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Ulloa, A., Gonzalez-Ceron, L., & Rodriguez, M. H. (2006). Host selection and gonotrophic cycle length of Anopheles punctimacula in southern Mexico. J Am Mosq Control Assoc, 22(4), 648–653.
Abstract: The host preference, survival rates, and length of the gonotrophic cycle of Anopheles punctimacula was investigated in southern Mexico. Mosquitoes were collected in 15-day separate experiments during the rainy and dry seasons. Daily changes in the parous-nulliparous ratio were recorded and the gonotrophic cycle length was estimated by a time series analysis. Anopheles punctimacula was most abundant during the dry season and preferred animals to humans. The daily survival rate in mosquitoes collected in animal traps was 0.96 (parity rate = 0.86; gonotrophic cycle = 4 days). The length of gonotrophic cycle of 4 days was estimated on the base of a high correlation coefficient value appearing every 4 days. The minimum time estimated for developing mature eggs after blood feeding was 72 h. The proportion of mosquitoes living enough to transmit Plasmodium vivax malaria during the dry season was 0.35.
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Dallmeyer, M. D., Turner, R. M., McDonnell, S. M., Sertich, P. L., Dolente, B. A., Parente, E. J., et al. (2006). Theriogenology question of the month. Behavior problems in a stallion caused by a nephrolith. J Am Vet Med Assoc, 229(4), 511–513.
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Kaiser, L., Heleski, C. R., Siegford, J., & Smith, K. A. (2006). Stress-related behaviors among horses used in a therapeutic riding program. J Am Vet Med Assoc, 228(1), 39–45.
Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To determine whether therapeutic riding resulted in higher levels of stress or frustration for horses than did recreational riding and whether therapeutic riding with at-risk individuals was more stressful for the horses than was therapeutic riding with individuals with physical or emotional handicaps. DESIGN: Observational study. ANIMALS: 14 horses in a therapeutic riding program. PROCEDURE: An ethogram of equine behaviors was created, and horses were observed while ridden by 5 groups of riders (recreational riders, physically handicapped riders, psychologically handicapped riders, at risk children, and special education children). Number of stress-related behaviors (ears pinned back, head raised, head turned, head tossed, head shaken, head down, and defecation) was compared among groups. RESULTS: No significant differences in mean number of stress-related behaviors were found when horses were ridden by recreational riders, physically handicapped riders, psychologically handicapped riders, or special education children. However, mean number of stress-related behaviors was significantly higher when horses were ridden by the at-risk children. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results suggest that for horses in a therapeutic riding program, being ridden by physically or psychologically handicapped individuals is no more stressful for the horses than is being ridden in the same setting by recreational riders. However, at-risk children caused more stress to the horses, suggesting that the time horses are ridden by at-risk children should be limited both daily and weekly.
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Kaiser, L., Smith, K. A., Heleski, C. R., & Spence, L. J. (2006). Effects of a therapeutic riding program on at-risk and special education children. J Am Vet Med Assoc, 228(1), 46–52.
Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of a therapeutic riding program on psychosocial measurements among children considered at risk for poor performance or failure in school or life and among children in special education programs. DESIGN: Observational study. POPULATION: 17 at-risk children (6 boys and 11 girls) and 14 special education children (7 boys and 7 girls). PROCEDURE: For the at-risk children, anger, anxiety, perceived self-competence, and physical coordination were assessed. For the special education children, anger and cheerfulness were measured, and the children's and their mothers' perceptions of the children's behavior were assessed. Measurements were made before and after an 8-session therapeutic riding program. RESULTS: For boys enrolled in the special education program, anger was significantly decreased after completion of the riding program. The boys' mothers also perceived significant improvements in their children's behavior after completion of the program. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results suggest that an 8-session therapeutic riding program can significantly decrease anger in adolescent boys in a special education program and positively affect their mothers' perception of the boys' behavior.
