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Equine Behavior

Equine Behavior. Environment Experiences Diet Exercise Stress. Genetics Gender Type Breed Family group. What Affects Behavior?. Smell Identify other horses Mating Locate water, feed Vomeronasal organ Pheromones Ears & Hearing Detect sounds Determine location of sound

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Equine Behavior

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  1. Equine Behavior

  2. Environment Experiences Diet Exercise Stress Genetics Gender Type Breed Family group What Affects Behavior?

  3. Smell • Identify other horses • Mating • Locate water, feed • Vomeronasal organ • Pheromones • Ears & Hearing • Detect sounds • Determine location of sound • To provide sensory information • Hear in range 14 Hz to 25 kHz (humans 20 Hz to 20 kHz) • Auricle – 180o rotation • Ear position generally relates to visual attention

  4. Touch • Responsive to pain, pressure, cold and heat • Sensitive areas • Eyes, ears and nose • Withers, ribs, flanks and legs • Suffers fatigue

  5. VISION • Primary detector of danger • Acute ability to detect movement • Monocular & Binocular vision • Monocular field of vision: 215o for each eye • Binocular field of vision: 60o-70o • Often raise head to observe close objects • Lower head to observe faraway objects Monocular field Up to 215o Binocular field 60-70o Marginal zone Monocular field

  6. Visual Signs • Ears • Tail • Mouth & lips • Eyes • Nostrils

  7. Harem groups – Domestic horses, Przewalski horse & some zebra Territorial breeders-Donkeys & some zebras Horse BehaviorSocial Organization

  8. Social Organization • Harem • Family • Mares • Stallion • Bachelor Group

  9. Ten Natural Survival Traits • Depends on flight as its primary means of survival • One of the most perceptive of all domestic animals • Very fast response time • Can be desensitized from frightening stimuli • Horses forgive, but do not forget

  10. Ten Natural Survival Traits • Horses categorize • A) something not to fear, so ignore or explore • B) Something to fear, so flee • Horses are easily dominated • Horses exert dominance by controlling the movement of their peers. Horse accept dominance when: • We or another animal cause them to move when they prefer not to • We or another animal inhibit movement when they want to flee

  11. Ten Natural Survival Traits • The body language of a horse is unique to the equine species • Horse is a precocial species (newborn foals are neurologically mature at birth)

  12. Types of Horse Behavior • Ingestive behavior • Eliminative behavior • Epimeletic behavior -Care-giving & care-seeking behavior

  13. Types of Horse Behavior • Sexual • Polygamous • One offspring • Seasonal Breeders • Fetal behavior • Parturient behavior

  14. Self-care behavior Homeostatic influences Grooming Rest Awake 80% Drowsiness 8% Sleep 12% Autogroom Mutual Groom Horse Behavior

  15. Types of Horse BehaviorInvestigative Behavior • Play behavior • Exploratory behavior

  16. Types of Horse Behavior • Allelomimetic Behavior • Mimicry

  17. Types of Horse BehaviorAgonistic Behavior

  18. Types of Horse Behavior • Dominance/Submission (Social Order)

  19. Horse Behavior • Spacing • Individual distance • Group distance • Social distance • Flight distance • Home range • Territorial

  20. Activity • Diurnal • Travel up to 16 km/d (10 mile/d) • Home range, can be up to 1000 ha.(2500 acres) • Range: 0.8-303 sq. km (0.5-188 sq. mile)

  21. Average Time Budgets For Horses

  22. Behavioral Considerations in Equine Handling • HERD INSTINCT • HOMING INSTINCT • FLIGHT • DOMINANCE HEIREACHY • TERRITORIAL BEHAVIOR • SELF-DEFENSE • HABIT

  23. Good Stress – The stressful condition in which the horse can find a solution that will relieve the stress Harmful Stress – A stressful condition in which there is no possible solution or escape. Stress

  24. Responses To Harmful Stress • Habituate • Develop abnormal behavior • Permanent fear memory

  25. Equine Stereotypes • Oral • Cribbing • Tongue movements • Lip movements

  26. Equine Stereotypes • Locomotion • Head movements (bobbing, tossing, shaking, swinging, nodding) • Throat rubbing • Pacing • Weaving • Fence or stall walking

  27. Equine Stereotypes • Locomotion • Circling • Stomping • Kicking • Pawing • Digging • Tail rubbing

  28. Equine Stereotypes • Self-Mutilation • Self-biting (flank, chest, shoulder) • Wall-kicking • Lunging into objects

  29. EQUINE VICES • AGGRESSIVE VICES • Biting • Charging • Crowding • Rearing • Kicking • Striking • Fighting

  30. EQUINE VICES • METABOLIC VICES • Coprophagy or dirt eating • Cribbing • Mane and tail chewing • Wood chewing

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