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Author |
Dierenfeld, E.S. |
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Title |
Vitamin E in exotics: effects, evaluation and ecology |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
1994 |
Publication |
The Journal of Nutrition |
Abbreviated Journal |
J Nutr |
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Volume |
124 |
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12 Suppl |
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2579s-2581s |
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Keywords |
Animal Feed/*analysis; Animals; Animals, Zoo/blood/*metabolism; Antelopes/blood/metabolism; Birds/blood/metabolism; Deer/blood/metabolism; Elephants/blood/metabolism; Equidae/blood/metabolism; Perissodactyla/blood/metabolism; Vitamin E/*administration & dosage/analysis/blood; Vitamin E Deficiency/pathology/physiopathology/veterinary |
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Abstract |
The pathophysiology and lesions associated with vitamin E deficiency are similar between domestic and exotic species, and circulating plasma concentrations are also similar between comparable groups. However, many ecological variables must be considered for the most relevant comparisons. Tissue values of vitamin E, apart from plasma, are unknown for most exotics. Dietary vitamin E requirements of exotic species and domestics appear to differ; based on natural foodstuff analyses and clinical observations, between 50 and 200 mg vitamin E/kg DM are necessary to prevent vitamin E deficiency, 5- to 10-fold higher than current livestock recommendations. |
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Department of Nutrition, Wildlife Health Center, Wildlife Conservation Society, Bronx, NY 10460 |
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0022-3166 |
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PMID:7996243 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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2661 |
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Author |
Boyd, L.; Bandi, N. |
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Title |
Reintroduction of takhi, Equus ferus przewalskii, to Hustai National Park, Mongolia: time budget and synchrony of activity pre- and post-release |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2002 |
Publication |
Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
Abbreviated Journal |
Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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78 |
Issue |
2-4 |
Pages |
87-102 |
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Keywords |
Equids; Przewalski's horses; Takhi; Behaviour patterns; Time budgets; Behavioural synchrony; Reintroduction |
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A harem of takhi (Equus ferus przewalskii) was observed during introduction to the Hustain Nuruu Steppe Reserve of Mongolia. The goals were to examine whether the harem exhibited significant behavioural synchrony, whether release had an effect on time budget, and what the implications might be regarding acclimatisation to the wild. Behaviours were scan sampled every 10 min between the hours of 06:00 and 22:00, twice before release, twice immediately after release, and twice 2 years after reintroduction. Time budgets were constructed from these data. Considerable behavioural synchrony was evidenced both before and after release. Crepuscular grazing and midday resting were typical, regardless of the date relative to release. Upon release, the amount of time spent moving doubled for all age classes. It is suggested that this increase resulted from exploration. The amount of time spent grazing and standing remained unchanged; the increased amount of time spent moving came at the expense of resting. Two years later, the horses still spent more time moving than when captive. Somewhat less time was spent grazing, although the difference was not significant. More time was spent resting in 1996 than immediately after release. These time budgets provide evidence of successful acclimatisation to the wild. Trekking between favoured sites could account for the persistent increase in time spent moving, with concomitantly less time needed to meet nutritional needs by grazing and more time available for resting. Housing captive takhi in large enclosures is evidently insufficient to permit the amount of movement exhibited by this wild harem. The time budget of the 1- and 2-year olds was more similar to that of adults than foals, indicating approaching adulthood. That 1- and 2-year olds were nursed, without loss of body condition by the dam, provided additional evidence that the takhi achieved excellent nutritional status in the wild. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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3690 |
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Smith, D.G.; Pearson, R.A. |
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A review of the factors affecting the survival of donkeys in semi-arid regions of sub-Saharan Africa |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2005 |
Publication |
Tropical Animal Health and Production |
Abbreviated Journal |
Trop Anim Health Prod |
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37 Suppl 1 |
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1-19 |
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Keywords |
Africa South of the Sahara; Animal Nutrition Physiology; Animals; Behavior, Animal; Cattle; Equidae/growth & development/*physiology; Socioeconomic Factors |
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Abstract |
