Abstract: We investigated 8 horses in five therapeutic riding centres situated in San Cataldo (Caltanissetta – I), Nicosia (Catania – II), Pellaro (Reggio Calabria – III), San Gregorio (Catania – IV), Niguarda Hospitals (Milan – V). The managements of the animals were of different typologies: Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3. In type 1 the horses were used for therapeutic riding only. Furthermore intra and interspecific social interactions were not allowed. In type 2 the horses played kinetic activities and made social interactions. In type 3 the horses were free in paddock, as intra and interspecific social interactions were allowed. The centre I, with a management of type 1, housed 1 horse (A1); the centre II, with a management of type 2, housed 1 horse (B2); the centre III, with a management of type 1, housed 1 horse (C1); the centre IV, with a management of type 2, housed 2 horses (D2 and E2); the centre V, with a management of type 3, housed 3 horses (F3, G3 and H3). Breeds of horses were: Anglo-Arab (n°1), Avelignese (n°3), Italian Selle (n°3), draught-horse crossbreed (n°1). They were 2 geldings and 6 females. Their ages ranged from 12 to 23 years. We observed a total of 64 patients affected by different pathologies: autism, motory handicap, blindness and deafness, children“s cerebral paralysis, relational problems, mental deficiency, Down”s syndrome.
The horses" behaviour was observed at rest and during therapeutic activities with these patients. The Heart Rate (HR) was used as physiological parameter for an ethological evaluation, measured by a telemetric heart rate monitor (Polar Horse Trainer). Horses were analysed with a reactivity test for emotional homeostasis evaluation, too. Heart rate values were studied with non parametrical statistical analysis methods.
Distinct management typologies provided statistically different basal mean values of heart rate (intergroup and intragroup): Type 1 vs Type 2 (P~0.05) and Type 1 vs Type 3 (P<0.05). The comparison of heart rate during therapeutic activities of diverse management showed the following results: A1 vs B2 (P<0.05), B2 vs C1 (P<0.05), Type 1 vs Type 2 (P<0.01). Different managements, both in the same or different typologies, gave significantly diverse results (A1 vs E2: P~0.05; C1 vs E2: P~0.05; B2 vs E2: P~0.05).
This study shows that the statistic differences obtained by therapies with autistic patients derive from management conditions of Type 1. In reactivity test there aren"t any significant differences among the three management typologies. However, we recorded strong variation between medium and maximum values of heart rate, especially in Type 1 and Type 2 of management.
These high variations of heart rate indicated fear reaction of the horse to new stimuli.
This reaction could lead to dangerous accidents for patients during therapeutic activities.
Horses used in therapeutic riding programs must be evaluated before this employment. Horse's behaviour can be assessed by an ethological observation and a reactivity test. Furthermore, the horses must be guaranteed welfare conditions and must live in an environment enriched with sensorial stimuli and respectful of their physiological and ethological needs.

