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Griffin, B. (2002). The use of fecal markers to facilitate sample collection in group-housed cats. Contemp Top Lab Anim Sci, 41(2), 51–56.
Abstract: The provision of proper social housing is a priority when designing an experiment using domestic cats as laboratory animals. When animals are group-housed, studies requiring analysis of stool samples from individual subjects pose difficulty in sample collection and identification. In this study, commercially available concentrated food colorings (known as bakers pastes) were used as fecal markers in group-housed cats. Cats readily consumed 0.5 ml of bakers paste food coloring once daily in canned cat food. Colorings served as fecal markers by imparting a distinct color to each cat s feces, allowing identification in the litter box. In addition, colored glitter (1/8 teaspoon in canned food) was fed to cats and found to be a reliable fecal marker. Long-term feeding of colorings and glitter was found to be safe and effective at yielding readily identifiable stools.
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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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Visser, E. K., Van Reenen, C. G., Rundgren, M., Zetterqvist, M., Morgan, K., & Blokhuis, H. J. (2003). Responses of horses in behavioural tests correlate with temperament assessed by riders. Equine Vet J, 35(2), 176–183.
Abstract: REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY: Behavioural tests as well as observers' ratings have been used to study horses' temperament. However, the relationship between the ratings and the responses in behavioural tests has not yet been studied in detail. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to examine this relationship between ratings and responses. METHODS: Eighteen mature Swedish Warmblood horses were subjected to 2 behavioural tests, one relating to novelty (novel object test) and one to handling (handling test). Subsequently, 16 of these horses were ridden by 16 equally experienced students, having no former experience with the horses. Immediately after each ride, the students scored the horse for 10 temperamental traits using a line rating method. RESULTS: It was shown that for each temperamental trait all 16 riders agreed on the ranking of the horses (0.212<W<0.505, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Correlations between behavioural and heart rate variables in the behavioural tests revealed that horses with a high level of locomotion or much restlessness behaviour exhibited high mean heart rate and low heart rate variability. In particular, heart rate variables in the behavioural tests were found to correlate with riders' rating scores. Furthermore, the underlying components of the handling test, retrieved with a principal component analysis (PCA) correlated with riders' rating scores while the underlying components of the novel object test did not. POTENTIAL CLINICAL RELEVANCE: It is concluded that it is possible for a large panel of assessors to agree upon a horse's temperament and that objective measures from behavioural tests correlate significantly with temperamental traits assessed by a panel of assessors.
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Williams, J. L., Friend, T. H., Collins, M. N., Toscano, M. J., Sisto-Burt, A., & Nevill, C. H. (2003). Effects of imprint training procedure at birth on the reactions of foals at age six months. Equine Vet J, 35(2), 127–132.
Abstract: REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY: While imprint training procedures have been promoted in popular magazines, they have received limited scientific investigation. OBJECTIVES: To determine the effects of a neonatal imprint training procedure on 6-month-old foals and to determine if any one session had a greater effect than others. METHODS: Foals (n = 131) were divided into the following treatments: no imprint training, imprint training at birth, 12, 24 and 48 h after birth or imprint training only at birth, 12, 24, 48, or 72 h after birth. Foals then received minimal human handling until they were tested at 6 months. RESULTS: During training, time to complete exposure to the stimulus was significant for only 2 of 6 stimuli. Percentage change in baseline heart rate was significant for only 2 of 10 stimuli. These 4 effects were randomly spread across treatments. CONCLUSIONS: Neither the number of imprint training sessions (0, 1, or 4) nor the timing of imprint training sessions (none, birth, 12, 24, 48, or 72 h after birth) influenced the foal's behaviour at 6 months of age. POTENTIAL CLINICAL RELEVANCE: In this study, imprint training did not result in better behaved, less reactive foals.
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Verrill, S., & McDonnell, S. (2008). Equal Outcomes with and without Human-to-Horse Eye Contact When Catching Horses and Ponies in an Open Pasture. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science, 28(5), 309–312.
Abstract: Each of 104 horses and ponies was approached for catching at pasture by the same human handler in a standard manner, either maintaining human-to-animal eye contact (EC+; n = 51) or avoiding eye contact (EC-; n = 53). A subset of 74 of these subjects were reevaluated 3 weeks later under similar standard conditions except with the eye contact condition opposite to that used in the first round. Nonparametric statistical methods were used to evaluate between subjects (round 1, n = 104) and within subjects (rounds 1 and 2, n = 74) comparisons of successful or unsuccessful catching outcome with EC+ and EC-. Catching outcomes were similar with eye contact condition. Although this study represents a single handler at one study site, results suggest that human-to-horse eye contact may not be an important influence on catching pastured horses. Certainly, further work is needed to better understand the role of eye contact in horse handling.
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De Pasquale, A., Ingala, A., Innella, G., Luigiano, G., Malara, L., & Panzera, M. (2008). The influence of the enriched environment on the reactivity of the precociously handled foals (Equus caballus L.). In IESM 2008.
Abstract: In a preliminary study, we evaluated the effect of precocious handling (at birth, 10, 30 and 60 days) and enriched environment on foal. Two experimental groups were created:
- 3 foals not handled and stabled in semi-enriched environment (Group A).
- 6 foals handled and stabled in an enriched environment (Group B).
All nine foals were tested with a novel object test (umbrella) at three months of age, to assess the Heart Rate (HR) values measured by a telemetric heart rate monitor (Polar Horse Trainer), during opening, touching and closing of the umbrella.
The statistical analysis carried out by means of the Mann-Whitney test showed lower HR values of the foals of group B (P<0.05).
Furthermore we have investigated 10 foals born between 2006 and 2008 to study the influence of enriched environment and precocious handling on behavioural responsiveness. The foals were housed on a farm which ensured an enriched environment and made social intra and interspecific interactions easier, alias autoshaping. They were submitted to:
- Handling within 24 hours from birth.
- Handling and reactivity test (arena test) executed at 10, 30 and 60 days.
The temporal correlation was studied among ages and baseline HR values, using the
Spearman"s test, to assess the beginning of neurovegetative HR control.
In fact statistically significant differences were obtained (r = -0.431; P<0,02). Temporal values of obtained HR baseline, using the Wilcoxon test, showed lower values at 60 days. The comparison was significant among mean and max baseline HR values of 30 vs 60 and 10 vs 60 (P<0.05), while no differences were observed during the reactivity test. This shows that adequate conditions of management associated to a precocious and continuous handling allow the foals to maintain their natural investigative behaviour disappearing fear and flight reactions.
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