An attempt to assess the welfare of horses maintained in herd systems

Abstract

The aim of the study was to assess the welfare, using the Welfare Quality criteria, of horses maintained in natural conditions. The study material was a herd of Hucul horses, consisting of 14 mares with offsprings and a stallion, maintained in a herd system on pastures. The research was conducted in the months of March, July and November in 2010 and 2012. Nutrition assessment was based on access to feedstuff, water, including their state. Analysis of levels of maintenance involved evaluating prevailing weather conditions, stocking rate as well as horses' freedom of movement in the delineated land area. Assessment of the herd's health condition was based on interviews with the supervising veterinarian. Horses' behaviour was assessed through observations that relied on their social, affiliative and agonistic behaviours. The condition of the horses was influenced by the period of year, with the best being in November (P≤0.01). Maintenance conditions and exploitation affected the herd's state of health, with no illnesses or injuries being reported over the analysed period. Seasons of the year had impacts on the horses' behaviour (P≤0.01). In summer, grazing took place in the late evenings and early mornings, with animals kept under sheds. Intensified feeding was observed in November. No stereotypical behaviours were observed. Heart rate measurements were a pointer to the animals' emotional balance and attitudes towards people. The observed high level of horses' welfare suggested that a natural herd system of management ought to be preferred and propagated.

Housing Horses in Individual Boxes Is a Challenge with Regard to Welfare

“…It was shown that horses living in long-term individual boxes experienced an improvement in their mental state through a positive cognitive bias when they were released in pasture with congeners [78], likely indicating a better overall welfare state. The absence of stereotypies in pasture was also already mentioned [79]. However, the relationship between stereotypies and welfare remains unclear, and they should not be used as the only behavioural indicators to assess the welfare state [15].…”

Temporal variations of herbage production and nutritive value of three grasslands at different elevation zones regarding grazing needs and welfare of ruminants

“…Research about the welfare of livestock has been mainly conducted to intensively farmed animals with or without access to pastures (Turner and Dwyer, 2007;Charlton and Rutter, 2017;Carcangiu et al, 2018) and to certain regions (Mikuš et al, 2018). For this reason, information concerning the welfare of grazing ruminants is quite restricted (Bojkovski et al, 2014;Topczewska, 2014;Antkowiak et al, 2012;Karasabbidis et al, 2014;Gilhaus and Hölzel, 2016).…”

Changes in Management, Welfare, Emotional State, and Human-Related Docility in Stallions

“…Some authors observed fewer behavioral disorders in horses living in paddocks or on pasture [ 4 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ], although in stallions, this housing system may favor fights which can cause severe lesions and even the death of the animals in some cases [ 3 , 4 ]. More recently, Gehlen et al [ 5 ] concluded, based on an extended literature review, that group-housing of stallions represents the most adequate system if a few characteristics regarding the exercise area (size and design), the composition of the group, and the horses are considered.…”