| 1. |
- Hartmann, Elke, et al.
(författare)
-
24-h sheltering behaviour of individually kept horses during Swedish summer weather
- 2015
-
Ingår i: Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0044-605X .- 1751-0147. ; 57
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Provision of shelter for horses kept on summer pasture is rarely considered in welfare guidelines, perhaps because the benefits of shelter in warm conditions are poorly documented scientifically. For cattle, shade is a valued resource during summer and can mitigate the adverse effects of warm weather on well-being and performance. We found in a previous study that horses utilized shelters frequently in summer. A shelter with a roof and closed on three sides (shelter A) was preferred and can reduce insect pressure whereas a shelter with roof and open on three sides was not utilized. However, shelter A restricts the all-round view of a horse, which may be important for horses as flight animals. Therefore, we studied whether a shelter with roof, where only the upper half of the rear wall was closed (shelter B), would be utilized while maintaining insect protection properties and satisfying the horses' sense for security. A third shelter was offered with walls but no roof (shelter C) to evaluate whether the roof itself is an important feature from the horse's perspective. Eight Warmblood horses were tested each for 2 days, kept individually for 24 h in two paddocks with access to shelters A and B, or shelters A and C, respectively. Shelter use was recorded continuously during the night (1800-2400 h, 0200-0600 h) and the following day (0900-1600 h), and insect defensive behaviour (e.g., tail swish) in instantaneous scan samples at 5-min intervals during daytime.Results: Seven horses used both shelters A and B, but when given the choice between shelters A and C, shelter C was scarcely visited. There was no difference in duration of shelter use between night (105.8 +/- 53.6 min) and day (100.8 +/- 53.8, P = 0.829). Daytime shelter use had a significant effect on insect defensive behaviours (P = 0.027). The probability of performing these behaviours was lowest when horses used shelter A compared to being outside (P = 0.038).Conclusions: Horses only utilized shelters with a roof whilst a shelter with roof and closed on three sides had the best potential to lower insect disturbance during daytime in summer.
|
|
| 2. |
- Hartmann, Elke, et al.
(författare)
-
A Nordic survey of management practices and owners' attitudes towards keeping horses in groups
- 2015
-
Ingår i: Journal of Animal Science. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0021-8812 .- 1525-3163. ; 93, s. 4564-4574
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Keeping horses in groups is widely recommended but limited information is available about how this is implemented in practice. The aim of this survey was to describe how horses are kept in the Nordic countries in relation to sex, age, breed, and equestrian discipline and to assess owners' attitudes toward keeping horses in groups. Horse owners in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden were approached using a web-based questionnaire, which was translated into 4 languages and distributed online via equestrian forums, organizations, and social media. The number of respondents was 3,229, taking care of 17,248 horses. Only 8% of horses were never kept in groups, 47% were permanently grouped for 24 h/d, and 45% were stabled singly but grouped during turnout. Yearlings were most often permanently kept in groups (75%), mares and geldings more commonly during parts of the day (50 and 51%, respectively), and stallions were often kept alone (38%). Icelandic horses were more likely to be permanently kept in groups (36%) than warmbloods (16%) and ponies (15%). Twice as many competition horses (51%) were never grouped compared with horses used for breeding (20%) or leisure purposes (15%). The majority of respondents (86%) strongly agreed that group housing benefits horse welfare and that it is important for horses to have the company of conspecifics (92%). Nevertheless, not all horses were kept in groups, showing that attitudes toward group housing may not necessarily reflect current management. The risk of injury was a concern of many respondents (45%), as was introducing unfamiliar horses into already established groups (40%) and challenges in relation to feeding in groups (44%). Safety of people (23%) and difficulties handling groupkept horses (19%) were regarded as less problematic. Results suggest that the majority of horses have the possibility to freely interact with other horses, either as fulltime members of a group during 24 h/d or during turnout. Future research should address the extent to which being a part-time member of a group affects horse welfare. For permanent group housing to become more widespread, such as it is the case for most farm animals, future research could focus on solving some of the reoccurring problems perceived with keeping horses in groups. The dissemination of evidence-based information on all aspects around keeping horses in groups can ultimately stimulate further positive changes in the management of group-kept horses.
|
|
| 3. |
- Hartmann, Elke, et al.
