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Topic:Animal Species
The topic "Animal Species and Horses" explores the interactions and relationships between horses and various other animal species. This includes understanding the ecological roles horses play within their environments, as well as their interactions with domestic and wild animals. Research in this area may cover aspects such as competition for resources, symbiotic relationships, and behavioral influences between horses and other species. Studies may also investigate the impact of horses on biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that examine these interspecies relationships, focusing on the ecological, behavioral, and environmental implications of horses interacting with other animals.
Management of zebras and zebra hybrids (zebroids). Equine practitioners are sometimes asked to treat zebras or zebra-horse or zebra-donkey hybrids. Although these equids are subject to many of the same health issues as domestic horses, they cannot be handled like horses and generally require heavy sedation to full anesthesia, even for minor procedures. This usually necessitates the use of ultrapotent narcotics administered by remote delivery systems. This article discusses the handling, sedation, anesthesia, and common medical issues of zebras and zebra hybrids.
Potential animal and environmental sources of Q fever infection for humans in Queensland. Q fever is a vaccine-preventable disease; despite this, high annual notification numbers are still recorded in Australia. We have previously shown seroprevalence in Queensland metropolitan regions is approaching that of rural areas. This study investigated the presence of nucleic acid from Coxiella burnetii, the agent responsible for Q fever, in a number of animal and environmental samples collected throughout Queensland, to identify potential sources of human infection. Samples were collected from 129 geographical locations and included urine, faeces and whole blood from 22 different animal s...
Genetic diversity and conservation in a small endangered horse population. The Old Kladruber horses arose in the 17th century as a breed used for ceremonial purposes. Currently, grey and black coat colour varieties exist as two sub-populations with different recent breeding history. As the population underwent historical bottlenecks and intensive inbreeding, loss of genetic variation is considered as the major threat. Therefore, genetic diversity in neutral and non-neutral molecular markers was examined in the current nucleus population. Fifty microsatellites, 13 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in immunity-related genes, three mutations in coat colour genes an...
Genetic structure and gene flows within horses: a genealogical study at the french population scale. Since horse breeds constitute populations submitted to variable and multiple outcrossing events, we analyzed the genetic structure and gene flows considering horses raised in France. We used genealogical data, with a reference population of 547,620 horses born in France between 2002 and 2011, grouped according to 55 breed origins. On average, individuals had 6.3 equivalent generations known. Considering different population levels, fixation index decreased from an overall species FIT of 1.37%, to an average [Formula: see text] of -0.07% when considering the 55 origins, showing that most horse ...
Where are the horses? With the sheep or cows? Uncertain host location, vector-feeding preferences and the risk of African horse sickness transmission in Great Britain. Understanding the influence of non-susceptible hosts on vector-borne disease transmission is an important epidemiological problem. However, investigation of its impact can be complicated by uncertainty in the location of the hosts. Estimating the risk of transmission of African horse sickness (AHS) in Great Britain (GB), a virus transmitted by Culicoides biting midges, provides an insightful example because: (i) the patterns of risk are expected to be influenced by the presence of non-susceptible vertebrate hosts (cattle and sheep) and (ii) incomplete information on the spatial distribution of...
Dispersal of Pleistocene Equus (Family Equidae) into South America and calibration of GABI 3 based on evidence from Tarija, Bolivia. The dispersal of Equus into South America during the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) represented a major event for Pleistocene land-mammal age chronology on that continent. It has been argued that this dispersal occurred during the late Pleistocene, ∼0.125 Ma, and it defines the base of the Lujanian South American Land Mammal Age (SALMA). In this scenario, Equus dispersed during the fourth and latest recognized phase of the interchange, i.e., GABI 4. Although Equus was widely distributed in South America during the Pleistocene, only a few localities are calibrated by independent chr...
Four novel papillomavirus sequences support a broad diversity among equine papillomaviruses. Papillomaviruses appear to be species-specific pathogens, and it was suggested that each animal species might harbour its own set of papillomaviruses. However, all approaches addressing the underlying evolutionary phenomena still suffer from very limited data about animal papillomaviruses. In case of the horse for example, only three equine papillomaviruses (EcPVs) have been identified. To further address the situation in this host, suspected papillomavirus-associated lesions were tested for EcPV DNA. Four novel EcPV types were detected and their genomes entirely cloned and sequenced. They dis...
The domestic livestock resources of Turkey: status, use and some physical characteristics of mules. Mules are known to have been used as carriage and riding animals in Mesopotamia and Anatolia as early as the beginning of the second millennium BC but may have been first bred in Anatolia in the Third Century BC. They have thus contributed to Turkey's cultural, social and economic heritage for more than 4,000 years and were an ancient component of its guild of domestic animals and overall biodiversity. Once bred country-wide most mules are now introduced "illegally" to the southeast and east from Iraq and Iran. Mules are now bred only in one small area in north-central Turkey close to the Blac...
Genetic diversity and phylogenetic analysis of native mountain ponies of Britain and Ireland reveals a novel rare population. The conservation of unique populations of animals is critical in order to preserve valuable genetic diversity and, where populations are free-living, maintain their irreplaceable influence upon habitat ecology. An accurate assessment of genetic diversity and structure within and between populations is crucial in order to design and implement conservation strategies in natural and domesticated species. Moreover, where it is possible to identify relic populations that are related to a structured breed an ideal opportunity presents itself to model processes that reveal historical factors that hav...
Fumonisin B(1): a neurotoxic mycotoxin. Fumonisin B(1) (FB(1)) is a mycotoxin produced by Fusarium spp. moulds that contaminate crop, predominantly maize, all around the world. More than 15 types of fumonisins have been indentified so far, but FB(1) is the most abundant and toxicologically the most significant one. FB(1) has a wide range of toxic effects, depending on animal species. In horses FB(1) causes equine leukoencephalomalacia (ELEM), in pigs pulmonary oedema and in experimental rodents nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity. In humans exposure to FB(1) is linked with higher incidence of primary liver cancer and oesophageal cance...
