
brought more beneficial effects than the music. From the eco-
nomic and management point of view, though, providing
music is much easier than providing a relaxing massage.
The horses were exposed to such stressful stimuli as: the trai-
ning routine, a restriction of movement during most of the
day, and taking part in strong competition during races. Tho-
se stimuli had an influence on all of the horse groups. Other
factors, like the conditions in the stables, the behaviour of the
caretakers and trainers, may also affect the stress level in the
horses. Horses are very sensitive to human behaviour (
Baragli
et al. 2009,
Keeling
et al. 2009,
Birke
et al. 2011). For this
reason, the study was arranged in a manner which minimali-
zed the influence of the stable and human factors and ena-
bled the researches to focus on the influence of the massage,
and music.
The benefits of the relaxing methods were also found in the
race records. The prize per race was significantly higher in the
experimental groups than in control group. Moreover, the
number of races won and the success coefficient were higher
in massage group. Hence, the performance of the horses tre-
ated with the relaxing methods was better which, in turn, had
the economic importance. This fact shows that applying the
relaxing methods is desired because of the race horse’s wel-
fare and performance.
Conclusion
In conclusion, both the relaxation massage and the music tre-
atment significantly decreased the cortisol release in Purebred
Arabian horses trained for racing. The massage treatment
gave better results than listening to music which meant to be
relaxing. Playing music, though, being easier to provide, may
be widely introduced to improve the welfare and performance
of race horses.
Funding statement
The Polish National Centre for Research and Development
(grant number 180061) sponsored this study.
Animal Welfare Statement
The animal care and experimental procedures were in accor-
dance with the European Committee regulations for the pro-
tection of experimental animals. The care and procedures
were approved by Local Ethics Review Committee for Animal
Experiments, the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland
(reference number 78/2012).
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Erweiterte Zusammenfassung
Massage oder Musik führt beim Rennpferd zu einer Ver-
minderung der Speichel-Cortisolkonzentration
Junge Pferde werden zum Trainingsbeginn oft transportiert
und in einer neuen Umgebung aufgestallt. Dieser Transport,
die Umstallung, Beginn des Trainings sowie Teilnahme an
Rennen bedingt für Pferde chronischen Stress. Es ist bekannt,
dass langanhaltender Stress einen negativen Einfluss auf die
Gesundheit hat. Zur Reduzierung des Stresses gibt es unter-
schiedliche Ansätze wie Auslauf in einem Paddock, Musik
oder Massage. Beim Pferd konnte nachgewiesen werden,
dass unter Massage die Herzfrequenz sinkt. Musik beruhigt
Pferde ebenfalls wobei die Art der gewählten Musik durchaus
Einfluss hat. Allerdings ist wenig darüber bekannt, inwiefern
diese Methoden einen chronischen Stress bei Rennpferden
beeinflussen. Zur Erfassung von mentalem Stress stellt die
Erhebung des Kortisolspiegels im Speichel zurzeit eine einfach
durchzuführende und anerkannte Methode dar. Ziel dieser
Studie war es, den Einfluss einer entspannenden Massage
und von im Stall gespielter Musik auf den Stresspegel von
Pferden mit Hilfe der Kortisolkonzentration im Speichel zu
beurteilen. Die Studienpopulation umfasste 120 klinisch
gesunde Araber, die im Rahmen ihrer ersten Rennsaison über
zwei Jahre untersucht wurden, 57 Pferde im ersten und 63
Tiere im zweiten Jahr. Die Studiendauer betrug jeweils 6
Massage or music decrease salivary cortisol in race horses
W. Kędzierski et al
.
Monate. Zu Beginn waren die Araber 28–31 Monate alt. Die
Tiere wurden vom Gestüt zum Rennstall gebracht und dort
über einen Monat akklimatisiert, anschließend begann das
Training. Über die folgenden 9–12 Tage sollten die Pferde an
den Reiter gewöhnt werden, über die folgenden 6 Wochen
wurden die Tiere über 30 Minuten geritten, gefolgt kontinu-
ierlich gesteigertem Training. Die Pferde waren per Zufalls-
prinzip in drei Gruppen aufgeteilt worden: Musikgruppe,
Massage- und Kontrollgruppe. Alle Pferde waren auf Stroh
aufgestallt, erhielten die gleiche Futterration und dasselbe
Personal versorgte die Tiere. Die Pferde wurden 6 Tage in der
Woche über 1h trainiert, nach drei Trainingsmonaten starte-
ten sie das erste Rennen. Am Ende beider Rennsaisons wurde
die Leistung der Pferde beurteilt über Anzahl der gewonnenen
Rennen, Preisgeld pro Rennen, Erfolgskoeffizient sowie gene-
relles Handicap. In der Musikgruppe wurde an fünf Tagen die
Woche von 13 bis 18 Uhr eine speziell komponierte Musik
abgespielt. Die Pferde der Massagegruppe wurden an drei
Tagen in der Woche physiotherapeutisch über 25–30 Minu-
ten behandelt und zwar nach dem Training und nach Entnah-
me der Speichelproben. Die Massage umfasste 1. einfaches
Auflegen der Hände, 2. Massage der Muskulatur mit kreisför-
migen Bewegungen, 3. knetende Massage, 4. Schüttel sowie
Klopfmassage. Die spezifischen massierten Regionen waren
Genickregion, Scapula, Vorderbein, Rücken, Hintergliedma-
ße und Kruppe einschließlich M. semimembranosus, M. semi-
tendinosus. Die Speichelproben wurden über 6 Monate
monatlich genommen. Die erste Probennahme erfolgte zu
Beginn des Renntrainings, vor der Einführung der Musik und
Massage. Die Kortisolkonzentration wurde mittels Enzym-
Immunoassay analysiert.
Die ersten Messungen vor Beginn des Renntrainings unter-
schieden sich bezüglich der Gruppenzugehörigkeit nicht. Bei
der zweiten, dritten, vierten und sechsten Messung waren die
Konzentrationen bei Pferden der Musik- oder Massagegruppe
signifikant niedriger im Vergleich zu den Kontrolltieren. Bei
der fünften Messung waren die Werte bei Pferden der Massa-
gegruppe signifikant niedriger als bei Tieren der Musikgrup-
pe. Auch konnte festgestellt werden, dass Pferde der Massa-
gegruppe bessere Rennergebnisse erzielten als Pferde der
Kontrollgruppe und zwar in Hinblick auf Anzahl gewonnener
Rennen, Preisgeld pro Rennen und Erfolgskoeffizient. Somit
konnten beide Verfahren – mit Ausnahme des fünften Monats
in der Musikgruppe – eine Stressreduzierung während der
Rennsaison erzielen. Letzteres Ergebnis könnte auf einem
Gewöhnungseffekt beruhen. Die Ergebnisse des fünften und
sechsten Monats deuten auf eine bessere Entspannung der
Pferde durch Massage hin. Da die Probenentnahme morgens
mehrere Stunden nach den Entspannungsmassage erfolgte,
hält der erzielte Effekt über längere Zeit an. Bei Pferden der
Kontrollgruppe und bei Tieren der Musikgruppe stiegen die
Kortisolwerte in den letzten zwei Untersuchungsmonaten wie-
der an, eventuell könnte dies auf dem zunehmend höheren
Trainingsniveau beruhen.
Schlüsselwörter: Tierschutz, Cortisol, Rennpferd, Massage,
Musik, Stress, Pferd