Le mal-être active les gènes codant pour l'inflammation

Les chevaux agressifs ne sont pas simplement des chevaux mal éduqués ou caractériels. Cette agressivité peut révéler des souffrances physiques et un état de mal-être qui peuvent être profonds. Cet état de mal-être va jusqu’à modifier l’expression de certains de leurs gènes : ceux impliqués dans la réponse immunitaire et au stress, et la mort cellulaire programmée. Cela montre à quel point ce trouble ne doit pas être pris à la légère. Les chevaux qui présentent un trouble agressif doivent être pris en charge afin de faire évoluer leurs conditions de vie et de travail vers une meilleure prise en compte de leur bien-être

Priming for welfare: gut microbiota is associated with equitation conditions and behavior in horse athletes

We simultaneously measured the fecal microbiota and multiple environmental and host-related variables in a cohort of 185 healthy horses reared in similar conditions during a period of eight months. The pattern of rare bacteria varied from host to host and was largely different between two time points. Among a suite of variables examined, equitation factors were highly associated with the gut microbiota variability, evoking a relationship between gut microbiota and high levels of physical and mental stressors. Behavioral indicators that pointed toward a compromised welfare state (e.g. stereotypies, hypervigilance and aggressiveness) were also associated with the gut microbiota, reinforcing the notion for the existence of the microbiota-gut-brain axis. These observations were consistent with the microbiability of behaviour traits (> 15%), illustrating the importance of gut microbial composition to animal behaviour. As more elite athletes suffer from stress, targeting the microbiota offers a new opportunity to investigate the bidirectional interactions within the brain gut microbiota axis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Gut microbiota resilience in horse athletes following holidays out to pasture

Elite horse athletes that live in individual boxes and train and compete for hours experience longterm physical and mental stress that compromises animal welfare and alters the gut microbiota. We therefore assessed if a temporary period out to pasture with conspecifics could improve animal welfare and in turn, favorably affect intestinal microbiota composition. A total of 27 athletes were monitored before and after a period of 1.5 months out to pasture, and their fecal microbiota and behavior profiles were compared to those of 18 horses kept in individual boxes. The overall diversity and microbiota composition of pasture and control individuals were temporally similar, suggesting resilience to environmental challenges. However, pasture exposure induced an increase in Ruminococcus and Coprococcus that lasted 1-month after the return to individual boxes, which may have promoted beneficial effects on health and welfare. Associations between the gut microbiota composition and behavior indicating poor welfare were established. Furthermore, withdrawn behavior was associated with the relative abundances of Lachnospiraceae AC2044 group and Clostridiales family XIII. Both accommodate a large part of butyrate-producing bacterial genera. While we cannot infer causality within this study, arguably, these findings suggest that management practices maintained over a longer period of time may moderate the behavior link to the gut ecosystem beyond its resilience potential

Stereotypic horses (Equus caballus) are not cognitively impaired

Stereotypies in animals are thought to arise from an interaction between genetic predisposition and sub-optimal housing conditions. In domestic horses, a well-studied stereotypy is crib-biting, an abnormal behaviour that appears to help individuals to cope with stressful situations. One prominent hypothesis states that animals affected by stereotypies are cognitively less flexible compared to healthy controls, due to sensitization of a specific brain area, the basal ganglia. The aim of this study was to test this hypothesis in crib-biting and healthy controls, using a cognitive task, reversal learning, which has been used as a diagnostic for basal ganglia dysfunction. The procedure consisted of exposing subjects to four learning tasks; first and second acquisition, and their reversals. For each task, we measured the number of trials to reach criterion and heart rate and heart-rate variability. Importantly, we did not try to prevent crib-biters from executing their stereotypic behaviour. We found that the first reversal learning task required the largest number of trials, confirming its challenging nature. Interestingly, the second reversal learning task required significantly fewer trials to reach criterion, suggesting generalisation learning. However, we did not find any performance differences across groups; both stereotypic and control animals required a similar numbers of trials and did not differ in their physiological responses. Our results thus challenge the widely held belief that crib-biting horses, and stereotypic animals more generally, are cognitively impaired. We conclude that cognitive underperformance may occur in stereotypic horses if they are prevented from crib-biting to cope with experienced stress.PostprintPeer reviewe

Alteration of the welfare state of domesticated horses : Effects of housing practices related to individual boxes and relationships with riding

Ce travail porte sur l’expression comportementale d’un état de bien-être compromis chez le cheval domestique. Dans un premier temps, il a consisté à sélectionner un outil d'évaluation, qui a ensuite été mis en œuvre afin de répondre à deux principales questions. La première consistait à savoir s'il est possible de limiter l'altération de l’état de bien-être de chevaux vivant en box individuel, un système d'hébergement largement décrit comme facteur de risque pour le bien-être mais toujours majoritaire sur le terrain. Pour ce faire, nous avons analysé les effets de plusieurs facteurs de l'architecture des boxes et de différentes pratiques de gestion des chevaux liées à ce système d’hébergement. Aucun de ces facteurs n’a eu de réels effets, soulignant la nécessité de modifier profondément et durablement les conditions de vie des chevaux hébergés en box individuel. La seconde question consistait à déterminer dans quelle mesure un état de bien-être compromis des chevaux peut être lié à leur ressenti lors des séances d'équitation. Nos résultats suggèrent que des chevaux expérimentant un état de bien-être compromis au box pourraient percevoir l'équitation de manière plus négative, impactant directement les mouvements du cavalier et potentiellement à terme son intégrité physique. L’ensemble des résultats soutient l’importance d’une approche holistique du bien-être du cheval dans son milieu de vie et ses activités avec les humains.This work focuses on the behavioural expression of a compromised welfare state in domesticated horses. Initially it involved selecting an assessment tool, which was then implemented to answer two main questions. The first question was whether it is possible to limit the welfare alteration of horses living in individual boxes, a housing system widely described as a risk factor for animal welfare but still predominant in the field. We analysed the effects of several factors in the box architecture and different horse management practices related to this housing system. None of these factors had any real effect, thus highlighting the need to profoundly and durably modify the living conditions of horses housed in individual boxes. The second question was to determine the extent to which a compromised welfare state of the horses can be linked to their feelings during riding sessions. Our results suggest that horses experiencing a compromised welfare state in boxes could perceive riding in a more negative way, directly impacting the rider’s movements and ultimately his physical integrity. The overall results support the importance of a holistic approach of the horse’s welfare state in its living environment and its activities with humans