The large fluctuations seen in cattle populations during periods of drought in sub-Saharan Africa are not evident in the donkey population. Donkeys appear to have a survival advantage over cattle that is increasingly recognized by smallholder farmers in their selection of working animals. The donkey's survival advantages arise from both socioeconomic and biological factors. Socioeconomic factors include the maintenance of a low sustainable population of donkeys owing to their single-purpose role and their low social status. Also, because donkeys are not usually used as a meat animal and can provide a regular income as a working animal, they are not slaughtered in response to drought, as are cattle. Donkeys have a range of physiological and behavioural adaptations that individually provide small survival advantages over cattle but collectively may make a large difference to whether or not they survive drought. Donkeys have lower maintenance costs as a result of their size and spend less energy while foraging for food; lower energy costs result in a lower dry matter intake (DMI) requirement. In donkeys, low-quality diets are digested almost as efficiently as in ruminants and, because of a highly selective feeding strategy, the quality of diet obtained by donkeys in a given pasture is higher than that obtained by cattle. Lower energy costs of walking, longer foraging times per day and ability to tolerate thirst may allow donkeys to access more remote, under-utilized sources of forage that are inaccessible to cattle on rangeland. As donkeys become a more popular choice of working animal for farmers, specific management practices need to be devised that allow donkeys to fully maximize their natural survival advantages. |
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Department of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, AB24 3FX, Scotland, UK. d.g.smith@abdn.ac.uk |
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0049-4747 |
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PMID:16335068 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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4231 |
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Baragli,P.; Cozzi,A; Rugani, R.; Sighieria, C.; Regolin, L. |
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Title |
Delayed search for non-social goals by Equids (Equus caballus and Equus asinus) |
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Conference Article |
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Year |
2008 |
Publication |
IESM 2008 |
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cognitive abilities, delayed-response, Equids, working memory. |
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Delayed-responses have been traditionally employed to investigate the temporal characteristics of animals“ ability to represent and recall objects that have disappeared. In the typical condition, the animal, usually a mammal, observes the experimenter hiding an interesting goal (e.g. some food) in a certain location. A delayed-response task (DRT) was administered to 4 female Esperia pony (2 years old) coming from a free-range breed (Frosinone, Italy) and to 7 female Amiata donkeys (4.2±2 years old) coming from a conservation stock (University of Pisa, Italy). The DRT's apparatus was located in a square fence. A single ”U-shaped“ screen (330x160x140 cm) made by wood shavings blocks was positioned in the centre of the fence. A gap (40x50 cm) on the ground was in the middle of the central side of the U-shaped-screen and served to make the food-attractor disappear. The food-attractor consisted in cereal flakes and fresh grass for ponies and cereal flakes for donkeys. A bucket full of food was placed on a dolly tied on a rope which could be pulled by an experimenter. In a preliminary training each animal was allowed to eat food from the bucket and, while the animal was eating, the dolly was gently pulled away from the animal, and beyond the screen through the gap. The subjects needed to move around of the screen in order to retrieve the food. As a reinforcement, they were allowed to eat some food from the bucket once behind the screen. From trial to trial, the bucket was presented farther and farther (starting with a distance of 1 m in front of the screen to reach 7 m). Therefore subjects were tested in the DRT requiring them to rejoin the bucket with the goal-food disappearing behind the screen as in the preliminary training but following a 10 s delay. For the DRT, the bucket was placed 7 m in front of the screen, 3 m away from the animal's starting area. Then the dolly was pulled away from the animal. Ten seconds after the disappearance of the dolly behind the screen the animal was released from the starting area. The DRT ended when the subject had reached the attractor behind the screen on 3 consecutive trials. Results showed that all animals were able to rejoin the food behind the screen after 10 s delay. The mean time of the delayed-response (mean±sd, in s) in the ponies (1st: 19.8±8; 2nd: 10.8±2.2; 3rd: 12.8±2.8) and in the donkeys (1st: 28.4±10; 2nd: 26.9±13; 3rd: 24.3±16.6) showed a trend to decrease from first trial to third. These preliminary results suggest that like other mammals our ponies and donkeys can maintain a working memory trace of the location where biologically attractive objects have been seen to disappear. In conclusion, this study paves the way to set up a viable model system for the investigation of the more sophisticated aspects of Equids” cognitive abilities such as working memory. |
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Department of Veterinary Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 2 – 56124, Pisa, Italy |
