Horse behaviour
Several
things make a horse
unique in the animal kingdom
unique in the animal kingdom
- Horses are strongly social. They are herd
animals, which are at a highest comfort level
when they maintain a visual contact with other
horses. (principle in horse housing)
- Horses are herbivores. They eat plants.
They rely on grazing grasses and leaves for feed.
- Horses are seasonal breeders
- Horses are capable of strong pair-bond
relationship.
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A herbivores feeding behaviour
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Plant
eating animal
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Spend
more time consuming food
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Less
time searching for food
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Ingestion
Definition :
Taking of food or water into digestive
tract.
1.The normal feeding pattern of
horses is grazing for several hours then resting.
Depending on :
A- weather condition.
B- distance to water ,
C- forage availability and quality,
D- level of nutrition demand.
2.How
?
-Taking
bites of grass … 1 or 2 step … taking
other bites.
-So
horses moving during grazing. (Opportunistic feeders)
-Prefer
graze over large area
-Avoid
fecal-contaminated areas
-If
pasture with sufficient grass eat top and leave bottom
-If
pasture overgrazed eat close to roots.
Lactating mare graze more than pregnant
-Immature
prefer sucrose and barley not sour, bitter, salt solution.
3.Social facilitation
a.Eat
more in groups.
b.Prefer
eat from floor , shallow manger for Enabling it to see in all
directions between legs ( antipredator strategy)
4. Selectivity
horses are selective in their food because they have anatomical / behavioral combination ( large mouth + movable lips)
5.Horses cannot vomit
So intestinal disorders mainly resulted in Colic
Water
intake
“you can lead a horse to
water but you can’t make it drink.”
1- water amount : 10-12 gallon/day , Typically, horses do not drink water
frequently
2- water source : clean , fresh
3- How do horses drink? Sucking then swallow.
Elimination
•Associated with urination, defecation.
•Position of urination
urination of horse is every 4 to 6 hours
1.Neck lowered , extended
2.Tail is raised
3.Hind legs
is abducted , extended posterior.
.Male smells urine area
•Position of defecation
defecation of horses ( every 2 to 3 hours):
1. Raise the tail, may hold it off one
side.
2. Defecate during walking except ponies.
3. Stallion defecate in small area ,but
mare & geldings scattering the feces.
Resting
Posture of laying down
1- gathering legs under body.
2- bent knee, chest and fore quarter
contact ground before hind quarter.
Posture of getting up :
1- fore limbs scratched out.
2- fore quarter rise first then hind
quarter.
Recumbency
Two forms:
A.
Lateral :
lie down on one side with flexed one fore
leg.
B.
Sternal :
Lying down on his sternum but
not symmetrically
N.B horse never lie down on his back
Recumbancy : two forms
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Sleeping 20% of day or night.
Slow wave sleep(SWS)
Two
hour/day
while standing
Rapid eye movement(REM)
Nine
periods ,5 minute for each one
- While Laying down
(
lateral recumbancy or sternal recumbancy)
-
Muzzle touch ground , relaxed head.
- Unlike ruminants horse show tachycardia,
leg
movements, increase respiratory. rate
Investigatory
-horse’s
inspection surrounding area by use of the sense smell and movements.
-Until
investigatory complete
horse may be nervous and
frightened.
- investigation in foal is Stronger than adult.
-May
nibble your hands or clothing
Locomotion
-Gait
: is horse’s manner of
moving its legs during
movements. (= way of going )
-Beat
: a foot striking the ground.
-Why we study horse gaits ??
a- to detect lameness.
b- training for special performance.
-Horse have 4 gaits:
Walk, Trot, Pace , Gallop and Canter.
-Basis For Determining The Gait
Walk
- Four beat gait
-left hind leg
-left
Fore leg
-right hind leg
-right
fore leg
-No
suspension
4
miles / hour
Trot
- Two beat gait
-left hind + right fore
- Suspension phase
-left fore + right hind
6
miles / hour
Pace
- Two beat gait
-left hind + left fore
- Suspension phase
-right hind + right fore
More
fatser than trot
Gallop
-Four beat gait
-Start by maximum trotting then all feet collected
under body , off
ground.
-right hind (1)
left hind (2) right fore(3) left fore (4)
then suspension phase
-the
four beats
-The
fastest. 25
miles / hour
Canter or lope :
3-beat gait right hind leg (1) - left hind and right fore (2) -
left fore (3) suspension
Social
-In free ranging herd
One male + 20 female ( hareem system)
-Oldest or larger Female is the
highest
ranking female and Leads the herd in flight and
daily journeys to rest or
grazing area.
-Stallion leads herd from behind
-Typical heirachy : respectively
..
Adult male , adult female , junivel male
, junivel female ,
male foal , female foal.
In
large bands with more
stallion :
-The dominant stallion does most of breeding
-The subdominat stallion does most of
fighting with stranger stallions approach the band.
-Inter species relationships horse
dominate cattle.
the most aggressive horse was the dominant one.
Agonistic
•Signs of serious aggression
1- Biting or biting attempts with ear
flattened to head ,
retracted lips.
2- Kicking or kicking attempts with
laying ears back ,
turning hind quarters toward other horse.
Introduction
of two strange horses together
-Approach
each one with their head held high.
-Necks
arched , ears pointed forward.
-encounter
face to face, Smelling
-Threaten
to strike with fore legs.
-May
smelling each other’s necks, withers, flank, genitals
and rump.
-One
horse may laying it’s ears back ,
turning it’s hind quarter toward other
and
kick with one or both hind legs.
encounter
face to face, Smelling ,
exhaling each other’s nostril.
Signs
of very aggressive horses :
-Laying
their ears back.
-Fore
legs striking.
-Tail
lashing
-Running
toward others with lower
neck, extended head, open mouth,
trying to bite.
posture
of submissive horse:
-Tail
tucked in.
-Ears
turned inward.
-Snapping
( opening , closing mouth
with retracting lips)
-What I should do for submissive
horse?
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