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Equine Cognition

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Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior

Synonyms

Cognitive ecology; Donkey; Equids; Horses; Human–horse interaction; Social cognition; Zebras

Introduction

The equids (Equidae) comprise zebras, donkeys, and horses. They are not considered to be independent taxa and can be crossbred, with wild animals sometimes crossbreeding in overlapping habitats. In general, the resulting equid hybrids are called zebroids (zebra and any other equid), mules (male donkey and female horse), or hinnies (male horse and female donkey). Other informal labels include zebrules, dedonks, and zorses. The hybrids are usually infertile.

Equids differ in their social organization and have different habitats (Klingel 1972; Fig. 1). Some species are exclusively wild, and some include domestic types. In evaluating their cognitive capacities, it is important to consider the species’ social and environmental challenges (Griffin et al. 2017). Only by knowing the conditions to which animals have to adapt can their cognitive capacities be compared in relation...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Equine Management, Nurtingen-Geislingen University, Neckarsteige 6–10, 72622, Nurtingen, Germany

    Konstanze Krueger

  2. Behavioural Physiology of Farm Animals, University of Hohenheim, Garbenstr. 17, Stuttgart, 70599, Germany

    Isabell Marr

  3. Faculty Agriculture, Economics and Management, Department Equine Economics, Nuertingen-Geislingen University, Neckarsteige 6-10, 72622, Nürtingen, Germany

    Isabell Marr

  4. School of Psychology & Neuroscience, St Andrews University, St Mary’s Quad, South Street, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9JP, Scotland, UK

    Kate Farmer

  5. Department of Zoology/Evolutionary Biology, University of Regensburg, Universitätsstraße 31, 93053, Regensburg, Germany

    Konstanze Krueger

Authors
  1. Konstanze Krueger
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  2. Isabell Marr
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  3. Kate Farmer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Konstanze Krueger .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland University , Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Jennifer Vonk

  2. Department of Psychology, Oakland University Department of Psychology, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Psychology, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL, USA

    Lauren Highfill

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Krueger, K., Marr, I., Farmer, K. (2017). Equine Cognition. In: Vonk, J., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_962-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_962-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-47829-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-47829-6

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