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Horse power: could a barn visit beat stress?
NCT ID NCT05703165
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study looks at whether interacting with horses can help people who feel stressed. About 123 adults with high stress levels will either spend time with horses or just watch the countryside. Researchers will measure heart rate changes and mood before, right after, and five days later to see if the horse activity makes a difference.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- horse-assisted intervention
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a simple, drug-free way to help people manage everyday stress.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with no blinding or placebo control, so results may be due to chance or the outdoor setting rather than the horses themselves.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 123 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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May 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 80 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Male, female and diverse * Age between 18-75 years Exclusion criteria: * Animal hair allergies (especially horse hair allergies, fear of horses) * Acute severe psychiatric conditions (e.g. psychosis) * Persons, unable to give signed informed consent, * All persons, who have not signed the informed consent form.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Medical University of Graz
Graz, Styria, 8036, Austria
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