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Cozzi, A |
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IESM 2008 |
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Talk 15 min IESM 2008 |
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yes |
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Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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4475 |
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Author |
Zharkikh, T.L.; Andersen, L. |
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Title |
Behaviour of Bachelor Males of the Przewalski Horse (Equus ferus przewalskii) at the Reserve Askania Nova |
Type |
Journal Article |
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Year |
2009 |
Publication |
Der Zoologische Garten |
Abbreviated Journal |
Zoologische Garten |
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78 |
Issue |
5-6 |
Pages |
282-299 |
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Keywords |
Equid; Przewalski horse (Equus ferus przewalskii); Bachelor group; Social behaviour |
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The aim of this study was to investigate social relationships between Przewalski horses at a high density in a bachelor group housed in a 3.5-ha enclosure. The group consisted of 16 males aged 5 to 16. Behavioural data were collected during 18 days, total 216 h. Fifteen minute focal animal sampling was used; each horse was observed three times a day for a total of 45 min. The occurrence of 25 behaviours was recorded, and group spacing behaviour was studied using nearest neighbour recordings. The group divided into four subgroups; this supports earlier findings of bachelor groups (n>=10) dividing into two or more subgroups if they included several males aged >5 years. The total frequency of social interactions was 14.6±1.1 h-1. Although the density of the group in this study was higher than in other zoos, the males interacted agonistically only 3.6 h-1. The most frequently observed social behaviour categories were friendly interactions. This study shows possibilities to use some investigative behaviours (marking, flehmen, olfactory investigation, etc.) as indicators of social status of animals in a group. |
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0044-5169 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5098 |
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Pluhácek, J.; Bartos, L.; Bartosová, J.; Kotrba, R. |
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Title |
Feeding behaviour affects nursing behaviour in captive plains zebra (Equus burchellii) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2010 |
Publication |
Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
Abbreviated Journal |
Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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128 |
Issue |
1-4 |
Pages |
97-102 |
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Keywords |
Equus burchellii; Suckling; Nursing; Equid; Feeding; Zoo |
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Equids spend more than half of the day feeding. Lactation is a very demanding form of maternal investment. In an environment such as a zoo, where no grass but several feeding sites are present, conflict between suckling behaviour of the foal and feeding behaviour of the lactating mother should occur. We observed 20 foals of captive plains zebra, Equus burchellii, at the Dvur Králové Zoo, Czech Republic, and collected data concerning suckling events during 17 months of observation. First, we examined whether feeding by the mother while nursing affected suckling behaviour. We found that when the mother was feeding, the proportion of suckling bouts she terminated decreased with increasing age of the foal, whereas it did not change when she was not feeding. This result supported the trade-off between suckling and feeding behaviour which has been reported in other ungulates. Second, we examined what affected interruptions of feeding behaviour of the mother during the suckling bout. The proportion of interruptions of feeding by the mother during nursing increased with increasing age of her foal. This coincides with declining time spent nursing. In addition, younger mothers interrupted their feeding behaviour during suckling bouts more often than older ones. Mothers interrupted feeding during the suckling bout more often when they nursed a daughter than when they nursed a son. The results of our study show that feeding while suckling could reduce parent-offspring conflict and improve welfare of captive foals and mares. |
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0168-1591 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5280 |
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Author |
h:, M.; Lévy, F.; Fortin, M.; Leterrier, C.; LansadLansade, L. |
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Title |
Stress and temperament affect working memory performance for disappearing food in horses, Equus caballus |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2013 |
Publication |
Animal Behaviour |
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86 |
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6 |
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1233-1240 |
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delayed-response task emotion; equid; Equus caballus; fearfulness; individual difference; personality; stress; temperament |