(författare)
-
Daytime shelter use of individually kept horses during Swedish summer
- 2015
-
Ingår i: Journal of Animal Science. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0021-8812 .- 1525-3163. ; 93, s. 802-810
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In Sweden, no provision for summer shelter to protect horses from heat and insects is required, although access to shelter for horses kept outdoors 24 h during winter is a requirement. This study investigated horses' daytime shelter-seeking behavior in relation to weather conditions and insect activity during a 2-wk period in summer. Eight Warmblood riding horses had access to 2 shelters of different design to test which shelter design is preferred by horses. Furthermore, rectal and skin temperatures and insect-defensive behavior were measured to test whether horses would benefit from the provision of shade. The horses were kept alone in paddocks for 4 d. During 2 d, horses had access to 2 shelters: 1) open shelter with roof and uncovered sides and 2) closed shelter with roof, wind nets on 2 sides, and opaque plastic opposite the entrance. Weather conditions (ambient temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, wind speed) were recorded every 10 min. The number of insects (flies, mosquitos) was counted from insect traps placed in each shelter and outside. Behavior (shelter use, insect-defensive behavior, locomotion, grazing) was recorded at 5-min intervals between 0900 to 1200 h and 1300 to 1600 h and rectal and skin temperatures were measured at 0800 h, 1200 h, and 1600 h. Data were analyzed with PROC MIXED and GLIMMIX procedure for Generalized Linear Mixed Models. Ambient temperature ranged from 16 to 25 degrees C (average temperature humidity index 65.7 +/- 1.4). Five horses preferred the closed shelter and were observed inside up to 2.5 h continuously. Greater wind speed decreased the likelihood of observing horses inside the shelter (P < 0.001), as did lower numbers of flies (P < 0.001). The insect-defensive behaviors, skin shiver and ear flick, were performed less frequently when horses were using the closed shelter (P < 0.001), indicating that they were less disturbed by insects. Thirty-minute shelter use had no effect on rectal and skin temperatures (P > 0.05). Results showed that horses made use of shelters during the summer even when weather conditions were moderate. A shelter with roof and covers on 3 sides was preferred over a shelter with roof only and can reduce insect-defensive behavior.
|
|
| 4. |
- Hartmann, Elke, et al.
(författare)
-
Dominance and Leadership: Useful Concepts in Human-Horse Interactions?
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Journal of Equine Veterinary Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0737-0806 .- 1542-7412. ; 52, s. 1-9
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dominance hierarchies in horses primarily influence priority access to limited resources of any kind, resulting in predictable contest outcomes that potentially minimize aggressive encounters and associated risk of injury. Levels of aggression in group-kept horses under domestic conditions have been reported to be higher than in their feral counterparts but can often be attributed to suboptimal management. Horse owners often express concerns about the risk of injuries occurring in group-kept horses, but these concerns have not been substantiated by empirical investigations. What has not yet been sufficiently addressed are human safety aspects related to approaching and handling group-kept horses. Given horse's natural tendency to synchronize activity to promote group cohesion, questions remain about how group dynamics influence human-horse interactions. Group dynamics influence a variety of management scenarios, ranging from taking a horse out of its social group to the prospect of humans mimicking the horse's social system by taking a putative leadership role and seeking after an alpha position in the dominance hierarchy to achieve compliance. Yet, there is considerable debate about whether the roles horses attain in their social group are of any relevance in their reactions to humans. This article reviews the empirical data on social dynamics in horses, focusing on dominance and leadership theories and the merits of incorporating those concepts into the human-horse context. This will provide a constructive framework for informed debate and valuable guidance for owners managing group-kept horses and for optimizing human-horse interactions. (C) 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc.
|
|
| 5. |
- Hartmann, Elke, et al.
