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Animals : an open access journal from MDPI.
Publisher:
Molecular Diversity Preservation International,
Frequency: Quarterly
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Start Year:2010 -
ISSN:
2076-2615 (Electronic)
2076-2615 (Linking)
2076-2615 (Linking)
Impact Factor
4.2
2022
| NLM ID: | 101635614 |
| (OCoLC): | 667255765 |
| LCCN: | 2012254619 |
Lung Function Variation during the Estrus Cycle of Mares Affected by Severe Asthma. While the prevalence of asthma is higher in boys than in girls during childhood, this tendency reverses at puberty, suggesting an effect of sex hormones on the disease pathophysiology. Fluctuations of asthma severity concurring with the estrus cycle are reported in women, but this phenomenon has never been investigated in mares to date. The objective of this exploratory study was to determine whether the estrus cycle modulates airway obstruction in severe equine asthma (SEA). Five mares with SEA during exacerbation of the disease were studied. The whole breath, expiratory and inspiratory resis...
Morphological Characteristics of a Horse Discovered in an Avar-Period Grave from Sâncraiu de Mureș (Alba County, Romania). Archeozoological studies provide an insight into human-environment relations, bringing important information on the morphology of the animal and the role of the animal and its functions. The purpose of this study was to reveal the morphological characteristics of the horse identified in an 8th century BC Avar cemetery dated, as it resulted from the investigation carried out on the materials presented to the Anatomy Lab of Department of Comparative Anatomy. The cleaning and conditioning of the materials were performed in the lab, followed by anatomical and osteometrical study. The identificatio...
Selection of Image Texture Analysis and Color Model in the Advanced Image Processing of Thermal Images of Horses following Exercise. As the detection of horse state after exercise is constantly developing, a link between blood biomarkers and infrared thermography (IRT) was investigated using advanced image texture analysis. The aim of the study was to determine which combinations of RGB (red-green-blue), YUI (brightness-UV-components), YIQ (brightness-IQ-components), and HSB (hue-saturation-brightness) color models, components, and texture features are related to the blood biomarkers of exercise effect. Twelve Polish warmblood horses underwent standardized exercise tests for six consecutive days. Both thermal images and blo...
Associations between Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage (EIPH) and Fitness Parameters Measured by Incremental Treadmill Test in Standardbred Racehorses. Exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH) is a condition affecting up to 95% of racehorses, diagnosed by detecting blood in the trachea after exercise and/or the presence of hemosiderophages in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALf). Although EIPH is commonly associated with poor performance, scientific evidence is scarce. The athletic capacity of racehorses can be quantified through some parameters obtained during an incremental treadmill test; in particular, the speed at a heart rate of 200 bpm (V200), and the speed (VLa4) and the heart rate (HRLa4) at which the blood lactate concentrati...
Preliminary Behavioural Observations of Horseback Safaris: Initial Insights into the Welfare Implications for Horses and Herbivorous Plains Game Species. In Africa, wildlife-watching experiences create substantial revenue from tourists that can finance wildlife conservation. Horseback safaris, where an experienced guide takes guests through the bush on horseback to observe plains game species, are a popular activity. Close encounters between ridden horses and game species are unnatural and potentially stressful situations, and horseback safaris may have adverse impacts on both the horses and the wildlife they have come to observe. This study aims to provide a preliminary insight into the behavioural responses of horses and herbivorous plains ga...
Development of a Composite Pain Scale in Foals: A Pilot Study. Prompt pain management is crucial in horses; however, tools to assess pain are limited. This study aimed to develop and pilot a composite scale for pain estimation in foals. The "Foal Composite Pain Scale" (FCPS) was developed based on literature and authors' expertise. The FCPS consisted of 11 facial expressions, 4 behavioural items, and 5 physical items. Thirty-five pain-free foals (Control Group) and 15 foals experiencing pain (Pain Group) were used. Foals were video-recorded at different time points: the Control Group only at inclusion (C), while the Pain Group at inclusion (T1), after an ...
Race-Level Reporting of Incidents during Two Seasons (2015/16 to 2016/17) of Harness Racing in New Zealand. The objective of this study was to describe the incident and non-incident reporting of harness racing in New Zealand, the primary injury and reporting outcomes, and to examine horse- and race-level variables associated with the odds of these outcomes. Retrospective stipendiary stewards' reports of race day events during the 2015/16 to 2016/17 racing seasons were examined. The number of incident and non-incident events and binomial exact 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated per 1000 horse starts. Most reports were for non-incidents and an examination was requested for poor performance ...