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In the present study, we sought to determine the influence of stress and temperament on working memory for disappearing food in horses. After assessment of five dimensions of temperament, we tested working memory of horses using a delayed-response task requiring a choice between two food locations. Delays ranging from 0 to 20 s were tested. The duration of working memory for disappearing food was first characterized without stressors (N = 26). The horses were then divided into two groups and their performance was assessed under stressful (exposure to acute stressors prior to testing, N = 12) or control conditions (N = 12). Results showed that the duration of working memory for disappearing food lasted at least 20 s under nonstressful conditions, and that under stressful conditions this duration lasted less than 12 s. This stress-induced impairment confirms in a nonrodent species that working memory performance is very sensitive to exposure to stressors. In addition, working memory performance in horses is influenced by the temperamental dimension of fearfulness according to the state of stress: fearful horses showed better performance under control conditions and worse performance under stressful conditions than nonfearful horses. These findings are discussed in the context of the Yerkes–Dodson law of stress and performance. |
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0003-3472 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5746 |
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Osthaus, B.; Proops, L.; Hocking, I.; Burden, F. |
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Spatial cognition and perseveration by horses, donkeys and mules in a simple A-not-B detour task |
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Journal Article |
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2013 |
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Abbreviated Journal |
Animal Cognition |
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16 |
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2 |
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301-305 |
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Equids; Donkeys; Horses; Mules; Dogs; Detour; Spatial reasoning; A-not-B; Perseveration |
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We investigated perseveration and detour behaviour in 36 equids (Equus caballus, E. asinus, E. caballus × E. asinus) and compared these data to those of a previous study on domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). The animals were required to make a detour through a gap at one end of a straight barrier in order to reach a visible target. After one, two, three or four repeats (A trials), the gap was moved to the opposite end of the barrier (B trials). We recorded initial deviations from the correct solution path and the latency to crossing the barrier. In the A trials, mules crossed the barrier significantly faster than their parental species, the horses and donkeys. In the B trials, following the change of gap location, all species showed a reduction in performance. Both dogs and horses exhibited significant spatial perseveration, going initially to the previous gap location. Donkeys and mules, however, performed at chance level. Our results suggest that hybrid vigour in mules extends to spatial abilities. |
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Springer-Verlag |
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English |
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1435-9448 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5694 |
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Valenchon, M.; Lévy, F.; Górecka-Bruzda, A.; Calandreau, L.; Lansade, L. |
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Title |
Characterization of long-term memory, resistance to extinction, and influence of temperament during two instrumental tasks in horses |
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2013 |
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Animal Cognition |
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16 |
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6 |
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1001-1006 |
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Personality; Learning; Individuality; Fearfulness; Equid; Cognitive flexibility |
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The present study investigated the influence of temperament on long-term recall and extinction of 2 instrumental tasks in 26 horses. In the first task (backward task), horses learned to walk backward, using commands given by an experimenter, in order to obtain a food reward. In the second task (active avoidance task), horses had to cross an obstacle after a bell rang in order to avoid emission of an air puff. Twenty-two months after acquisition, horses exhibited perfect recall performance in both tasks. Accordingly, no influence of temperament on recall performance could be observed for either task. In contrast, in the absence of positive or negative outcomes, the horses’ ability to extinguish their response to either task was highly variable. Resistance to extinction was related to some indicators of temperament: The most fearful horses tended to be the most resistant to extinction in the backward task, while the least sensitive horses tended to be the most resistant to extinction in the active avoidance task. These findings reveal extensive long-term memory abilities in horses and suggest an influence of temperament on learning processes other than acquisition. |
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Springer Berlin Heidelberg |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5735 |
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Author |
Flauger, B. |
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The introduction of horses into new social groups with special regard to their stress level |