(författare)
-
Management of horses with focus on blanketing and clipping practices reported by members of the Swedish and Norwegian equestrian community
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Journal of Animal Science. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0021-8812 .- 1525-3163. ; 95, s. 1104-1117
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Limited information is available on the extent to which blankets are used on horses and the owners' reasoning behind clipping the horse's coat. Research on the effects of those practices on horse welfare is scarce but results indicate that blanketing and clipping may not be necessary from the horse's perspective and can interfere with the horse's thermoregulatory capacities. Therefore, this survey collected robust, quantitative data on the housing routines and management of horses with focus on blanketing and clipping practices as reported by members of the Swedish and Norwegian equestrian community. Horse owners were approached via an online survey, which was distributed to equestrian organizations and social media. Data from 4,122 Swedish and 2,075 Norwegian respondents were collected, of which 91 and 84% of respondents, respectively, reported using blankets on horses during turnout. Almost all respondents owning warmblood riding horses used blankets outdoors (97% in Sweden and 96% in Norway) whereas owners with Icelandic horses and coldblood riding horses used blankets significantly less (P < 0.05). Blankets were mainly used during rainy, cold, or windy weather conditions and in ambient temperatures of 10 degrees C and below. The horse's coat was clipped by 67% of respondents in Sweden and 35% of Norwegian respondents whereby owners with warmblood horses and horses primarily used for dressage and competition reported clipping the coat most frequently. In contrast to scientific results indicating that recovery time after exercise increases with blankets and that clipped horses have a greater heat loss capacity, only around 50% of respondents agreed to these statements. This indicates that evidence-based information on all aspects of blanketing and clipping has not yet been widely distributed in practice. More research is encouraged, specifically looking at the effect of blankets on sweaty horses being turned out after intense physical exercise and the effect of blankets on social interactions such as mutual grooming. Future efforts should be tailored to disseminate knowledge more efficiently, which can ultimately stimulate thoughtful decision-making by horse owners concerning the use of blankets and clipping the horse's coat.
|
|
| 6. |
- Högberg, Madeleine, et al.
(författare)
-
Milk processing quality of suckled/milked goats: effects of milk accumulation interval and milking regime
- 2016
-
Ingår i: Journal of Dairy Research. - 0022-0299 .- 1469-7629. ; 83, s. 173-179
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Milk with a high concentration of fat and casein is required for cheese production, and these components have a major impact for both quality and yield of the curd. Recent observations have shown that suckling can elevate milk fat concentration in goats and our aim was therefore to check the hypothesis that animal welfare and cheese-processing properties of goat milk could be optimised by appropriate management of suckled/milked goats. Twelve Swedish dairy goats were kept together with one kid each in 4 different mixed management-systems (milking combined with partial suckling) in a cross-over design. Two milk accumulation intervals were tested; Short = dams and kids were together for 16 h (T16) and Long =; dams and kids were together for 8 h (T8 h). In addition, two milking regimes were used; Suckled Before Milking = S and Milked Before Suckling = M. Milk accumulation interval referred to how long dams and kids were separated. The milk yield available for processing (milk offtake), was weighed and analysed from each milking occasion and the suckled milk yield was estimated by a weigh-suckle-weigh method (WSW) in combination with observing the suckling behaviour during the free suckling periods. Milking managements, such as 'suckling before milking (S)', increased milk fat concentration compared to milking before suckling (M) and 'Short accumulation treatments (T16)' gave higher milk fat, casein concentration and individual curd yield (%) compared to the 'Long accumulation treatment (T8)'. The total individual curd yield (g) was the same despite treatment, but the animal welfare was most likely higher in T16 where dams and kids spent more time together.
|
|
| 7. |
- Keeling, Linda, et al.
(författare)
-
Injury incidence, reactivity and ease of handling of horses kept in groups: A matched case control study in four Nordic countries
- 2016
-
Ingår i: Applied Animal Behaviour Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0168-1591 .- 1872-9045. ; 185, s. 59-65
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There is increasing interest in keeping horses in groups, but progress is hampered by a lack of knowledge about which horses can and should be kept together. Therefore, our objective was to investigate the effect of group composition on the occurrence of injuries among horses, the ease of removing horses from groups and horses' reactivity to a fearful stimulus. Using a matched case control design, 61 groups of horses were studied in Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden. They were allocated into groups of similar or different age and sex or where membership changed regularly or remained stable. Injuries were recorded before mixing the horses into treatment groups, the day after mixing and four weeks later. Reactivity of horses to a moving novel object and the behaviour of a horse being removed from its group and the reactions of other group members towards this horse and the handler were evaluated. It was hypothesized that a more socially variable group composition has beneficial effects on behaviour, ease of handling and reducing reactivity whereas frequent changes in group composition has negative consequences, resulting in more injuries. We found that differences in treatment effects were mainly related to breed, rather than group composition. Icelandic horses reacted less to the movement of the novel object (P= 0.007) and approached it more afterwards (P = 0.04). They also had fewer new injuries than warmbloods following mixing (P<0.001) and fewer than all other groups 4 weeks later (P<0.01). Most new injuries after mixing were minor and recorded on the horse's head, chest, hind legs and rump. In conclusion, variations in sex and age composition of the group had little effect on injury level, reactivity and ease of handling compared to the general effect of breed. Concerns about the risk of severe injuries associated with keeping horses in groups are probably overestimated. Thus, we propose that horses can be successfully kept in groups of different sex and age composition. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V.
|
|