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Sinclair, M., Buhrmann, G., & Gummow, B. (2006). An epidemiological investigation of the African horsesickness outbreak in the Western Cape Province of South Africa in 2004 and its relevance to the current equine export protocol. J S Afr Vet Assoc, 77(4), 191–196.
Abstract: African Horsesickness (AHS) is a controlled disease in South Africa. The country is divided into an infected area and a control area. An outbreak of AHS in the control area can result in a ban of exports for at least 2 years. A retrospective epidemiological study was carried out on data collected during the 2004 AHS outbreak in the surveillance zone of the AHS control area in the Western Cape Province. The objective of this study was to describe the 2004 outbreak and compare it with the 1999 AHS outbreak in the same area. As part of the investigation, a questionnaire survey was conducted in the 30 km radius surrounding the index case. Spatial, temporal and population patterns for the outbreak are described. The investigation found that the outbreak occurred before any significant rainfall and that the main AHS vector (Culicoides imicola) was present in abundance during the outbreak. Furthermore, 63% of cases occurred at temperatures < or = 15 degrees C, the Eerste River Valley was a high risk area, only 17% of owners used vector protection as a control measure and 70% of horses in the outbreak area were protected by means of vaccination at the start of the outbreak. The study revealed that the current AHS control measures do not function optimally because of the high percentage of vaccinated horses in the surveillance zone, which results in insufficient sentinel animals and the consequent failure of the early warning system. Alternative options for control that allow continued export are discussed in the paper.
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Krcmar, S., Mikuska, A., & Merdic, E. (2006). Response of Tabanidae (Diptera) to different natural attractants. J Vector Ecol, 31(2), 262–265.
Abstract: The response of female tabanids to natural attractants was studied in the Monjoros Forest along the Nature Park Kopacki rit in eastern Croatia. Tabanids were caught in canopy traps baited with either aged cow, horse, sheep, or pig urine and also in unbaited traps. Tabanids were collected in a significantly higher numbers in traps baited with natural attractants compared to unbaited traps. The number of females of Tabanus bromius, Tabanus maculicornis, Tabanus tergestinus, and Hybomitra bimaculata collected from canopy traps baited with cow urine and traps baited with other natural attractants differed significantly. Females of Haematopota pluvialis were also collected more frequently in canopy traps baited with aged cow urine than in those with aged horse urine, but this difference was not significant. However, the number of females of Haematopota pluvialis collected from canopy traps baited with other natural attractants (sheep and pig urine) differed significantly when compared with aged cow urine baited traps. Canopy traps baited with aged cow urine collected significantly more Tabanus sudeticus than did traps baited with aged pig urine. Finally, the aged cow urine baited canopy traps collected 51 times more tabanids than unbaited traps, while aged horse, aged sheep, and aged pig urine baited traps collected 36, 30, and 22 times as many tabanids, respectively, than unbaited traps.
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Carmalt, J. L., Carmalt, K. P., & Barber, S. M. (2006). The effect of occlusal equilibration on sport horse performance. J Vet Dent, 23(4), 226–230.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of routine dental occlusal equilibration treatment on dressage horse performance. Sixteen horses (11 treated; 5 untreated) ridden by a single rider performed a standardized dressage test twice and were scored by two experienced dressage judges according to recognized movements and rider cues. All horses were sedated and a full-mouth speculum was used to facilitate a complete oral examination. Treated horses had dental equilibration performed using a motorized dental instrument. The horses performed a second test 48-hours after dental equilibration, exactly as the baseline test, with the judges and rider blinded as to treatment group. The total test score as well as the individual movement scores were evaluated for equality of variance and statistical tests were applied to determine the influence of treatment. There was no significant improvement in the test score of horses that had received occlusal equilibration.
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Naylor, J. M., Poirier, K. L., Hamilton, D. L., & Dowling, P. M. (2006). The effects of feeding and fasting on gastrointestinal sounds in adult horses. J Vet Intern Med, 20(6), 1408–1413.
