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Do you talk to your horse? If so, your speaking style matters, according to new research by Lea Lansade, PhD, and colleagues from Université de Tours in France. The article, “Horses are sensitive to baby talk: pet‐directed speech facilitates communication with humans in a pointing task and during grooming,” was published in the March 2021 issue of
This is the first study to provide evidence that human speech style can affect equine behavior. Lansade was particularly interested in the use of pet-directed speech (PDS) with horses. PDS has the same sound qualities as baby talk (also called infant-directed speech [IDS], Motherese, and Parentese). This style of speaking has a distinctive vocal signature, with a high pitch and slow rate.