The Indicators of Clinical and Subclinical Mastitis in Equine Milk. The somatic cell count in milk (SCC) and electrical conductivity of milk (ECM) are indicators of the health status of the mammary gland. Among somatic cells, mainly polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN), macrophages (MAC), and lymphocytes (LYM) are rated. This study aimed to determine the SCC, PMN, MAC, LYM, ECM, and bacteriological index (BII) in milk collected from mares with (CM) and without (NCM) clinical symptoms of mastitis concerning mares with (SM) and without (NSM) subclinical mastitis. Milk samples were collected from 27 mares divided into NCM (n = 12) and CM (n = 15) groups. In sample...
Occupational Safety Climate in the Swedish Equine Sector. The Swedish equine sector is considered a high-risk work environment, with relatively high injury rates and high severity of injuries. General safety research has identified a correlation between the safety performance and safety culture, but little is known about the intricacies of the safety culture in the Swedish equine sector, especially concerning managers' and employees' perceptions of their work environment. The safety climate assessment is recognised as an effective tool for identifying potential problems in the workplace, thus enhancing safety behaviour and decreasing the frequency an...
Aggression, Erection, and Masturbation in Feral Pottoka Ponies and Implications for Equine Welfare. Erection and masturbation in horses are considered unwanted behaviors in training contexts, despite recognition that these are naturally occurring behaviors that are integral to the welfare of male horses. Equestrians, especially those who use positive reinforcement in their training, expressed concern that the presence of such behaviors might be associated with aggressive or sexual behaviors aimed at humans participating in horse-human interactions. The implications of such attitudes could negatively affect male horses by excluding them from welfare-friendly training systems. In this study, f...
Advances in the Diagnosis of Equine Respiratory Diseases: A Review of Novel Imaging and Functional Techniques. The horse, as a flight animal with a survival strategy involving rapid escape from predators, is a natural-born athlete with enormous functional plasticity of the respiratory system. Any respiratory dysfunction can cause a decline in ventilation and gas exchange. Therefore, respiratory diseases often lead to exercise intolerance and poor performance. This is one of the most frequent problems encountered by equine internists. Routine techniques used to evaluate respiratory tract diseases include clinical examination, endoscopic examination, radiographic and ultrasonographic imaging, cytological...
Agreement of High-Definition Oscillometry (HDO) and Invasive Blood Pressure Measurements at a Metatarsal Artery in Isoflurane-Anaesthetised Horses. High-definition oscillometry (HDO) over the metatarsal artery (MA) in anaesthetised horses has not yet been evaluated. This study aimed to assess agreement between HDO and invasive blood pressure (IBP) at the metatarsal artery, and to evaluate compliance with the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) consensus guidelines. In this experimental study, 11 horses underwent general anaesthesia for an unrelated, terminal surgical trial. Instrumentation included an IBP catheter in one and an HDO cuff placed over the contralateral MA, as well as thermodilution catheters. Systolic ar...
Effect of 15° Reverse Trendelenburg Position on Arterial Oxygen Tension during Isoflurane Anesthesia in Horses. Lower than expected arterial oxygen tension (PaO) continues to be an unresolved problem in equine anesthesia. The aim of this randomized, crossover, and prospective study using six adult horses is to determine if a 15° reverse Trendelenburg position (RTP) increases PaO during inhalation anesthesia. Under constant-dose isoflurane anesthesia, dorsally recumbent horses were positioned either horizontally (HP) or in a 15° RTP for 2 h. Lungs were mechanically ventilated (15 mL/kg, 6 breaths/min). Arterial carbon dioxide tension (PaCO), PaO, inspired oxygen fraction (FiO), and end-tidal carbon dio...
Equine Encephalosis Virus. Equine encephalosis (EE) is an arthropod-borne, noncontagious, febrile disease of horses. It is caused by EE virus (EEV), an Orbivirus of the Reoviridae family transmitted by Culicoides. Within the EEV serogroup, seven serotypes (EEV-1-7) have been identified to date. This virus was first isolated from a horse in South Africa in 1967 and until 2008 was believed to be restricted to southern Africa. In 2008-2009, isolation of EEV in an outbreak reported from Israel demonstrated the emergence of this pathogen into new niches. Indeed, testing in retrospect sera samples revealed that EEV had alread...
Short-Term Effects of Temperature and Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone Stimulation on Adrenocorticotropin Stability in Horses. Pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID) is diagnosed by increased basal or post thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) stimulation ACTH concentrations. ACTH is known to be unstable; however, the effect of different temperatures and TRH stimulation on equine ACTH stability is poorly described. In total, 15 horses, including 8 PPID positive (ACTH > 35 pg/mL at baseline or >65 pg/mL 30 min after TRH stimulation), were divided into 2 groups: 9, including 5 PPID positive, with basal ACTH concentrations and 6, including 3 PPID positive, with post TRH stimulation ACTH concentrations. Whole bl...
