Griffin, K ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4644-1771, 2023. An investigation into rest patterns in the horse (Equus caballus) and their potential use in welfare assessment. PhD, Nottingham Trent University.
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Abstract
It has been well documented in humans and other mammals that rest abnormalities act as an indicator of physical or mental dysfunction. Horses present an ideal model species when examining the interaction between rest patterns and distress. As a prey species that relies on fleeing for predator avoidance, horses have evolved to sleep for short periods and will only assume a recumbent position when they feel safe enough to do so. Therefore, the recumbent position in horses may act as an indicator of psychological state, and consequently, have the potential to be used as a welfare measure in horses. This thesis examines which features of sleep can be used as a measure of horse health and welfare, both by researchers and horse owners. A questionnaire designed to sample horse owner attitudes towards rest in horses, received 714 responses ith details on 976 horses. We found that while most horse owners recognised the importance of laying down in horses (94.38%), few owners reported monitoring horse rest (18.07%). Owners were significantly more likely to monitor rest if they had some form of equine specific qualification (P<0.05) but there was no significant relationship with years of experience with horses and likelihood of monitoring rest (P>0.05). Analysis of behaviour of 14 horses over 3-7 consecutive nights, in relation to environmental and individual characteristics showed that time spent feeding was negatively associated with time spent resting at 95% CI (-0.15, -0.04). Additionally, the personality trait of neuroticism was positively correlated with variation in time spent resting. Increased variation in time spent recumbent on a night-by-night basis was correlated with higher levels of the personality trait Neuroticism (P<0.05) and there was some evidence that the occasional absence of recumbency some nights may indicator sleep disorder in horses, although this requires further investigation. An analysis of long term nightly behaviour using 30 minutes scan samples of 11 horses over 18-28 nights was compared to hair cortisol levels and syncrony of lying with horses in neighbouring stables. There was no significant correlation/relationship between hair cortisol and time spent resting, suggesting that hair cortisol may not be an effective biomarker for sleep disorders in horses. Finally, horses in stables did not show signs of synchronised lying behaviour which has been observed in group housed horses. These findings suggest that horse rest patterns have the potential to be used as a welfare measure and should be included in Quality-of-Life assessment. Future work can draw on these findings to develop educational resources for the equestrian community around how to best monitor rest and which aspects of rest reflect welfare in horses.
Item Type: | Thesis |
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Creators: | Griffin, K. |
Contributors: | Name Role NTU ID ORCID Scholey, D. Thesis supervisor UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Hall, C. Thesis supervisor UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Tolington, S. Thesis supervisor UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED |
Date: | September 2023 |
Rights: | The copyright in this work is held by the author. You may copy up to 5% of this work for private study, or personal, non-commercial research. Any re-use of the information contained within this document should be fully referenced, quoting the author, title, university, degree level and pagination. Queries or requests for any other use, or if a more substantial copy is required, should be directed to the author. |
Divisions: | Schools > School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences |
Record created by: | Laura Ward |
Date Added: | 06 Jan 2025 15:26 |
Last Modified: | 06 Jan 2025 15:26 |
URI: | https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/52781 |
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