Monitoring changes in heart rate and behavioral observations in donkeys during onotherapy sessions: a preliminary study

Donkeys are used for assisted therapies (AT) in adults with mental health disorders where they serve as suitable and effective alternative to equestrian therapy. Studies on animal assisted therapy programs have shown that AT could benefit patients treated for schizophrenic disorders since animals could act as social facilitators which are able to increase motivation, mobility and interpersonal contact. Research on characteristics for selection of individual animals or to assess animal welfare during AT are limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate heart rate (HR) and behavioral characteristics of animals involved in donkey therapy (onotherapy) sessions. Six clinically healthy female donkeys (mean age 17.8 ± 5.7 years) were recruited in this study. Behavioral observations were made from 8 am to 8 pm for two consecutive days in order to compile an ethogram of diurnal activity. Subjects were monitored during two work sessions of 30 minutes with a control group (Group C) co nsisting of six healthy male adults without any previous riding experience and with a therapeutic group (Group T) of six male adults affected by schizophrenic disorders (code ICD-9 diagnosis code 295.8). During session work with both groups the same therapist modulated human-animal interaction. Each session was videotaped in order to score animal responses. Tactile and olfactory interactions between animal and patient, postural behaviors and intraspecific social interaction were evaluated and scored on a 5-point arbitrary scale (0 = very low to 4= very high). Heart rate was recorded during sessions using a Polar heart rate monitor (Polar Equine S-610i, Polar Electro Ltd., Warwick, UK) and transformed using the Polar Equine 4.0 Software. One of the donkeys scored poorly on the behavioral scale and was removed from the study and considered not suitable for AT (results from evaluation of behavioral observation were very low). Mann Whitney Test was used to analyse mean heart rate values and sum of the behavioral scores (Statistica 8 software). There were no statistical differences in behavioral indicators between groups, while mean HR during work sessions with Group T (70.40 ± 7.60) was significantly higher (P<0.05) than with Group C (58.60 ± 2.0). These preliminary results could be indicative of a different emotional state of donkeys probably due to a higher activity of patients (Group T) during riding. These preliminary results suggest that individual aptitude for AT in donkeys should be tested by validated methods and that HR monitoring, in particular it's variability (not considered in this preliminary study), could be useful to evaluate the emotional state of individual animals used in onotherapy. Measure of physiological indicators coupled with behavioral observation may help assess the animal's suitability reactions. Further research is necessary to assess the welfare of donkeys involved in AT.