Traveling
facing backwards and in wider bays may improve horse welfare during transport,
according to recent research.
A study(1)
conducted by Barbara Padalino and Sharanne Raidal at Charles Sturt University, New
South Wales, Australia, compared horses being transported for 12 hours with those
confined in stocks for the same length of time.
Twenty-six mares
from the university’s research herd were enrolled in the study, which was
conducted in two parts. The first part assessed the effect of overnight
confinement (from 18:00 h to 06:00 h), without feeding, in 12 mares. The second
part examined the effect of overnight transportation (18:00 h to 06:00 h) in 26
mares.
For the
first part of the study, mares were confined to breeding stocks. During the
transportation part, mares were transported in a 15-horse trailer, facing
either backwards or forwards, and in wide (112cm) or narrow (76cm) bays.
During
confinement or transportation, the researchers recorded each horse’s behaviour on
video, and analysed it using a behaviour sampling ethogram over the first 20
minutes of each hour. Before and after confinement or transportation, they took
blood samples, assessed gut activity and carried out endoscopy to check
for gastric ulcers.
The
researchers found that behaviours relating to stress and balance occurred more
frequently in transported horses than in confined horses, and that horses
transported facing backwards and in a wider bay (112cm wide rather than 76cm) showed
less balance-related behaviour.
They report
that, in particular, horses travelling in a single bay showed a higher
frequency of behavioural events (both related to stress and balance) and, after
the journey, demonstrated increases in cortisol, neutrophils and WBC that were
not observed in horses travelling in wider bays.
They found
that behaviour was more sensitive than haematology, biochemistry or plasma
cortisol for assessing the emotional status of the animals in transit.
Consequently, they recommend the use of video-cameras for observing the
behaviour of horses during transportation.
In a related
study(2), Padalino and colleagues looked
at the effect of transportation on gastric ulceration. Endoscopic examination
of the stomach before and after transportation was carried out as before, and
in 12 horses samples of gastric fluid were collected regularly during
transportation and confinement.
The
researchers found that travel induced or exacerbated ulceration of the squamous
mucosa in most horses. This was particularly so in horses that had been fasted
for 12 hours before travel. Surprisingly, the pH of the gastric fluid was
higher (less acidic) in the horses when transported than when they were confined.
They suggest that this may be due to reflux of less acidic factors, such as
short‐chain fatty acids, and duodenal bile salts, which may contribute to gastric
squamous mucosal damage.
The
researchers recommend that horses should have access to feed until the time of
departure, and potentially during transport, to limit contact between the
squamous mucosa and gastric secretions or small intestinal reflux.
For more
details, see:
(1)Effects of Transport Conditions
on Behavioural and Physiological Responses of Horses.
Padalino B,
Raidal SL.
Animals
(Basel). 2020 Jan 17;10(1). pii: E160
(2) Effects of
transportation on gastric pH and gastric ulceration in mares
Barbara
Padalino, Georgina L. Davis, and Sharanne L. Raidal
J Vet Intern
Med. 2020 Mar; 34(2): 922–932.
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