Effects of Different Bedding Materials on the Behavior of Horses Housed in Single Stalls

The effects of three different bedding materials (straw, wood shavings, and straw pellets) on the behavior of six warmblood horses (four mares, two of them with foals) housed in single stalls were analyzed. Each material was used for 2 weeks in three consecutive runs. The behavior of the horses was videotaped and analyzed on the first and last 3 days for each bedding alternative in the last of the three runs. The time budgets for the behaviors including standing, eating, lying, occupation with bedding material, and other were generated. Compared with straw pellets and wood shavings, the application of straw bedding led to a significantly higher frequency and longer duration of occupation with bedding material and in turn, shorter fractions of standing and other behaviors. The total duration of lying was significantly longer on straw than on straw pellets. Straw pellets resulted in the least mean recumbency duration per occurrence of this behavior. Because occupation is one of the important functions that bedding material is supposed to fulfill, we concluded that in regard to horse behavior, straw bedding was the best among the three materials analyzed. Further investigations with a more homogeneous group of probands are necessary to verify the observed behavioral reactions.     

The influence of bedding on the time horses spend recumbent

To determine if bedding has any influence on the time horses spend recumbent, 8 horses kept on straw and 8 kept on wood shavings were observed from 10:00 to 5:30 for two successive nights. Observations were conducted using time-lapse video recordings. Lying down and rising behavior, as well as frequency and duration of bouts spent in lateral and sternal recumbency, was registered. The results showed that horses on straw were lying in lateral recumbency three times longer than horses on shavings (P < .001), whereas the time horses spent in sternal recumbency did not differ. The longest period of noninterrupted lateral recumbency was longer for horses on straw than for those on shavings. Because horses must lie down, preferably in lateral recumbency, to achieve paradoxical sleep, the reduced time spent in lateral recumbency in horses on wood shavings may affect their welfare and performance. Independent of the bedding, we further observed that, as the horses got up from recumbency, most of them made attempts to roll over before rising. This behavior appeared to be caused by some difficulty in rising, possibly due to the box size, and might have a connection with the fact that horses sometimes get stuck against the box wall.