A Survey-Based Analysis of Injuries to Horses Associated with Transport by Road in New Zealand. Negative outcomes associated with the road transport of horses are a significant welfare issue. This study aimed to describe the injuries sustained by horses during road transport in New Zealand and factors associated with trauma while in transit. New Zealand horse industry participants were surveyed on their horse transport experiences and equine industry involvement. Participants were solicited through horse organisations. The data were tabulated, and a logistic regression was performed to identify significant ( < 0.05) factors associated with transport-related injury. In total, 201/1133 ...
Platelet Lysate for Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Culture in the Canine and Equine Species: Analogous but Not the Same. Platelet lysate (PL) is an attractive platelet-based therapeutic tool and has shown promise as xeno-free replacement for fetal bovine serum (FBS) in human and equine mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) culture. Here, we established a scalable buffy-coat-based protocol for canine PL (cPL) production (n = 12). The cPL was tested in canine adipose MSC (n = 5) culture compared to FBS. For further comparison, equine adipose MSC (n = 5) were cultured with analogous equine PL (ePL) or FBS. During canine blood processing, platelet and transforming growth factor-β1 concentrations increased ( < 0.05 and ...
The Effect of Rider:Horse Bodyweight Ratio on the Superficial Body Temperature of Horse’s Thoracolumbar Region Evaluated by Advanced Thermal Image Processing. Appropriate matching of rider-horse sizes is becoming an increasingly important issue of riding horses' care, as the human population becomes heavier. Recently, infrared thermography (IRT) was considered to be effective in differing the effect of 10.6% and 21.3% of the rider:horse bodyweight ratio, but not 10.1% and 15.3%. As IRT images contain many pixels reflecting the complexity of the body's surface, the pixel relations were assessed by image texture analysis using histogram statistics (HS), gray-level run-length matrix (GLRLM), and gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) approaches. The st...
Comparing Blind and Ultrasound-Guided Retrobulbar Nerve Blocks in Equine Cadavers: The Training Effect. In standing ophthalmic surgery in horses, a retrobulbar nerve block (RNB) is often placed blindly for anesthesia and akinesia. The ultrasound (US)-guided RNB may have fewer complications, but the two techniques have only been compared once in equine cadavers. This study compares the techniques for success and complication rates and analyzes the effect of training on US guidance. Twenty-two equine cadavers were divided into three groups: blind RNBs were performed bilaterally in eight cadavers, US-guided RNBs were performed bilaterally in seven cadavers, and after US-guided training, blind RNBs ...
An Exploration of Environmentally Sustainable Practices Associated with Alternative Grazing Management System Use for Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Mules in the UK. Equestrian grazing management is a poorly researched area, despite potentially significant environmental impacts. This study explored keepers' use of alternative grazing systems in the care of UK horses, donkeys and mules through an internet survey. The survey was available during the summer of 2020 and comprised closed and open questions, which were analysed with descriptive statistics and iterative thematic analysis, respectively. A total of 758 responses was incorporated into the analysis; the most popular system used were tracks (56.5%), Equicentral (19%), "other" (e.g., non-grass turnout)...
Genetic Variability Trend of Lusitano Horse Breed Reared in Italy. The Lusitano Horse (LH) originates from Portugal, but is reared worldwide. Since 1994, the University of Milan has routinely tested the LHs bred in Italy for parentage control. This study aims to assess the genetic variability of the LH reared in Italy using 16 microsatellites markers. Moreover, the genetic variability changes over the years in the total population (n.384) and in unrelated horses (n.47) were evaluated. Horses were grouped according to their date of birth (1975-1990, 1991-2000, 2001-2010, 2010-2019). Standard genetic diversity parameters, including observed (Ho) and expected (H...
Measurement of Plasma Resistin Concentrations in Horses with Metabolic and Inflammatory Disorders. Obesity and its associated complications, such as metabolic syndrome, are an increasing problem in both humans and horses in the developed world. The expression patterns of resistin differ considerably between species. In rodents, resistin is expressed by adipocytes and is related to obesity and ID. In humans, resistin is predominantly produced by inflammatory cells, and resistin concentrations do not reflect the degree of obesity, although they may predict cardiovascular outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of resistin and its relationship with ID and selected ind...
Beclin 1, LC3 and P62 Expression in Equine Sarcoids. It is well known that δ-bovine papillomaviruses (BPV-1, BPV-2 and BPV-13) are one of the major causative agents of equine sarcoids, the most common equine skin tumors. Different viruses, including papillomaviruses, evolved ingenious strategies to modulate autophagy, a complex process involved in degradation and recycling of old and damaged material. Methods: The aim of this study was to evaluate, by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and Western blot (WB) analysis, the expression of the main related autophagy proteins (Beclin 1, protein light chain 3 (LC3) and P62), in 35 BPV1/2 positive equine sarco...