Abstract: The effect of changes in feed intake on auscultatable gastrointestinal sounds has not been systematically studied. Disagreement also is present in the literature about variation in sounds according to the quadrant of auscultation. Gastrointestinal sounds were recorded over the center of the left dorsal, left ventral, right ventral, and right dorsal quadrants and over the middle of the right abdominal flank. During 24 hours (n = 4) or 48 hours (n = 5) of fasting, there was a reduction in the intensity of gastrointestinal sounds as assessed by analysis of sound recordings. There was also a reduction in the number of mixing-like and propulsive-like sounds heard by 2 blinded observers. After refeeding, there was a marked increase in sound. Sound intensity varied among abdominal quadrants, but blinded observers did not notice significant differences in the number of mixing-like sounds. The left dorsal quadrant was quieter than others during fasting and refeeding. The right ventral quadrant appeared to be least affected by fasting, and sounds were louder over the right ventral and right middle quadrants than over the others. The blinded observers' perceptions of sound correlated poorly with one another and with objective measures of sound intensity. This experiment demonstrates the effectiveness of computerized analysis of abdominal sound in detecting a reduction in the intensity of gastrointestinal sounds during fasting and their return during refeeding. The left dorsal quadrant was quieter than other quadrants, likely because of its position over the small colon. There was considerable observer variation in the number of intestinal sounds heard.
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Keay, J. M., Singh, J., Gaunt, M. C., & Kaur, T. (2006). Fecal glucocorticoids and their metabolites as indicators of stress in various mammalian species: a literature review. J Zoo Wildl Med, 37(3), 234–244.
Abstract: Conservation medicine is a discipline in which researchers and conservationists study and respond to the dynamic interplay between animals, humans, and the environment. From a wildlife perspective, animal species are encountering stressors from numerous sources. With the rapidly increasing human population, a corresponding increased demand for food, fuel, and shelter; habitat destruction; and increased competition for natural resources, the health and well-being of wild animal populations is increasingly at risk of disease and endangerment. Scientific data are needed to measure the impact that human encroachment is having on wildlife. Nonbiased biometric data provide a means to measure the amount of stress being imposed on animals from humans, the environment, and other animals. The stress response in animals functions via glucocorticoid metabolism and is regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Fecal glucocorticoids, in particular, may be an extremely useful biometric test, since sample collection is noninvasive to subjects and, therefore, does not introduce other variables that may alter assay results. For this reason, many researchers and conservationists have begun to use fecal glucocorticoids as a means to measure stress in various animal species. This review article summarizes the literature on many studies in which fecal glucocorticoids and their metabolites have been used to assess stress levels in various mammalian species. Variations between studies are the main focus of this review. Collection methods, storage conditions, shipping procedures, and laboratory techniques utilized by different researchers are discussed.
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Zehnder, A. M., Ramer, J. C., & Proudfoot, J. S. (2006). The use of altrenogest to control aggression in a male Grant's Zebra (Equus burchelli boehmi). J Zoo Wildl Med, 37(1), 61–63.
Abstract: A male Grant's Zebra (Equus burchelli boehmi) housed with two mares at the Indianapolis Zoo had a 9-yr history of intermittent aggressive behavior toward mares and other animals. Periods of separation allowed the mares time to heal after sustaining superficial bite wounds. On 26 March 2003, the male (890293) was started on altrenogest at a dosage of 19.8 mg orally once daily to allow reintroduction. The dosage was doubled (40 mg once a day) because of a perceived lack of response. Reintroduction to the mares occurred on 17 May 2003 with no signs of aggression noted. Treatment was reduced to 19.8 mg orally once a day and then discontinued. Altrenogest was restarted at 39.5 mg orally once a day because of the planned introduction of a new mare. There have been no major aggressive displays at this dosage of altrenogest and the dosage has recently been reduced following successful introduction of a new mare.
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