Variables affecting the prevalence of behavioural problems in horses. Can riding style and other management factors be significant?

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Abstract

The effects of riding style and various management factors on the prevalence of stereotypies and other behavioural problems among 346 mixed-breed saddle horses (phase 1) and 101 Arabian horses (phase 2) were analysed through a questionnaire answered by owners. In phase 1, the questionnaire data were partially validated through 20-min observations of 81 (23.3%) of the cases.

Results indicate that horses primarily ridden in the English style were reported to be significantly more likely to display stereotypies (p < 0.001), problems when transported (p = 0.001), multiple behavioural problems (p < 0.001), and to have more restrictive stabling (p < 0.001) than horses ridden with other styles. When only Arabian horses were assessed in phase 2, however, there was no significant difference in behavioural problems between the Arabian horses ridden English style versus other riding styles. However Arabian horses were housed less restrictively than horses in phase 1 and English riding style and restrictive stabling tended to exacerbate each other's association with stereotypies. Management-related effects were found when, e.g., horses housed in restrictive stabling were more frequently reported to show locomotion stereotypies (p = 0.02) and those denied ad libitum hay displayed stereotypic wood-chewing behaviour (p = 0.02). To aid diagnosing and prioritizing interventions and care, the most predictive subsets of factors were computed for the various problem behaviours. E.g., among saddle horses, a statistical model comprised of the main riding style, duration of access to a paddock, and horse's age predicted whether a horse was reported to display any behavioural problem 62% of the time. This study supports the effects of management and handling on the prevalence of behavioural problems, and helps prioritize the relative importance of broad management categories on equine welfare. In particular, it underscores the importance of riding style on the well-being of saddle horses.

Introduction

Behavioural problems—here encompassing both abnormal and undesirable behaviours, including stereotypies—are important concerns in equine practice and constitute a topic that has received considerable, recent, scientific attention (Clegg et al., 2008, Cooper et al., 2002, Hausberger et al., 2008, Henderson and Waran, 2001, Hockenhull and Creighton, 2010, Johnson et al., 1998, McAfee et al., 2002, Mills and Riezenbos, 2005, Thorne et al., 2005, Visser et al., 2008, Wickens and Heleski, 2010). Abnormal behaviours here denote pathologies usually resulting from a chronic conflict situation; undesirable behaviours will refer to behaviours humans typically consider annoying. It is beyond the scope of this study to review definitions of the concept of “abnormal”, which is controversial even in the human physiology literature, and, hence, would require a lengthy examination.

A growing body of research is beginning to lend some clarity to the cause and aetiology of problem behaviours among horses. Although it is true that stereotypies (such as crib-biting and pacing) are complex and of varied aetiology (Mason, 1991), many authors find that the majority of these problems in horses are linked to management issues such as stabling, breeding, and feeding practices, and to the management of foals at and around their weaning (for a review see Wickens and Heleski, 2010). In turn, the management of affected horses is influenced (usually in the sense of greater isolation) by the widespread belief among those in the horse world that behaviours—including problem behaviours—can be learnt or copied from other horses, rather than resulting from less-than-ideal housing and management (McBride and Long, 2001).

It seems intuitively logical that stereotypic and other problem behaviours will be more prevalent when management practices place horses in conditions quite different from natural ones to which they are adapted (Kiley-Worthington, 1997, Mills and Nankervis, 1998). For example, Mills and Macleod (2002) and Nicol et al. (2002) suggested that crib-biting develops in order to decrease stomach acidity resulting from a diet of few, concentrated meals quite antithetical to historic equine grazing practices. Administration of antacid buffers decreased crib-biting in a dose-dependent way according to a non-significant tendency. However, these results have not been confirmed by more recent studies using virginiamycin or omeprazole (Freire et al., 2008, Toewe et al., 2008).

Many management and training practices converge around the riding of horses. Ödberg (1987a), Ödberg and Bouissou (1999), and McLean and McGreevy (2010) speculate that the way a horse is ridden could cause chronic stress to the animal. In addition, Mills et al. (2002) reported that stereotypic behaviours were prevalent among 2-year-old Thoroughbred horses and linked it to the breaking in process. Therefore, handling and riding style merit investigation alongside other management factors for their association with problem behaviours.

Normando et al. (2002) found that riding style is associated with different prevalences of problem behaviours, especially stereotypies, but they were not able to assess whether such differences were due to the riding style per se, or to different management, breed, etc. factors. Teasing apart the effects of these various factors from that of riding style is important—not only to establish any role of riding style, but also to more clearly discern the relative importance of other factors, including characteristics of the horse (Luescher et al., 1998, Munoz et al., 2009) such as sex, age, and breed (Redbo et al., 1998, Albright et al., 2009), reactivity (Bachmann et al., 2003), mother's position in the herd hierarchy (Waters et al., 2002), a mare's reproductive status (Benhajali et al., 2010), and genetic factors (Albright et al., 2009, Hosoda, 1950, Luescher et al., 1998, Vecchiotti and Galanti, 1986).

The current study employed an epidemiological approach to assess co-occurrences of several management-related factors and characteristics of horses with behavioural problems. Of particular interest are whether various management practices, stabling conditions, and breed compositions independently contribute to differences in problem behaviour between horses ridden in different styles. Although an association does not necessarily imply causation, epidemiological studies such as this provide a naturalistic approach that can identify the extent to which a rather wide range of factors are linked to the prevalence of problem behaviours among animals; they can help both prioritize factors for future research and guide management until causal mechanisms can be better established.

Section snippets

Materials and methods

The study was conducted in two phases. Horses involved in phase 1 were not involved in phase 2. The methods employed in this study agree with respective national regulations on animal welfare.

Descriptive statistics and univariate results

The data for all questionnaires were pooled since there were no significant differences in the responses to items collected through questionnaires completed directly by the owner and to items where the questionnaires were completed through researcher interviews (lowest p = 0.228 for all χ2 and Fisher's exact tests). Horses involved in phase 1 (35 stallions, 142 mares, 166 geldings, 3 gender unknown) were aged from 7 months to 31 years, with a mean age of 10.96 years, SD = 6.03. Table 1, Table 2,

Discussion

Our results support the relationship of management-related factors with stereotypies and other problem behaviours. The speculations about riding style were borne out: problem behaviours were more common among saddle horses ridden in the English style than those ridden in any other style. This finding was rather robust, appearing when assessing rather different types of behaviours and even when other factors were considered (in multivariate analyses).

Being ridden in the English style was the

Conclusions

The results of this study shed some light on the possible role of riding styles on the prevalence of behavioural problems among horses. In particular, among saddle horses of different breeds, English style riding was linked to a higher prevalence of stereotypies especially when in combination with restrictive stabling—such as stabling conditions without free access to a paddock for at least 6 h a day. However, among the Arabian horses, no effect was found on behavioural problems when comparing

Acknowledgements

The author would like to acknowledge the valuable contributions of Dr. Barbara Pellegrini, Dr. Benedetto Zender, Ms. Cochi Allegri, horse owners, instructors, and all who collaborated. Research funded by MIUR ex 60%.

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