The Science Behind Relax Trax

by Boehringer Ingelheim / May 17, 2024

A brown horse standing in a stall listening to music on a speaker

Stress and Ulcers

As prey animals, horses naturally have a flight instinct that keeps them on the lookout for danger 24/7. While this was once a necessary tool for survival, it can now result in frequent moments of stress, both big and small.

Not only can stress be challenging on its own, it can also cause a bigger health problem in horses: equine gastric ulcer syndrome. Ulcers are painful lesions on the inside of a horse’s stomach, and can cause clinical signs such as decreased performance, changes in attitude, poor appetite and weight loss.¹

Stress is inevitable in some situations, but by proactively reducing moments of stress, you can significantly decrease the likelihood of ulcers occurring. Boehringer Ingelheim teamed up with animal sound behaviorist Janet Marlow to develop Relax Trax, a music soundtrack specifically designed to help reduce stress in horses.

“Boehringer Ingelheim is passionate about offering horse owners solutions to health problems outside of the traditional pharmaceutical world,” said Sarah Reuss, VMD, DACVIM, Equine Technical Manager.

The Science

Relax Trax was developed based on what has been learned from several studies over the years. In one study, which was conducted on racehorses in Poland, playing music for the horses was found to provide a positive and relaxing effect, and balance equine behavior by masking outside sounds and vibrations.^2,3

“Relax Trax includes specific rhythms to mimic the gaits of a horse and string instruments to elicit calm,” explained Marlow. “Relax Trax is also within the horse’s pitch comfort range of 1 to 16 kilohertz, and a volume comfort range of 60 to 80 decibels.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, another study showed that horses are fans of country music, due to the tempo and key, while rock and jazz were disruptive to relaxing behaviors.⁴

The Proof

With Relax Trax playing through the barn, horses can be seen exhibiting behaviors consistent with relaxation: chewing; yawning; soft eyes; loose, hanging jaws; and relaxed nostrils.

Relax Trax can be a beneficial relaxation tool for any horse, even if they aren’t experiencing what a horse owner might consider to be a stressful event. A long trailer ride, competing at a horse show, a new stall neighbor or a change in routine are all different stressors that may be impacting your horse.

“The stress that horses experience can be from many things that we don’t necessarily think of as being stressful,” stated Kelly Graber, Associate Director, Marketing, Equine, Boehringer Ingelheim. “It’s important to recognize and limit potential stressors in a horse’s everyday life to help keep them relaxed and healthy.”

An educational video further exploring the science behind the music is available to watch here, and the audio-only version of Relax Trax can be found here.

REFERENCES

¹Sykes BW, Hewetson M, Hepburn RJ, et al. European College of Equine Internal Medicine consensus statement – Equine gastric ulcer syndrome in adult horses. J Vet Intern Med 2015;295:1288–1299.

²Kedzierski W, Janczarek I, Stachurska A, and Wilk I. Massage or music meant to be relaxing, result in lowering salivary cortisol concentration in racehorses. Pferdeheilkunde Equine Med 2017;33(2)146–151.

³Stachurska A, Janczarek I, Wilk I, Kedzierski W. Does music influence emotional state in racehorses? J Equine Vet Sci 2015;35(8):650–656.

⁴Carter C, Greening L. Auditory stimulation of the stabled equine; the effect of different music genres on behaviour, in Proceedings. 8^th International Equitation Sci Conf. 2012.