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Author Hausberger, M pdf  openurl
  Title Temperament and Personality in Horses: An Overwiev Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract The existence of individual variations in behaviour has been demonstrated in all species investigated. Horses do show individual variations in a variety of behaviours from an early age on, as well as in behavioural traits underlying temperament/personality. Temperament is generally described as the “biological” (i.e.genetic) basis on which personality, as a result of environmental influences (i.e. experience), will be constructed. Indeed, genetic factors such as breed or patriline do have an influence on aspects like emotional reactions to fear-inducing situations or cognitive abilities while environmental factors, such as the conditions of life or the type of work performed, have also an influence on horse personality. We will review here the existing evidence of this interplay between genetic and environmental influences, showing that different traits can be differently influenced, and then look more thoroughly at the processes involved.

A particular accent will be given to the influence of the human-horse relation on personality traits of horses, both at adult stages through management, daily interactions and type of work, and at early stages through management and handling of foals.

The question of the stability of traits across situations and over time, that is of the possible predictibility of behavioural traits, is central, especially where the transfer from experimental situations (behavioural tests) to working situations and performance is concerned. The question of methodological approaches (behavioural tests, observations, questionnaires) can be crucial here and will be discussed.

In overall, this review should help understanding the determinants of horse temperament/personality traits and their implication in terms of choice of the appropriate horse for a given owner, better management and training for a better welfare and horse-human relationship. Genetic influences may lead to different susceptibilities to the same environmental conditions which mean that there are no such thing as “bad” or “good” horse temperaments but rather different horse types that may require different management or training schedules.
 
  Address University of Rennes, Sciences de la Vie et de l Environnement  
  Corporate Author Hausberger, M Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Invited speaker IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4458  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Walzer, C.; Kaczensky, P.; Ganbaatar, O.; Stauffer, C. pdf  openurl
  Title Przewalski Horses, Satellites and Wild Asses Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract The Przewalski`s horse (Equus f. przewalskii) was extinct in the wild by the mid-sixties of the past century. The species only survived due to captive breeding from 13 founder individuals. In 1992 a reintroduction program was initiated in the Great Gobi B Strictly Protected Area in southwestern Mongolia. During it“s initial years, the project concentrated exclusively on P-horses. In the past decade activities have expanded significantly. The ecological project start point can be summed up as follows: i) species is extinct in the wild, ii) severe bottleneck, iii) practically no ecological data prior to extinction, iv) released into an extremely harsh, highly variable and poorly understood environment. The ecological knowledge constraints were compounded by i) highly emotional species, ii) simultaneous and competitive projects, iii) logistic nightmare, iv) non-scientific basis in planning phase. By the late 1990s project leadership and management was overhauled with research and scientific data firmly integrated into the decision-making process. Early scientific input concentrated on determining causes of death and low reproductive rates. The elucidation of the effects of endemic piroplasmosis on the population and subsequent management changes lead to remediation this deadly problem. P-horses have been fitted with ARGOS and GPS-ARGOS collars in order to determine home range and habitat preferences. Simultaneously the Mongolian wild ass and the wolf have been studied with these methods in the shared habitat. Satellite-based technologies provide the backbone for all habitat related project issues. At the onset (digitized Russian maps) data collection was restricted to the Eastern part of the Gobi B. Subsequently the spatial scale encompasses the entire Gobi Region in Mongolia and Northern Xingjian in China (e.g. Landsat, MODIS, NOAA, SRTM). Research has also focused on the role, needs and possible impacts of local semi-nomadic herders that use the protected area. Capacity building and training workshops (e.g. construction of fuel efficient stoves, felting) have been initiated. In 2007 a trans-boundary project in collaboration with the Xingjian Institute of Ecology and Geography of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was initiated. This project aims to support rural communities of nomadic pastoralists living in the trans-boundary area of the Dzungarian Gobi, in China and Mongolia. Today, this project and the one in Hustain Nuruu (Mongolia) are the only ones that have resulted in free-ranging non-supplemented populations. In the Gobi B area some 120 (status 05.2008) P-horses roam in the protected area. In 2003 the IUCN downlisted the Przewalski\'s horse from to . Further downlisting to is predicted to occur in 2011. There is no consensus on when a reintroduction program is deemed successful. Clearly viewing the self-sustainable re-establishment of a population as a successful end-point is at best a short-term approach, constrained by time (today and now). Comprehensive interdisciplinary monitoring and research was and is the foundation for management strategies and decisions in this project. However, a self-sustaining financial base in conjunction with dedicated training and empowerment of local scientists and residents constitute essential prerequisites for the project”s future. Defining success and thereby inferring an end-point can easily lead to complacency compromising species persistence. As others have stated the ultimate project objective must be a constantly re-evaluated state of population persistence without intervention.  
  Address Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria and International Takhi Group, Takhin Tal, Mongolia  
  Corporate Author Walzer, C. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Invited speaker IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4459  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Baragli, P.; Regolin, L pdf  openurl
  Title Cognitive Tests in Equids (Equus caballus and Equus Asinus) Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract For ages horses and donkeys constituted the most important domesticated animals. Even though equids were often bred and kept in close proximity to humans, surprisingly little is known about their cognitive abilities. Traditionally, horses are not regarded as clever animals; common beliefs maintain that the horses“ behaviour is merely driven by conditioned-responses. Additionally, from an anthropomorphic point of view donkeys are believed to be ”stupid“ animals.

