Kusunose, R., & Yamanobe, A. (2002). The effect of training schedule on learned tasks in yearling horses. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci., 78(2), 225–233.
Abstract: Twelve yearlings were divided into two groups and subjected to two different training schedules: (a) 30min of training daily (the daily trained group); and (b) 30min of training for 4 days, followed by a 3-day rest (the intermittently trained group), in order to compare the effect of two training methods on the ability of the horses to learn to be driven and ridden and to respond to the handlers? cues. The length of this experimental training was 17 days. The first step of training was surcingling and proceeded to lunging, to driving from the ground, and finally to being ridden at a trot on a track. Both groups were tested four times during the experimental period when they were at the same stage of training. They were driven and then ridden at a walk by a rider on a specified course and evaluated. The time to complete the course, accuracy of traveling the course, and heart rate during the test were used as the indicators of success in training. In three out of the four tests, the daily trained group tended to move faster and with more accuracy than the intermittently trained group. It would appear that daily training without a long interruption is more effective for yearlings.
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Gomez Alvarez, C. B., Rhodin, M., Bobber, M. F., Meyer, H., Weishaupt, M. A., Johnston, C., et al. (2006). The effect of head and neck position on the thoracolumbar kinematics in the unridden horse. Equine Vet J Suppl, (36), 445–451.
Abstract: REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY: In many equestrian activities a specific position of head and/or neck is required that is dissimilar to the natural position. There is controversy about the effects of these positions on locomotion pattern, but few quantitative data are available. OBJECTIVES: To quantify the effects of 5 different head and neck positions on thoracolumbar kinematics of the horse. METHODS: Kinematics of 7 high level dressage horses were measured walking and trotting on an instrumented treadmill with the head and neck in the following positions: HNP2 = neck raised, bridge of the nose in front of the vertical; HNP3 = as HNP2 with bridge of the nose behind the vertical; HNP4 = head and neck lowered, nose behind the vertical; HNP5 = head and neck in extreme high position; HNP6 = head and neck forward and downward. HNP1 was a speed-matched control (head and neck unrestrained). RESULTS: The head and neck positions affected only the flexion-extension motion. The positions in which the neck was extended (HNP2, 3, 5) increased extension in the anterior thoracic region, but increased flexion in the posterior thoracic and lumbar region. For HNP4 the pattern was the opposite. Positions 2, 3 and 5 reduced the flexion-extension range of motion (ROM) while HNP4 increased it. HNP5 was the only position that negatively affected intravertebral pattern symmetry and reduced hindlimb protraction. The stride length was significantly reduced at walk in positions 2, 3, 4 and 5. CONCLUSIONS: There is a significant influence of head/neck position on back kinematics. Elevated head and neck induce extension in the thoracic region and flexion in the lumbar region; besides reducing the sagittal range of motion. Lowered head and neck produces the opposite. A very high position of the head and neck seems to disturb normal kinematics. POTENTIAL RELEVANCE: This study provides quantitative data on the effect of head/neck positions on thoracolumbar motion and may help in discussions on the ethical acceptability of some training methods.
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Kruska, D. (1996). The effect of domestication on brain size and composition in the mink (Mustela vison). J Zool, 239.
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Albiach-Serrano, A., Bräuer, J., Cacchione, T., Zickert, N., & Amici, F. (2012). The effect of domestication and ontogeny in swine cognition (Sus scrofa scrofa and S. s. domestica). Appl Anim Behav Sci, 141.
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Morgan, K., Funkquist, P., & Nyman, G. (2002). The effect of coat clipping on thermoregulation during intense exercise in trotters. Equine Veterinary Journal, 34(S34), 564–567.
Abstract: Summary The aim of this study was to study the physiological, especially thermoregulatory, responses during intense exercise in the clipped horse compared to the horse with winter coat. Six Standardbred trotters were studied before and after clipping. They performed an inclined incremental high intensity treadmill exercise test and were monitored during recovery. The clipped horse differed significantly (ANOVA) during exercise as compare to coated: less increase in central venous blood temperature, higher skin surface temperature, greater difference skin to ambient temperature and higher rate of nonevaporative heat loss. The clipped horse had significantly lower total cutaneous evaporative heat loss from walk to end of peak exercise and a shorter time for recovery for the respiratory rate using a paired t test. The clipped horse showed a tendency (P = 0.059) to decreased oxygen uptake during the stepwise increase in workload. We concluded that the clipped horse experienced less strain on the thermoregulatory system due to an enhanced heat loss. Some clipped horses in the study showed a more efficient power output; future studies with emphasis on respiration and oxygen demand are needed to explain this.
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Outram, A. K., Stear, N. A., Bendrey, R., Olsen, S., Kasparov, A., Zaibert, V., et al. (2009). The Earliest Horse Harnessing and Milking. Science, 323(5919), 1332–1335.
