Abstract: Historically, pet dogs were trained using mainly negative reinforcement or punishment, but positive reinforcement using rewards has recently become more popular. The methods used may have different impacts on the dogsâ&#65533;&#65533; welfare. We distributed a questionnaire to 364 dog owners in order to examine the relative effectiveness of different training methods and their effects upon a pet dogâ&#65533;&#65533;s behaviour. When asked how they trained their dog on seven basic tasks, 66% reported using vocal punishment, 12% used physical punishment, 60% praise (social reward), 51% food rewards and 11% play. The ownerâ&#65533;&#65533;s ratings for their dogâ&#65533;&#65533;s obedience during eight tasks correlated positively with the number of tasks which they trained using rewards (P<0.01), but not using punishment (P=0.5). When asked whether their dog exhibited any of 16 common problematic behaviours, the number of problems reported by the owners correlated with the number of tasks for which their dog was trained using punishment (P<0.001), but not using rewards (P=0.17). Exhibition of problematic behaviours may be indicative of compromised welfare, because such behaviours can be caused byor result ina state of anxiety and may lead to a dog being relinquished or abandoned. Because punishment was associated with an increased incidence of problematic behaviours, we conclude that it may represent a welfare concern without concurrent benefits in obedience. We suggest that positive training methods may be more useful to the pet-owning community.

Abstract: Stress in humans has been reported to be associated with a decrease in the salivary immunoglobulin A (s-IgA) levels enabling the possible use of s-IgA to assess stress. Prolonged stress, if reliably assessed in a non-invasive manner, may be used to assess animal welfare. This study analysed groups of dogs undergoing physical and temperamental training and s-IgA levels were measured by rocket immunoelectrophoresis in prospective samples. Behavioural assessment was carried out and cortisol levels in saliva were measured by ELISA. A significant negative correlation (P < 0.007) between the logarithmic cortisol concentrations and s-IgA levels in saliva was recorded. The behavioural assessment of the dogs agreed well with the biochemical markers. It is concluded that IgA levels in saliva may be a useful marker of dog well-being and that stress results in decreased s-IgA levels.

Abstract: This study measured parameters of stress in recreational, trained horses (REC; n = 7) and elite (International Grand Prix level) trained, dressage horses (DRES; n = 5). The training of the DRES horses uses an unnatural head?neck position (Rollkur), whereas in the REC horses such training techniques are not common. The study measured stress by using heart rate variability analysis for 30 min postfeeding in the morning and 30 min postexercise after a morning training session. The study found no significant difference at rest between the REC and DRES horses. During the posttraining measurements, however, the DRES horses showed, among others, a less sympathetic and increased parasympathetic dominance. These results suggest that DRES horses tend to have less acute stress than do REC horses postexercise. The findings of this study suggest maintaining the health and well-being of DRES horses despite nonnatural, biomechanical positions.

Abstract: The relationship between social behaviour and skin injuries (caused by horns) of loose housed horned cows was investigated on 35 dairy farms. While the frequencies of two agonistic behaviour elements (push and chase away) were positively correlated with the occurrence of skin injuries, the frequencies of butting and homing were not. Butting appears to have an ambivalent motivation, in that its occurrence is correlated positively both with agonistic behaviour and with social licking. Horning showed a positive correlation with social licking only. Four groups of husbandry conditions that may be associated with the occurrence of social behaviour and of injuries were distinguished: i) herd management, with variables including problem solving management by the farmer, integration of new cows, and dealing with periparturient and oestrus cows; ii) human-animal relationship, with variables including ability to identify individual cows, frequency of brushing the cows, number of milkers, and frequency of personnel changes; iii) animal characteristics, with the variable of herd size; and iv) stable characteristics, with the variable of space per cow (m2). The relevance of the husbandry variables investigated here had been confirmed in a previous stepwise regression analysis (Menke 1996). The variables for herd management and human-animal relationship conditions correlated in a consistent way with the occurrence of agonistic behaviour and/or of injuries, while most of them also correlated in the opposite direction with the occurrence of social licking. Herd size correlated positively with agonistic behaviour, but negatively with social licking. Space per cow correlated negatively with agonistic behaviour and injuries. In more than 70 per cent of the herds investigated, the levels of agonistic behaviour and of skin injuries were low, implying that horned dairy cows can be kept with less risk than is often assumed. We argue that such risks strongly depend on management factors that can be improved.

Abstract: Recently, training horses within round-pens has increased in popularity. Practitioners often maintain that the responses they elicit from horses are similar to signals used with senior conspecifics. To audit the responses of horses to conspecifics, 6 mare-young-horse dyads, this study introduced them to each other in a round-pen and videoed them for 8 min. These dyads spent significantly more time farther than 10 m apart than they did less than 1 m apart (p < .001). The time they spent less than 1 m apart decreased over the 8-min test period (p = .018). Mares occupied the center of the round-pen and chased youngsters for 0.73% of the test period (p < .001). Mares made all agonistic approaches (p < .001), and youngsters (p = .018) made all investigative approaches. Head lowering and licking-and-chewing were exhibited most when the youngsters were facing away from the mares (p < .001). The frequency of head lowering increased during the test period (p = .027), whereas the frequency of licking-and-chewing did not change. The results bring into question the popular interpretation and ethological relevance of equine responses commonly described in round-pen training and show that mares did not condition young horses to remain in close proximity to them.