Our study investigates the equids” ability to recover a hidden object. For this purpose the animal has to create and maintain a representation of the object and its location in space, from the moment in which it disappears from direct perception, till the moment in which it reappears. The knowledge about objects being entities that continue to exist even when they are no longer available for direct perception is refered to as the well known concept of “object permanence”.

We primarly assessed the ability of Esperia's pony and donkeys to solve a Detour problem while employing an opaque “U-shaped” barrier. Each animal observed a food bucket moving and disappearing behind the barrier. Immediately after the object"s disappearance, the animal was released to search for the object. If it solved the task by detouring the barrier it was positively reinforced.

The ability to retain in memory the hidden object as well as its spatial location was subsequently tested in the presence of two, rather than one, screens (Working Memory testing phase). The food bucket was made to move and hidden behind one of the two identical screens, while the animal was watching it. Following a pre-established delayed period of 10 sec, the animal was set free to look for the food. In such a test the detour problem is combined with the classical delayed-response task, which is in use for the comparison of memory duration in different species.

In order to recover the hidden objects, animals must encode, maintain and correctly regain from their working memory the existence of the no longer visible object and its location from their working memory.

Both donkeys and ponies performed the Detour task showing to grasp the fact that an object which is no longer perceivable still continues to exist and can be regained. They also were able to correctly retrieve the goal object after a delay of 10 s in the Working Memory tasks, showing that they had encoded, maintained and correclty retrieved from their working memory the spatial location of the hidden object as well as its existence.

Nevertheless, when Standardbreds, raised in traditional stables, were tested in identical conditions to those describe for the ponies and donkeys, they could not succeed in the Detour tasks. The reason for such differences needs to be studied Even though it would be interesting to focus on handling differences, i.e., the ponies had been living in an environment rich in natural stimuli, while the Standardbreds had lived in a man-controlled environment since birth. It is also noteworthy that, like donkeys, the Esperia's pony have a reputation for being hard to handle.

Several considerations could arise from our preliminary investigations, and we will have the pleasure to leave them open for discussion.
 
