Evaluation of Horses’ Daytime Activity Budget in a Model of Ethological Stable: A Case Study in Italy.

The research focuses on assessing the daytime activities of horses within a particular type of stable setting, modelled around their natural, ethological needs, in Italy. The study captures the breakdown of activities such as foraging, resting, locomotion and socialising and equates them to what is commonly observed in unrestricted, feral horses, offering a potentially better alternative to traditional stabling methods.

Study Methodology

• The researchers used “Focal Animal Sampling” as an observational method to monitor the horses’ behaviour. This is a well-established technique in animal behaviour studies, where continuous, detailed observations of a single animal’s behaviour – in this case, each of 5 horses – are made over a certain period.
• A total of 9920 minutes were put in to observe the horses in different venues like the paddock and inside the stall.

Key Findings

• The study discovered that the horses spent most of their daytime foraging, in line with their instinctive behaviour. This was followed by resting and then by locomotion or movement.
• Social behaviours such as allogrooming (mutual grooming between members of the same species) and olfactory investigation (smelling or sniffing) were found to be quite rare.
• The horses were also found to perform stereotypic behaviours – repeated behaviours without any apparent goal or function – such as oral and locomotor stereotypies, taking up approximately 2.74%±2.74% of their total time.

Implications of the Findings

• The observed activity breakdown mirrors that of free-roaming feral horses, inferring that such a model of stabling aligns more closely with horses’ natural behaviours and physiological requirements.
• However, the researchers noted the rare occurrence of positive social interactions and the presence of some stereotypies as areas needing improvement. Stereotypic behaviours often indicate stress or inadequate living conditions in horses, which adversely affects their wellbeing.
• The study concluded that this type of housing could be considered a suitable alternative to conventional management systems, balancing the needs of the horse and the objectives of human management.