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2011 |
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Pferd; Equiden; Eingliederungstechnik; Integrationspferd; Stress; Cortisol; Endokrine Reaktion; Gruppenhaltung; Verletzungsgefahr; Aggression; Futterplatzwahl; Kot; Geruchssinn; Mensch-Pferd Interaktion; horse; equids; introduction technique; integration horse; stress; cortisol; endocrine response; group housing; injury risk; aggression; feeding decision; faecal sample; olfaction; human-horse interaction |
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Abstract |
Horses are a highly social species living in complex social systems which should require them to memorise and generalise social experiences and distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar conspecifics. In the main part of my thesis I concentrated on the specific conflict situation of a horse being introduced into a new social group, and investigated its behaviour and stress level. Horses were either introduced (1) immediately, (2) after an observation period, or (3) together with an integration horse after an observation period. Additionally, in the second part of my thesis I arranged several experiments to elaborate additional aspects which could affect the behaviour of horses during introductions. In this study I could describe a simplified method for measuring stress through the analysis of faecal GCMs in horses. An enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for 11-oxoaetiocholanolone using 11-oxoaetiocholanolone-17-CMO: BSA (3?,11-oxo-A EIA) as antigen showed high amounts of immunoreactive substances. The new assay increases the accuracy of the test and lowers the expenses per sample; also storing of samples at room temperature after collection is less critical. This is a big advantage both in the field of wildlife management of equids and in the field of equestrian sports (chapter 1). Comparing the different introduction techniques, the introduction with an integration horse led to significantly less total interactions and lower levels of aggression than the introduction of single horses, both immediately and after several days of observing the new group. Additionally, by observing the behaviour of the horses during everyday sociality I could develop a formula describing the interrelationship between expected aggression level and enclosure size per horse. The curve takes an exponential shape. Starting from a space allowance of 300 m2 and more per horse, the amount of aggressions per hour approaches zero. For the reduction of aggression levels and injury risks in socially kept horses I recommend an enclosure size of at least 300 m2 per horse (chapter 2). I further investigated the stress level of the introduced animals. Horses which were immediately introduced did not show elevated faecal GCMs. In contrast, horses which were introduced after an observation period had slightly elevated values 2 and 3 days after the introduction. For horses introduced together with an integration horse faecal GCMs were significantly above the baseline value on the day of introduction and 1 day after it. These differences between introduction techniques indicate that the introduction event itself is not as stressful as previously assumed. Rather standing together with an integration horse and not being able to integrate immediately into the complete group elicits stress in horses (chapter 3). In the commentary of chapter 4 several studies are discussed which failed to demonstrate social learning in horses. It is argued that they did not consider important aspects which could have an influence, such as the dominance status or the social background of the horses (chapter 4). In chapter 5 a social feeding situation was investigated. The social rank as well as the position of conspecifics affected the feeding strategy of horses. Domestic horses used social cognition and strategic decision making in order to decide where to feed. When possible they tended to return to the same, continuously supplied feeding site and switched to an ?avoidance tendency? in the presence of dominant horses or when another horse was already feeding there (chapter 5). One possibility to recognize group members is through olfactory recognition. In chapter 6 it is shown that horses are able to distinguish their own from their conspecifics? faeces. In addition, they paid most attention to the faeces of those group members from which they received the highest amount of aggressive behaviour (chapter 6). Horses show cognitive abilities because they are able to use humans as local enhancement cues when searching for food, independently of their body posture or gaze consistency when the persons face them. Moreover, they seem to orientate on the attention of familiar persons more than of unfamiliar persons (chapter 7). Altogether, the results of this thesis provide further support for the view that horses show good conflict resolution strategies. They are perfectly able to deal with the conflict situation of being introduced to new group members, and the introduction event itself is not as stressful as previously assumed. It is rather suggested that standing together with an integration horse and not being able to integrate immediately into the complete group elicits stress in horses. All additional experimental set-ups could demonstrate that horses are well capable of social cognition. |
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Ph.D. thesis |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ epub18463 |
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5736 |
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