  Address University of Pisa- Dept of Veterinary Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology  
  Corporate Author Baragli, P. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Talk 15 min IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4461  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Krueger, K. pdf  openurl
  Title Social cognition and social learning in horses Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract In comparison to other social animals it appears to be far more difficult to show social learning in horses, although the social background of the animals prompts the prediction that social learning should be verifiable. This demands for a thorough analysis of conditions, context and effects of social learning which might not be as obvious in horses than in other social animals. Moreover, the horse“s social cognition in general, i.e. the processing, encoding, storage, retrieval, and application of social information, needs to be examined. In previous studies we addressed the horse”s perception of it“s social environment. Our results indicate that domestic horses are not only capable of distinguishing between familiar and unfamiliar horses but also of recognizing the social status of familiar horses relative to their own. Furthermore, they extract information from observing interactions between a familiar horse and a human experimenter, and adjust their behaviour according to the observed horse”s reaction and relative dominance status when they are themselves later confronted with the experimenter in a similar situation. Additionally, we showed in pilot experiments that horses paid more attention to the gaze of dominant horses from their own social group than to that of unknown or subordinate horses. In another study we suggested that horses of both sexes are capable of determining the social affiliation, the sex and, for their own group members, the identity of individuals, by sniffing their faeces. Hence, social affiliation and dominance relationships seemed to have a major influence on the horses` motivation to pay attention to their conspecifics. In the future we will take another step towards linking the horse“s social cognitive capacities with its social ecology, social structure, and individuality. In the context of comparative cognition research on the socially complex primates, or on a range of carnivores such as corvids, canids or dolphins, horses are particularly interesting, because they are highly social, but do not rely on social hunting or cooperative raising of offspring. Also foraging is simple for horses, predator avoidance is demanding and this may be the main reason for the horse”s complex social lives and their choice of learning tactics. Hence, we will investigate the horse"s investigative behaviour towards neutral, fear-eliciting and food related novel objects. We propose that, as in other species, sociality and distinct personalities are key features for the understanding of cognitive capacities and the choice of learning strategies.  
  Address University of Regensburg – Biology I  
  Corporate Author Krueger, K. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Talk 15 min IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4462  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Timney, B. pdf  openurl
  Title Photopic Spectral Sensitivity and Wavelength Discrimination in the Horse (Equus caballus) Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract A number of studies have demonstrated that horses have chromatic vision and are able to distinguish colours from grey, independent of brightness. Anatomical and physiological data support the view that they are dichromats. In two experiments we provide behavioural evidence for their dichromacy. In the first we measured photopic spectral sensitivity. Using a spatial two alternative forced choice task, two horses were required to discriminate a coloured circular patch on an achromatic background from a blank field over a range of wavelengths . The obtained spectral sensitivity function was consistent with the presence of two cone classes with predicted spectral peaks at 429 nm and 545 nm, respectively. In the second experiment we obtained wavelength discrimination functions. The same animals were required to make discriminations between a series of standard wavelengths and a series of comparison wavelengths across the spectrum. The resultant wavelength discrimination function showed a single minimum at approximately 480 nm, which is also consistent with the view that horses are dichromats. Key Words: Horse, colour vision, spectral sensitivity, wavelength discrimination  
  Address  
  Corporate Author Timney, B. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Talk 15 min IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4463  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Kuhne, F.; Struwe, R.; Balzer, H.U. pdf  openurl
  Title A new, non-invasive method to assess specific strain in horses Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract Horses" reactions to normal environmental and training situations play an important

role the human-horse relationship. These demands on horses can either lead some

individuals to withdrawal, immobility or aggressive defence. However, the reaction to

such situations varies greatly among horses, which is reflected in individual

differences in sympathetic, parasympathetic and muscular reactivity. The observable

behavioural responses of the horses seem to be qualitatively related to the internal

state of physiological arousal. In future it should be possible to identify behavioural

signs which really do reflect internal states of the autonomic nervous system to

provide general advice concerning human handling and training in view of reducing

stress in horses.

For these purposes, we have determined responses of the vegetative nervous

system based on variation in skin potential, skin resistance and electromyogram

using non-invasive real-time measurements. All these parameters can be measured

by a SMARD-Watch-System (System of non-invasive Measurement and Analysis

for Regulatory Diagnostics), which can be externally attached to the horses using a

harness.

The physiological data will assess using a time series analysis. Thereby the changes

in the regulatory processes in each of the three physiological systems can be

determined in detail. Based on this analysis characteristic behaviour patterns will be

analysed by the variability of the regulatory processes. According to temporary shifts

in regulatory processes, stable and unstable regulation states will be determined.

Depending on the proportions of unstable regulation processes during and after

external threat, four types of regulation can be defined: the Control, Cope,

Compensate and Non-cope- type. Defined time-windows, for example a ten minutes

lasting pre- and post-test phase and a ten or twenty minutes lasting time-window for

the execution of the specific stimulus have to be chosen to decide these regulation

types.

These four regulation types and the preferred individual behaviour strategies have to

be compared to evaluate the relative frequency of occurrence of a behaviour strategy

depending on responses of the vegetative nervous system. In view of validating

behavioural indicators of emotional reactivity, the aim of this new method is to

characterize individual differences in the behavioural and physiological responses of

horses to normal environmental and training stimuli.

Evidence is provided by human and animal data that the non-invasive real-time

measurement of the vegetative nervous system based on variation in skin potential,

skin resistance etc. is a promising approach for evaluating stress and emotional

states in vertebrates. It will be explained that the chronobiological evaluation of

physiological parameters has the potential to contribute much to our understanding

and assessment of the underlying physiological processes of stress responses in

horses.
 