Abstract: Horse domestication revolutionized transport, communications, and warfare in prehistory, yet the identification of early domestication processes has been problematic. Here, we present three independent lines of evidence demonstrating domestication in the Eneolithic Botai Culture of Kazakhstan, dating to about 3500 B.C.E. Metrical analysis of horse metacarpals shows that Botai horses resemble Bronze Age domestic horses rather than Paleolithic wild horses from the same region. Pathological characteristics indicate that some Botai horses were bridled, perhaps ridden. Organic residue analysis, using δ13C and δD values of fatty acids, reveals processing of mare's milk and carcass products in ceramics, indicating a developed domestic economy encompassing secondary products.
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Hare, B., Rosati, A., Kaminski, J., Bräuer, J., Call, J., & Tomasello, M. (2010). The domestication hypothesis for dogs' skills with human communication: a response to Udell et al. (2008) and Wynne et al. (2008). Anim Behav, 79.
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Mills, D. S., & McDonnell, S. M. (Eds.). (2005). The Domestic Horse. Camebridge: Cambridge University Press.
Abstract: Humans have had a profound influence on the horse since its domestication in the late Neolithic period. Used for transport, labour, food and recreation, horses have become important in many facets of our society. Daniel Mills and Sue McDonnell have produced an exceptional account of our current knowledge of the development and management of the behaviour of the horse, from its wild roots. The Domestic Horse brings together, for the first time, an unrivalled collection of international scientific authors to write on the latest findings concerning the behaviour and welfare of this beautiful animal. Illustrated throughout, The Domestic Horse will appeal to animal scientists, those working with horses in a professional capacity and the owner/enthusiast. It also provides sound complementary reading for animal/equine science courses and veterinary students.
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Edwards, K. L., Bansiddhi, P., Paris, S., Galloway, M., & Brown, J. L. (2019). The development of an immunoassay to measure immunoglobulin A in Asian elephant feces, saliva, urine and serum as a potential biomarker of well-being. conphys, 7(1).
Abstract: Additional measures of well-being would be beneficial to the management of a variety of species in human care, including elephants. Immunoglobulin A (IgA) is an immune protein associated with pathogen defense, which has been demonstrated to decrease during times of stress, and increase in response to positive stimuli. This paper describes the development and validation of an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for the quantification of Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) IgA in feces, saliva, urine, and serum. Samples were collected weekly from four females for 6 months to assess IgA and glucocorticoid (GC) concentrations, establish relationships between these two biomarkers, and determine variability in IgA within and between individuals, and across sample types. IgA was quantified in all four sample types, although urinary concentrations were low and sometimes undetectable in individual samples. Concentrations were highly variable within and between individuals, with fecal, salivary and serum IgA, and fecal, salivary and urinary GCs all differing significantly across individuals. Contrary to previous findings, IgA and GC were generally not correlated. Serum IgA was less variable within individuals, with the exception of one female that experienced a brief illness during the study. However, marked inter-individual differences were still apparent. When data from all individuals were combined, fecal IgA was significantly predicted by salivary and urinary IgA; however, this relationship did not hold when individuals were analyzed separately. Analysis of a fifth female that exhibited a more severe systemic illness demonstrated clear increases in fecal IgA and GC, suggesting these may also be useful health biomarkers. Further investigation is needed to determine what sample type is most reflective of biological state in elephants, and how IgA concentrations are associated with health and positive and negative welfare states. Based on observed variability, a longitudinal approach likely will be necessary to use IgA as a measure of well-being.
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Cozzi, B., Povinelli, M., Ballarin, C., & Granato, A. (2014). The Brain of the Horse: Weight and Cephalization Quotients. Brain Behav Evol, 83(1), 9–16.
Abstract: The horse is a common domestic animal whose anatomy has been studied since the XVI century. However, a modern neuroanatomy of this species does not exist and most of the data utilized in textbooks and reviews derive from single specimens or relatively old literature. Here, we report information on the brain of Equus caballus obtained by sampling 131 horses, including brain weight (as a whole and subdivided into its constituents), encephalization quotient (EQ), and cerebellar quotient (CQ), and comparisons with what is known about other relevant species. The mean weight of the fresh brains in our experimental series was 598.63 g (SEM ± 7.65), with a mean body weight of 514.12 kg (SEM ± 15.42). The EQ was 0.78 and the CQ was 0.841. The data we obtained indicate that the horse possesses a large, convoluted brain, with a weight similar to that of other hoofed species of like mass. However, the shape of the brain, the noteworthy folding of the neocortex, and the peculiar longitudinal distribution of the gyri suggest an evolutionary specificity at least partially separate from that of the Cetartiodactyla (even-toed mammals and cetaceans) with whom Perissodactyla (odd-toed mammals) are often grouped.
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