The latest information on equine behavior from Equine Science Update.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.ukhttp://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rssSat, 1 Dec 2007 20:20:29 +0000Sat, 1 Dec 2007 20:17:18 +0000FeedForAll v1.0 (1.0.2.0)Research suggests that a single dose of tryptophan does not have a calming effect on horses....http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/behavtryp.htmSat, 1 Dec 2007 20:17:18 +0000Recent studies suggest that horses are better able than humans to readjust to a sudden change in daylight hours...http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/jetlag.htmSat, 1 Dec 2007 20:13:11 +0000According to studies in captive zebra mares in the Czech Republic, the gender of the mares unborn foal can influence the time of weaning.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/weanz.htmSat, 29 Sep 2007 09:49:53 +0000How do horses see color? Dr Evelyn Hanggi and Jerry Ingersoll of the Equine Research Foundation, Aptos, California, with the help of Terrace L Waggoner of the Eye Clinic at the Naval Hospital at Pensacola, Florida, performed a study to investigate what colors horses could distinguish.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/colvis.htnTue, 24 Jul 2007 00:40:48 +0000When horses are kept in a group, competition for food and the herd social hierarchy conspire to make feeding time a potentially dangerous affair. Which is the safest way to feed groups of yearlings turned out at pasture? A study at Pennsylvania State University investigated how horses responded to three different feeding systems.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/feedbehav.htmTue, 24 Jul 2007 00:38:59 +0000Not only do horses like a choice of forage, it appears they prefer to find their food in different places.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/multfor.htmWed, 25 Apr 2007 22:14:01 +0000Given a choice of four different automatic water bowls, horses in a study at Texas A&M University showed a clear preference for drinking from one particular model.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/bowlpref.htmFri, 6 Apr 2007 13:40:29 +0000Many horses find being transported stressful, especially when they are travelling alone. Rachel Kay, from Nottingham Trent University, has shown that transporting horses with a mirror reduces stress-related behavior.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/mirror2.htmThu, 29 Mar 2007 13:01:09 +0000Researchers in France have shown the value of a synthetic equine appeasing pheromone (EAP) in overcoming fear in horses. They found that horses treated with EAP performed better in a standard behavioral test.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/behav7.htmSun, 24 Dec 2006 17:14:32 +0000As prey animals, horses are naturally wary of the unknown. What is the best way to teach horses to cope with a frightening situation? A recent study investigated..http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/behav6.htmSat, 28 Oct 2006 23:05:34 +0000Yellow and blue could be colors to avoid when decorating facilities for horse. Recent research shows that horses are more likely to be startled by those colors, especially when they are on the floor.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/behav5.htmWed, 23 Aug 2006 22:24:33 +0000Rollkur (or over-bending) is a technique commonly used during warming up and training in elite dressage horses. The technique has come in for criticism recently on welfare grounds. Recent studies have looked at whether such criticism is justified.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/rollkur.htmSat, 1 Jul 2006 18:54:05 +0000Recent research confirms that horses react to stall confinement by increasing their activity once they are finally turned out.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/behav4.htmWed, 24 May 2006 21:02:20 +0000A study at Michigan State University assessed how horses behaved when used in a therapeutic riding program. Therapeutic riding with children with physical or mental handicaps was no more stressful for the horses than normal recreational riding. But, horses showed more stressful behavior when ridden by at-risk children than by any other riders.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/behav3.htmThu, 30 Mar 2006 13:42:34 +0000Most people are either right or left-handed. It is thought that right-handedness is genetically controlled, but that environmental factors also influence whether someone will be right or left handed. Most horses also appear to have a preference for working on the right or left rein. Until now it was not known whether this is due to the horse's innate preference or if it is a result of training and use.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/motlat.htmTue, 31 Jan 2006 22:56:47 +0000Do foals suffer in a cold environment? Research from Finland suggests that, provided they have access to a sheltered sleeping accommodation, weanling foals appear to cope well with temperatures as low as to -20ºC.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/foalcold.htmTue, 31 Jan 2006 22:55:20 +0000Does handling newborn foals make them more manageable, calmer and improve their learning ability?http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/foalhandl.htmTue, 31 Jan 2006 22:53:52 +0000Is there any benefit in training potential show jumpers from an early age? Does early training improve their show jumping ability later in life? Perhaps early training would allow the foal to develop better coordination of limb, head and neck movements - which could help in jumping technique. Researchers at Utrecht Vet School have been looking at the effect of early training on the jumping ability of Dutch Warmblood horses.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/jumptr.htmTue, 24 Jan 2006 22:51:03 +0000Just as humans can be right or left-handed, so horses can show a preference for using one side of the body. This bias towards one side or the other is known as lateralization. Identifying whether a horse is left or right -handed may allow the trainer to decide on the type of work to which it might best be suited.http://www.equinescienceupdate.co.uk/mslat.htmTue, 17 Jan 2006 22:44:47 +0000