Housing Horses in Individual Boxes Is a Challenge with Regard to Welfare

Horses are mainly housed in individual boxes. This housing system is reported to be highly detrimental with regard to welfare and could trigger the expression of four behavioural indicators of a compromised welfare state: stereotypies, aggressiveness toward humans, unresponsiveness to the environment, and stress-related behaviours. The aim of this study was to identify housing and management factors that could alleviate the detrimental effects of individual boxes on welfare. A total of 187 horses were observed over 50 days by scan sampling. The impact of 12 factors was investigated on the expression of the four behavioural indicators in three different analyses. The results show that the majority of factors tested did not influence the expression of the behavioural indicators. Only three (straw bedding, a window opening onto the external environment, and a reduced quantity of concentrated feed) would have beneficial, although limited, effects. Furthermore, the longer the horses spent in individual boxes, the more likely they were to express unresponsiveness to the environment. To preserve the welfare of horses, it seems necessary to allow free exercise, interactions with conspecifics, and fibre consumption as often as possible, to ensure the satisfaction of the species’ behavioural and physiological needs

Le mal-être active les gènes codant pour l'inflammation

National audienceLes chevaux agressifs ne sont pas simplement des chevaux mal éduqués ou caractériels. Cette agressivité peut révéler des souffrances physiques et un état de mal-être qui peuvent être profonds. Cet état de mal-être va jusqu’à modifier l’expression de certains de leurs gènes : ceux impliqués dans la réponse immunitaire et au stress, et la mort cellulaire programmée. Cela montre à quel point ce trouble ne doit pas être pris à la légère. Les chevaux qui présentent un trouble agressif doivent être pris en charge afin de faire évoluer leurs conditions de vie et de travail vers une meilleure prise en compte de leur bien-être

Behaviours exhibited during training predict physical tiredness in harness trotter horses

International audiencePhysical activity, especially high-intensity training (HIT), leads to physiological and behavioural changes. The objectives of this randomized cross-over study were to investigate i) the effects of physical exercise on weight, behaviours, and head and ear positions on the days after low-intensity training (LIT) or high-intensity training; and ii) to explore if behaviours, and/or physiological parameters (sweat, salivation and blood lactate levels) during training can predict post-training behaviours. A total of nineteen French trotter horses housed in four different training centres were studied the day before (D pre ) and after LIT or HIT (afternoon after training (D training ) and 2 days after training (D1 Post and D2 Post )). The results showed that horses exhibited i) longer durations of resting and head below the withers (HBW) on D training and D1 Post than on D pre and ii) shorter eating durations on D1 Post and D2 Post than on D pre after HIT. This was associated with significant weight loss on D 2 Post . Several behaviours associated with discomfort ( e.g ., head conflict behaviours, nose behind the vertical, and open mouth), as well as amount of sweat, seemed to predict the durations of resting, HBW and eating on D1 Post . Thus, behaviours are impacted by training, and a combination of behaviours and visible physiological parameters exhibited during training have the potential to predict physical tiredness in harness racing horses

Rein tensions and behaviour with five rein types in international-level vaulting horses

International audienceHealth and performance of vaulting horses cantering with reins might be affected by rein tensions. The primary aim of this present study was to measure rein and lunge line tensions in international-level vaulting horses with several types of reins adjusted in accordance with the requirements of the FEI Vaulting Rules and study the effect of reins types on it. The secondary aim was to evaluate behavioural signs of discomfort under the same conditions and study the effect of reins types on it. The relationship between tensions and behavioural signs of discomfort was then explored. Thirty-nine international-level vaulting horses took part in this study and tested side reins either with an elastic part, all elastic or without elastic, draw reins with an upper adjustment triangle and side reins fixed on the noseband. Tensions of the left and right reins and the lunge line were measured with sensors at a rate of 80 Hz for a canter of 1min30 on a 15-meter circle, without a vaulter, and behavioural analyses (on the locomotion, tail, head, mouth and ears movements) were performed using video filmed by a camera attached to the lunger’s chest. Mixed models revealed that the Root mean square (RMS) of the tensions of the left and right reins, of the total, as well as the lunge line, were significantly influenced by rein type (p<0.001) in all cases). Total RMS tension ranged from 6.2 kg to 11.7 kg with a right RMS tension superior to left RMS (p < 0.001). When tension was high, mouth opening increased (p = 0.007). It was with draw reins that total tension (p < 0.05) and mouth openings were lower (p = 0.005), even if a high proportion of variance of these discomfort behaviours could be explained by the individual horse