Within-Breath Oscillatory Mechanics in Horses Affected by Severe Equine Asthma in Exacerbation and in Remission of the Disease. Oscillometry is a technique that measures the resistance (R) and the reactance (X) of the respiratory system. In humans, analysis of inspiratory and expiratory R and X allows to identify the presence of tidal expiratory flow limitation (EFLt). The aim of this study was to describe inspiratory and expiratory R and X measured by impulse oscillometry system (IOS) in horses with severe asthma (SEA) when in clinical remission ( = 7) or in exacerbation ( = 7) of the condition. Seven healthy, age-matched control horses were also studied. Data at 3, 5, and 7 Hz with coherence > 0.85 at 3 Hz and >...
Impact of Gait and Diameter during Circular Exercise on Front Hoof Area, Vertical Force, and Pressure in Mature Horses. Circular exercise can be used at varying gaits and diameters to exercise horses, with repeated use anecdotally relating to increased lameness. This work sought to characterize mean area, mean vertical force, and mean pressure of the front hooves while exercising in a straight line at the walk and trot, and small (10-m diameter) and large circles (15-m diameter) at the walk, trot, and canter. Nine mature horses wore TekscanTM Hoof Sensors on their forelimbs adhered with a glue-on shoe. Statistical analysis was performed in SAS 9.4 with fixed effects of leg, gait, and exercise type (PROC GLIMMIX...
Protein Source and Intake Effects on Diet Digestibility and N Excretion in Horses-A Risk of Environmental N Load of Horses. Six Finnhorse mares were used in a digestibility trial, in which six typical horse diets were compared. The diets were: (A) haylage 100%; (B) hay 100%; (C) hay 70% and oats 30%; (D) hay 70% and soybean meal + oats 30%; (E) hay 70%, rapeseed meal + oats 30% and (F) hay 70 %, linseed meal + oats 30%. The trial was conducted according to an unbalanced 6 × 4 Latin square design with four 3-week experimental periods. The experimental period consisted of 17-day preliminary feeding which was followed by a 4-day total faecal and urine collection periods to evaluate N excretion. The digestibilities of...
An Exploration of Current and Perspective Semen Analysis and Sperm Selection for Livestock Artificial Insemination. Artificial insemination of livestock has been a staple technology for producers worldwide for over sixty years. This reproductive technology has allowed for the rapid improvement of livestock genetics, most notably in dairy cattle and pigs. This field has experienced continuous improvements over the last six decades. Though much work has been carried out to improve the efficiency of AI, there are still many areas which continue to experience improvement, including semen analysis procedures, sperm selection techniques, sperm sexing technologies, and semen storage methods. Additionally, the use ...
Pilot Study of the Influence of Equine Assisted Therapy on Physiological and Behavioral Parameters Related to Welfare of Horses and Patients. Different welfare indicators were studied in three patients with psychomotor alterations and in two horses throughout 9-10 equine assisted therapy sessions in each patient. In horses, heart and respiratory rates, blood pressure, temperature and behavioral signs were studied. In patients, heart rate, oxygen saturation, temperature, sleep quality, psychomotor and emotional parameters were analyzed. Data collection was recorded in the anticipatory phase (15 min before the start of the session), two interaction phases (after 30 min of horse-patient interaction on the ground and on horseback, respe...
A Preliminary Investigation of Interspecific Chemosensory Communication of Emotions: Can Humans (Homo sapiens) Recognise Fear- and Non-Fear Body Odour from Horses (Equus ferus caballus). Mammalian body odour conveys cues about an individual's emotional state that can be recognised by conspecifics. Thus far, little attention has been paid to interspecific odour communication of emotions, and no studies have examined whether humans are able to recognise animal emotions from body odour. Thus, the aim of the present study was to address this question. Body odour samples were collected from 16 two-year-old thoroughbred horses in fear and non-fear situations, respectively. The horse odour samples were then assessed by 73 human odour raters. We found that humans, as a group, were abl...
Association between Cardiac Auscultation and Echocardiographic Findings in Warmblood Horses. Heart murmurs are detected frequently when auscultating horses and certain murmurs can usually be linked to specific valvular regurgitations. Limited information exists about the accuracy of these broad rules in warmblood horses and the influence of grade of the regurgitation and dimensional changes on murmur intensity. This study aims to clarify the accuracy of cardiac auscultation in warmblood horses and the influence of the grade of regurgitation and dimensional changes on the loudness of the murmur. In this retrospective study, 822 warmblood horses presented for cardiac examination in a la...
