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Horses can smell fear: In experiments where horses smelled sweat from scared humans, they reacted to scary and sudden events with increased fear and reduced human interaction

01.14.26 | PLOS

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Human emotional odours influence horses’ behaviour and physiology
Muzzle used to expose horses to the odours. A lycra muzzle with cotton pads stapled in front of the horse’s nostrils was fixed to the halter. Credit: Jardat et al., 2026, PLOS One, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Horses can smell fear: In experiments where horses smelled sweat from scared humans, they reacted to scary and sudden events with increased fear and reduced human interaction

Article URL : https://plos.io/49nDTft

Article title: Human emotional odours influence horses’ behaviour and physiology

Author countries: France

Funding: This study was granted by ANR Emodour (grant number ANR-23-CE20-0033) and Institut Français du Cheval et de l’Équitation (IFCE, grant number 32001331 Cognition Emotion). PJ was funded by the French Ministry for Research. These funding sources had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation and submission of the manuscript.

PLOS One

10.1371/journal.pone.0337948

Human emotional odours influence horses’ behaviour and physiology

14-Jan-2026

The authors declare no competing interests.

Keywords

Animal Psychology Animal Science Animals Life Sciences Organismal Biology

Article Information

Journal
PLOS One
DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0337948
Article Publication Date
2026-01-14
Article Title
Human emotional odours influence horses’ behaviour and physiology
COI Statement
The authors declare no competing interests.

Contact Information

Hanna Abdallah
PLOS
onepress@plos.org

How to Cite This Article

APA:
PLOS. (2026, January 14). Horses can smell fear: In experiments where horses smelled sweat from scared humans, they reacted to scary and sudden events with increased fear and reduced human interaction. Brightsurf News. https://www.brightsurf.com/news/19NQW651/horses-can-smell-fear-in-experiments-where-horses-smelled-sweat-from-scared-humans-they-reacted-to-scary-and-sudden-events-with-increased-fear-and-reduced-human-interaction.html
MLA:
"Horses can smell fear: In experiments where horses smelled sweat from scared humans, they reacted to scary and sudden events with increased fear and reduced human interaction." Brightsurf News, Jan. 14 2026, https://www.brightsurf.com/news/19NQW651/horses-can-smell-fear-in-experiments-where-horses-smelled-sweat-from-scared-humans-they-reacted-to-scary-and-sudden-events-with-increased-fear-and-reduced-human-interaction.html.