  Address Division of Animal Welfare and Ethology, Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen, Germany  
  Corporate Author Kuhne, F. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Talk 15 min IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4465  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Toewe,B.; Fey, K.; Würbel, H. pdf  openurl
  Title Effect of an omeprazole (GastroGard) treatment on cribbiting in horses suffering from gastric ulceration Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract Cribbiting is a common stereotypy in domestic horses and is associated with stress and low fibre/high concentrate diets, which are known to cause gastric inflammation and ulceration. Recent studies indicate that antacid supplements can reduce both gastric inflammation and cribbiting. However, stereotypies are also associated with altered brain functions and these are thought to be responsible for emancipation. Emancipation refers to a process by which stereotypies become increasingly independent of the causal factors and may therefore persist with age, regardless of the conditions. Emancipation complicates therapy and points to the importance of prevention.

To further examine the relationship between gastric health and cribbiting and its relation to age at onset, we examined the effect of the proton-pump inhibitor omeprazole (GastroGard, Merial) on gastric inflammation/ulceration and on cribbiting in a double-blind placebo-controlled study. Thirty-one horses of different sex, breed and age were randomly allocated to treatment and placebo and divided into three groups depending on age: 0-5 years (n=11), 5-10 years (n=11) and >10 years (n=9), whereby age at onset of cribbiting was ≤ 5 years for all horses. Treatment and placebo were administered orally by syringe once every day for 28 days by the horse owners. Treatment consisted of 4mg/kg omeprazole for the first four days and 1mg/kg for the following 24days.

Using scan sampling and behaviour sampling, general activity and the number of crib-bites were assessed in the home pens one day before and one day between day 21 and 28 of treatment. Observations were made for three hours each around morning and evening feeding times, respectively. Prior to pre-treatment observations and after post-treatment observations, the horses were transported to the clinic and endoscoped for signs of inflammation and ulceration in the oesophagus, the squamous area, the glandular area and the first part of the duodenum using a common scoring system (Andrews et al. 1999).

All 31 horses showed signs of gastric inflammation/ulceration which decreased significantly from a median score of 1,2 to 0,6 in the treatment group (Wilcoxon signed rank test, z=-3,186, p=0,001), while there was no change in the placebo group (z=-0,577, p=1.0). However, there was no significant difference in cribbiting before and after treatment, neither in the treatment group (z=-1,834, p=0,068), nor in the placebo group (z=-0,415, p=0,734). Moreover, there were no significant effects of age on gastric inflammation/ulceration (2-way ANOVA, F=1,112, p=0,345) or cribbiting (F=1,113, p=0,344).

These results contrast with the recent studies on the effects of antacids on gastric health and cribbiting. There are two possible explanations for this: First, cribbiting may become rapidly established and may thus have persisted even in the youngest age group. Second, omeprazole acts specifically by reducing gastric acid secretion into stomach, while antacids may also have an effect on the intestine. However, these results shed doubts on the hypothesis that cribbiting is caused by gastric inflammation/ulceration.
 
  Address Division of Animal Welfare and Ethology, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen, Germany  
  Corporate Author Toewe,B. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Poster IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4466  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author van Dierendonck, M. pdf  openurl
  Title International Society of Equitation Science – an outline Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract The International Society for Equitation Science is a not-for-profit International scientific organisation with the primary function of facilitating research into the training and welfare of horses. The mission of the ISES is to promote and encourage the application of objective research and advanced practice which will ultimately improve the welfare of horses in their associations with humans. ISES provides an international forum in which scientists can communicate their most recent findings by organising annual scientific meetings and by encouraging scientific publications. Furthermore, the Society offers a pool of expertise to national governments, international bodies, industry and equine welfare organisations. The idea of founding a Society devoted to equitation science had first been raised during discussions following the Havemeyer Foundation Workshop on Horse Behaviour and Welfare in Iceland in 2002. Since then, equitation science has developed rapidly. The discipline combines learning theory, psychology, ecology, biology and ethology in order to objectively examine the efficiency of different equine training methods. The society is open for people with scientific, scholarly or professional qualifications: equine scientists, ethologists, veterinarians, behaviour therapists or qualified trainers and riders. ISES membership gives the opportunity of joining a network of internationally renowned equine scientists and advanced practitioners. Members save on registration fees for international conferences and stay informed about research and its application in practice through two newsletters per year. For further information and membership issues please visit www.equitationscience.com. During the presentation an overview will be given about the history and goals of ISES, the meetings since 2001, the current organisation- and membership structure and the future plans. Also a summary of the presentations given at the 4th International Equitation Science Conference August 2-4, 2008 in Dublin will be presented.  
  Address  
  Corporate Author van Dierendonck, M. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Talk 15 min IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4467  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Zeitler-Feicht, M. H.; Buschmann, S. pdf  openurl
  Title Investigation on standing stalls for horses with regard to animal welfare Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract The aim of the present study was to test housing conditions of horses (65 horses) in standing stalls (13 farms) with regard to animal welfare. Further behavioural observations were made on 39 horses. 52 horses stabled in 3 farms housed under natural conditions provided as a basis for sampling.