Abstract: A number of discrimination learning studies suggest that horses attend to spatial cues in preference to visual ones. However, global and relative spatial cues have generally been confounded so it is not clear what information horses actually used. There has also been no study of whether one cue is learnt at the expense of another, or whether multiple cues are encoded but prioritised differently. We therefore carried out a series of studies examining how horses use different cues in learning a food-finding discrimination task. All studies used a criterion for success of 7/10 on two consecutive days (binomial test, p=0.0004).
A pilot study showed that horses could discriminate between three buckets using visual cues (striped, chequered or plain patterns). All four subjects performed significantly above chance levels, although one horse’s performance did not meet the criterion. Three others completed the task in between two and 12 sessions. There were some indications that horses tried to solve the task using irrelevant spatial information.
Nine foals were then taught to find a food reward using the same three patterned buckets placed in a row in any corner of a test arena. In Stage 1 the rewarded bucket was signified both by visual cues (pattern) and by relative spatial cues (left, middle or right position). Foals took between 2 and 10 days to complete the task , whereupon the cues were separated. Foals then had to ignore the inappropriate cue in Stage 2. For the Spatial group (n=5), only relative position remained relevant; for the Visual Group (n=4) bucket pattern indicated the rewarded bucket. Spatial group foals completed Stage 2 faster than Visual group foals (Mann Whitney U, z=-2.71, p=0.008). Position cues seemed to overshadow learning about visual cues: Visual group foals persisted in responding to the previously correct position and none reached criterion within the maximum available time (15 days to complete both stages).
Finally, five adult horses and one 10 month old filly learnt to find a reward in one of three identical yellow buckets whose position in an array (left, middle or right) and location within the test arena were consistent. On reaching criterion, responses were recorded in two unrewarded probe trials where the buckets were either shifted along the same axis or rotated by 90º. When the array was shifted, five out of six horses chose the previously correct position (binomial test, p=0.018) that was now in a new location within the school. Choices were not significantly different from random when the array was rotated, suggesting that the horses had learnt something about global cues even if they did not use them in selecting a bucket.
At the small scale tested, relative spatial cues (position with regard to other goals) seemed to be more important to horses than either visual cues or global spatial cues, though the latter appeared to be encoded to some extent. Reliance on spatial cues may reflect their usefulness in the horse’s natural lifestyle in navigating over long distances and feeding on visually similar plants.

Abstract: The Humane Society United States (HSUS) has been partnering with several prominent researchers for over 20 years to assess the potential use of Porcine Zona Pellucida (PZP), a protein used as a fertility control vaccine for wild horses. Past studies on herds located on barrier islands of the eastern United States have demonstrated that PZP prevented pregnancies and was a valuable tool for population management. With the generous support of the Annenberg Foundation and in partnership with the Science and Conservation Center, Tufts University and The University of Toledo, HSUS is conducting a 5-year longitudinal study to assess the effectiveness of immunocontraception on over 600 wild horses in the western United States.
This project involves 2 herds of over 300 wild horses each located in Utah and Colorado. We began gathering pre treatment data in April 2008. Birth rates, band size, and individual horse identifications were recorded. In the winter of 2008/2009 both herds will be captured and all mares that are released will be treated with a 2-year-duration PZP vaccine. Both herds will be closely monitored for reproduction and behavior changes for 3 years. We will record the differences in reproductive success of treated and untreated (not captured) females.
HSUS is also seeking to develop refinements to the PZP vaccine and delivery technologies. HSUS is currently trying to improve the production of the PZP vaccine by producing it with techniques that are more efficient and less costly. Improving delivery methods for the 2 year drug is another goal of this research that may allow herd managers the flexibility of treating mares year round without having to capture it. HSUS also hopes to demonstrate that incorporating this new delivery method and proactively managing wild horse herds will assist in maintaining wild horse populations at a level that is sustainable and manageable.

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: The cognitive abilities of social ungulates, in particular horses, have widely been neglected. Preliminary results suggest that horses are capable of social cognition which they acquire through social learning. They gain information from the observation of the interaction of a conspecific and a human experimenter, and adjust their own behaviour towards the experimenter with respect to the observed horse"s reaction and relative dominance status (Krueger and Heinze, 2007). Horses are a highly social species that still exists in different evolutionary stages: domestic horses, feral horses and wild horses (Przewalski horses). Additionally, domestic and wild horses differ in their individual social behaviour. For example, in social interactions Przewalski horses appear to act significantly more aggressively than domestic horses. Therefore studies on horses are particularly suitable to investigate whether convergent social evolution favours convergent cognitive evolution. By a comparative study concerning their reasoning abilities in a specific situation, we will attempt to determine the influence of domestication and feralisation on the evolution of social cognition and to investigate possible differences in their abilities to cope with stressful situations. We started to observe the behaviour of domestic and wild horses, in particular during the integration into new social groups, especially in relation with their knowledge of the social structure of new groups and their own relative social status. Selected agonistic interactions will be measured and statistically evaluated. Additionally, the stress level of the horses will be determined by an analysis of stress hormone levels, particularly cortisol metabolites, in plasma, saliva and faeces.