Methods to estimate effective population size using pedigree data: Examples in dog, sheep, cattle and horse. Effective population sizes of 140 populations (including 60 dog breeds, 40 sheep breeds, 20 cattle breeds and 20 horse breeds) were computed using pedigree information and six different computation methods. Simple demographical information (number of breeding males and females), variance of progeny size, or evolution of identity by descent probabilities based on coancestry or inbreeding were used as well as identity by descent rate between two successive generations or individual identity by descent rate. Results: Depending on breed and method, effective population sizes ranged from 15 to 133 ...
Landscape-scale factors affecting feral horse habitat use during summer within the rocky mountain foothills. Public lands occupied by feral horses in North America are frequently managed for multiple uses with land use conflict occurring among feral horses, livestock, wildlife, and native grassland conservation. The factors affecting habitat use by horses is critical to understand where conflict may be greatest. We related horse presence and abundance to landscape attributes in a GIS to examine habitat preferences using 98 field plots sampled within a portion of the Rocky Mountain Forest Reserve of SW Alberta, Canada. Horse abundance was greatest in grassland and cut block habitats, and lowest in con...
True blue: S-opsin is widely expressed in different animal species. Colour vision in animals is an interesting, fascinating subject. In this study, we examined a wide variety of species for expression of S-opsin (blue sensitive) and M-/L-opsin (green-red sensitive) in retinal cones using two novel monoclonal antibodies specific for peptides from human opsins. Mouse, rat and hare did not express one of the investigated epitopes, but we could clearly prove existence of cones through peanut agglutinin labelling. Retinas of guinea pig, dog, wolf, marten, cat, roe deer, pig and horse were positive for S-opsin, but not for M-/L-opsin. Nevertheless all these species ...
Adapting to climate change on Western public lands: addressing the ecological effects of domestic, wild, and feral ungulates. Climate change affects public land ecosystems and services throughout the American West and these effects are projected to intensify. Even if greenhouse gas emissions are reduced, adaptation strategies for public lands are needed to reduce anthropogenic stressors of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and to help native species and ecosystems survive in an altered environment. Historical and contemporary livestock production-the most widespread and long-running commercial use of public lands-can alter vegetation, soils, hydrology, and wildlife species composition and abundances in ways that exa...
Correlation between corneal sensitivity and quantity of reflex tearing in cows, horses, goats, sheep, dogs, cats, rabbits, and guinea pigs. Guinea pigs have a very low threshold of corneal sensitivity and at the same time nearly no reflex tearing compared to dogs, cats, and horses. The question arose whether there is a general correlation between corneal sensitivity and the quantity of reflex tearing. Methods: Totally 160 animals of 8 different species (20 animals per species) were investigated. Methods: The corneal touch threshold (CTT) was measured with a Cochet-Bonnet esthesiometer. The palpebral fissure length (PFL) was measured with a calliper ruler. The Schirmer tear test (STT) was modified by adapting the width of the STT s...
Cathelicidins: family of antimicrobial peptides. A review. Cathelicidins are small, cationic, antimicrobial peptides found in humans and other species, including farm animals (cattle, horses, pigs, sheep, goats, chickens, rabbits and in some species of fish). These proteolytically activated peptides are part of the innate immune system of many vertebrates. These peptides show a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity against bacteria, enveloped viruses and fungi. Apart from exerting direct antimicrobial effects, cathelicidins can also trigger specific defense responses in the host. Their roles in various pathophysiological conditions have been studie...
Genetic diversity and population structure of Chinese pony breeds using microsatellite markers. China is one of the principal origins of ponies in the world. We made a comprehensive analysis of genetic diversity and population structure of Chinese ponies based on 174 animals of five indigenous Chinese pony breeds from five provinces using 13 microsatellite markers. One hundred and forty-four alleles were detected; the mean number of effective alleles among the pony breeds ranged from 5.38 (Guizhou) to 6.78 (Sichuan); the expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.82 (Guizhou) to 0.85 (Debao, Sichuan). Although abundant genetic variation was found, the genetic differentiation was low between t...
Complete genome sequence of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis strain 1/06-A, isolated from a horse in North America. Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis causes disease in several animal species, although distinct biovars exist that appear to be restricted to specific hosts. In order to facilitate a better understanding of the differences between biovars, we report here the complete genome sequence of the equine pathogen Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis strain 1/06-A.
Molecular phylogeny of extant equids and effects of ancestral polymorphism in resolving species-level phylogenies. Short divergence times and processes such as incomplete lineage sorting and species hybridization are known to hinder the inference of species-level phylogenies due to the lack of sufficient informative genetic variation or the presence of shared but incongruent polymorphism among taxa. Extant equids (horses, zebras, and asses) are an example of a recently evolved group of mammals with an unresolved phylogeny, despite a large number of molecular studies. Previous surveys have proposed trees with rather poorly supported nodes, and the bias caused by genetic introgression or ancestral polymorphi...
Are all meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) equal in all hosts? Epidemiological and genetic comparison between animal and human MRSA. Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) continues to pose a major threat to human health. In animals, MRSA has become established as a veterinary pathogen in pets and horses; in livestock, it presents a concern for public health as a reservoir that can infect humans and as a source of transferrable resistance genes. Genetic analyses have revealed that the epidemiology of MRSA is different in different animal hosts. While human hospital-associated MRSA lineages are most commonly involved in pet infection and carriage, horse-specific MRSA most often represent 'traditional' equine S. au...