There were exclusively saddle horses as well as breeding horses present. The results of stabling conditions showed that most of the standing stalls fell short of the minimum requirements. 68% of standing stalls were too narrow, 38% not long enough and 28% of the tieing up systems were too short. Important behaviour patterns of social, recumbence resting, grooming and investigation behaviour, especially movement was extremely reduced in the standing stalls. 70% of the horses had no regular everyday lokomotion. A great part of the horses (51%) showed stereotypies. Half of these horses showed more than one stereotypy. The conclusion of the present study is: The standing stalls for horses do not take in account to the animal needs under present conditions in Germany.

The research resulted in a ban of continuous “roped husbandry” of horses, in most Bundesländer in Germany. Adjacent countries, such as Austria and Switzerland implemented expressly in their animal rights bill (2006) and animal rights regulation (2008) a ban of continuous “roped husbandry” of horses. It is hoped that other nations will follow.
 
  Address Lehrstuhl für Ökologischen Landbau, AG Ethologie, Tierhaltung und Tierschutz, Wissenschaftszentrum Weihenstephan der Technischen Universität München  
  Corporate Author Zeitler-Feicht, M. H. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Poster IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4473  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author Lojek, J., Gorska, B. pdf  openurl
  Title Day-Time Budgets of Konik Polski Horses (Equus caballus) Maintained in two Housing Systems Type Conference Article
  Year 2008 Publication IESM 2008 Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume Issue Pages  
  Keywords (up)  
  Abstract A comparison of day-time time budgets of the konik polski horses kept in two different housing systems: free-roaming and in a limited area, was the aim of the study. The observations were carried out in the Biebrza National Park from January to June 2006 on a total of 12 horses (7 females and 5 males) aged from 2 to 5 years. The horses were kept for one year in a free-roaming system on a area of 200 ha where they formed two family bands. Later, during the winter the horses were grouped together in 1 ha enclosure with free access to water, hay given 3 times per day and oats given irregularly mainly in the winter. In the spring horses were let out again into the free-roaming system. A comparison was made of the horses“ behavior characterizing their daily activity in both housing systems. Behavioral data were collected during 122 h of direct observations in 1 hour focal samples in three periods of the day: morning (from dawn to 11:00 am), afternoon (from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm) and in the evening (from 4:00 pm until dusk). The proportion of time spent on feeding and resting behavior and locomotion activity in the total time of the observations, depending on the time of day and sex of the horses, was determined. For the evaluation of the frequency of drinking, comfort, eliminative, sexual and exploratory behavior the number of appeared cases in all horses was added up and divided by the number of observation hours. In spite of significant differences in the intensity of feeding and in the time spent on recumbency found in both housing systems depending on the time of day and sex of the horses, it seems that konik polski horses kept in different housing systems have a tendency to maintain the stable day-time time budgets, which was demonstrated by the similar time of their daily activity spent on feeding (75.9 % of total time in limited area and 71,2 % free-roaming) and resting upright (respectively 16.9 % and 15.8%) as well as cases of urination (0.18 cases/1 hour of observation in limited area and 0.17 in free-roaming in total), self- grooming (respectively 0.40 and 0.56) and mutual-grooming (0.17 and 0.12). But other signs of comfort behavior were observed nearly twice as often in the horses in the limited area (0,42) than in the free roaming system (0,22). The patterns of exploratory behavior were observed decisively more often in the case of horses in limited area (0,5 cases/1 hour of observation) than in the free-roaming system (0,07). The different housing system affected the konik polski horses” time-budget, with decreased time spent in limited area as compared to free-roaming horses in recumbent rest (respectively 2.5 % and 7,0 % of total time), locomotion activity in walk (4.9 % and 8,2 %) and trot (0.006 % and 2,3 %). Due to delivering forage to the paddock the locomotion of the horses related with searching, choosing and eating also decreased. Key words: housing systems, day-time time budgets, konik polski horses  
  Address Warsaw Agricultural University, Horse Breeding Department  
  Corporate Author Lojek, J. Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference IESM 2008  
  Notes Poster IESM 2008 Approved yes  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4478  
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