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.

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.

Abstract: Objective: In the context of the ongoing discussion about keeping horses in individual stable boxes vs. in herds the lack of relaxation of the horse as a flight animal is an argument often put forward against individual housing. The long-term objective of our investigations is to determine the sleep phases in various housing systems in order to find a substantiated answer to that issue. For that purpose, the sleep waves measured by EEG have to be defined beforehand and allocated to the individual stages of sleep. The experiments described here are intended to support this effort. The objective is to establish a method which by means of a portable polysomnograph allows to capture the sleeping behaviour of horses for the purpose of defining the individual stages of sleep. It was investigated which stages of sleep horses undergo, and to what extent they may be comparable to those of humans.
Animals/materials/methods: Given the high technical effort involved, somnographic examination of large animals has so far been difficult and mostly required the animals to be sedated. Meanwhile, however, instruments such as the Somnoscreen by Somnomedics have become available. This is a completely portable polysomnograph with up to 28 channels and wireless online signal transmission and synchronous video transmission to a PC.
Using this instrument, the sleep profile of 5 Icelandic ponies and 10 horses (different race) aged 5-10 years was recorded and evaluated for 4 or 5 nights per horse. The following parameters were assessed: EEG (electroencephalogram), EOG (electrooculogram), EMG (electromyogram), ECG (electrocardiogram), thoracic and abdominal breathing motions as well as identification of the body posture. Synchronous video recordings were made. EEG recordings were obtained through gold-coated disk electrodes with long flexible cables, applied and secured to the scalp.
Results: As with humans, various stages of sleep can also be defined for horses using the above methods of recording. The waking condition is characterised by alpha waves, which just like in humans are within a range of 8-12 Hz. Typical REM phases as in humans were also detected, although not only when stretched completely on their side, as has hitherto always been described, but also when lying on their chest. Phases of deep sleep (stage 4) can also be measured, with the animals mostly in a standing position. The multi-stage human sleeping pattern, which is made up of 4-6 repeat phases of sleep (waking stage eyes open – waking stage eyes closed – REM phase – stage 1 – stage 2 – stage 3 – stage 4 – return to REM phase etc.) was found to be similar in horses in individual sequences. However, the sleep phases are shorter and more frequently interrupted by waking phases.
Conclusions: Horses are flight animals, which is why they have to be “on eye” in every situation so as to be able to flee in the face of danger. In a natural herd lying positions are only assumed if one or more members watch over the herd. In some publications the REM phase is treated as equivalent to the deep sleep phase. Although the REM phase is a phase of total muscle relaxation it is at the same time the dream phase and due to the high frequencies and the low amplitudes in the EOG resembles Stage I. This means that the sleeping horse can be awakened very quickly from this REM phase so as to be able to react to any dangerous situation. It therefore makes sense for the horses to assume a lying position during REM phases as the muscles are relaxed, yet a waking condition can be reached very quickly. A standing position seems to be preferred during deep sleep phases, where waking takes rather long, so that at least the position will not have to be changed. Whether the sleeping behaviour changes depending on age and race has yet to be investigated.

Abstract: Studies on leadership during group movements in several lemur species showed that females were responsible for the travelling choices concerning time and direction. Interestingly, in these species females are dominant over males. We investigated the influence of social organisation upon leadership processes by studying a lemur species in which social organisation is characterized by the absence of female dominance: the brown lemur (Eulemur fulvus fulvus). The study was conducted on a semi-free ranging group of 11 individuals and the analysis performed on 69 group movements showed that all the individuals could initiate a group movement. In 34 cases, the whole group moved. There was no significant difference in the number of start attempts or in the number of group members involved from one initiator to another. Moreover, there was no effect of sex or age of the initiator on the number of individuals following it or on the speed of the joining process. Therefore, the leadership observed is widely distributed to all group members. These results support the hypothesis of an influence of social organisation upon the decision-making processes but still remain to be studied in a more relevant ecological context.

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.