Introduction

Many riding horses spend the majority of their life in an artificial environment. Horse owners keep their horses under certain conditions because of tradition, because they want to make the horse feel comfortable from a human point of view, or to reduce the amount of work involved in horse husbandry. Often the choice of bedding substrate is made from a subjective point of view without assessing both short-term and long-term effects of the bedding. Part of the reason is that only few studies have analyzed horses' preferences for different bedding substrates and their effect on the time horses spend recumbent. In one study comparing straw and wood shavings, no significant preference was found.[1] In another study comparing plastic, wheat straw, and wood shavings, the time horses spent standing, sleeping, or lying down was not affected significantly by the bedding substrates. [2] Mills et al [3] found that horses, given a choice between straw and wood shavings, spent significantly more time on straw. Whereas the substrates had no significant effect on behaviors such as eating, lying, and standing alert, horses spent more time performing bedding-directed behaviors on straw but more time dozing on shavings. Finally, it has been reported that the use of nonstraw bedding may increase the risk of abnormal behaviors such as weaving. [4]As far as bedding properties are concerned, Airaksinen et al[5] concluded that air quality in the stable and utilization of manure can be improved by selecting a good bedding material. According to Reed and Redhead, [6] both straw and shavings are economical and easy to obtain, and they make a bright, comfortable bed. Straw bales are convenient to store, but may be eaten by the horse, are labor intensive, and may be dusty or contain fungal spores. Wood shavings are not eaten by the horse and are good for respiratory problems but need to be kept very clean because they are porous. In addition, they are not as warm as straw because they do not trap air the way straw does.Electroencephalographic (EEG) studies in cats have demonstrated that sleep can be divided into two stages of differing electrocorticographic (EcoG) patterns, ie, slow-wave-sleep (SWS) and paradoxical sleep (PS).[7] During PS, bursts of rapid eye movements (REM) can be seen at irregular intervals. [8] In humans, dreaming occurs during this stage. [9 and 10] Horses are able to sleep while standing, [11] but in this position they only go into SWS. [14, 15 and 16] During PS there is a complete abolition of muscular tone of antigravity muscles and of neck muscles, as shown in cats. [17] In horses, there is a gradual loss of muscular tone until the middle of the recorded SWS period, whence it decreases to a negligible amount during PS. [15] Consequently, muscular tone disappears entirely at the onset of PS. [18] Horses are unable to complete a sleeping cycle without lying down to enter PS. [8, 19 and 20] They normally fall asleep while standing and, when they feel confident about their environment, lie down in sternocostal recumbency. [8] Thereafter, they proceed to lateral recumbency and enter PS. [14 and 19] Dallaire and Ruckebusch [18] demonstrated that the SWS state was infrequent in the standing animal and most often occurred during sternocostal recumbency with the head resting or not on the ground. PS occurred in both sternocostal and lateral recumbency, although the animal frequently had to readjust its position into sternocostal recumbency due to the disappearance of neck muscular tone.The sleep pattern of horses depends on many circumstances, such as age,[21, 22 and 23] diet, [16] and familiarity with the environment. When horses are put outdoors it may take some days before they lie down. If one horse that is familiar with the environment lies down, the others usually follow. [8 and 13] Dallaire and Ruckebusch [16] subjected three horses to a four-day period of perceptual (visual and auditive) deprivation. After this period total sleep time increased due to an augmentation of both SWS and PS. Finally, there is large individual variation between horses in the time they spend recumbent and sleeping. [15]Horses spend 11% to 20% of the total time in recumbency.[11 and 15] Lateral recumbency represents about 20% of total recumbency time, and uninterrupted periods of lateral recumbency vary from 1 to 13 minutes (mean, 4.6 min). [14 and 16] Steinhart [11] found that the mean length of uninterrupted lateral recumbency periods was 23 minutes, the longest period being one hour. Total sleeping time in the stabled horse averages 3 to 5 hours per day or 15% of the total time. [8, 13 and 16] Keiper and Keenan [24] found similar time budgets in feral horses that were recumbent approximately 26% of the night. PS is about 17% to 25% of total sleeping time, and the mean length of a single PS period is 4 to 4.8 minutes. [13 and 18]In stabled horses sleep is mainly nocturnal and occurs during three to seven periods during the night.[8, 13 and 16] Ruckebusch [13] observed that neither sleep nor recumbency occurred during daytime in three ponies observed for a month and, in another experiment conducted on horses, PS occurred only during nighttime. [15] A group of ponies observed for more than a month between 8:45 and 4:45 spent only 1% of the daytime recumbent.[25] The maximum concentration of sleep occurs from 12:00 to 4:00 .[8, 16, 18 and 24]The purpose of this study was to examine two groups of horses in a familiar environment, one group kept on a bedding consisting of straw, and the other kept on wood shavings, and to determine if there was any difference between the two groups in the time they spend recumbent.

Materials and methods

Housing. The study was conducted in one of the biggest riding clubs in Denmark, housing about 150 horses. The 18 horses used in the study stood in three different parts of the stable. They were all stabled in boxes measuring 3 × 3 m and subjected to the same feeding and management routine. They were unable to see their next-door neighbor because of a tall wooden board, but they were able to see the horses stabled on the opposite side of the corridor through bars. Nine horses were stabled on wheat straw (15 cm long, dry matter content 87-88%) and nine on oven-dried wood shavings (80% spruce and 20% pine, dry matter content 82%).Animals. All horses used in the study were privately owned. They had been kept in the boxes in which they were observed a minimum of three weeks. Three of the horses were mares and 15 were geldings. Most of them were Danish Warmblood used for dressage riding. Their ages ranged from 5 to 18 years (mean, 10.6 y) and their height ranged from 1.60 to 1.76 m (mean, 1.68 m). All horses wore a blanket. Age and sex distribution between the two groups is shown in Table 1.     

Horse hair coat cleanliness is affected by bedding material: A comparison of clean and used wheat straw, wood shavings and pelleted newspaper

Wheat straw, wood shavings and pelleted recycled newspaper were used as bedding materials and compared in maintaining horse hair coat cleanliness. Each material was sampled prior to use and after use having been wetted with urine in a bedding study conducted with 4 adult horses in box stalls. Because feces were removed daily during stall maintenance, frehhly voided feces were also collected so that all components in a used bedding (clean portion, wetted portion, feces) were represented. Hair coat cleanli-ness was measured in vitro by exposing a tanned pony hide with hair to clean and wet beddings as well as feces. Cleanliness was evaluated in terms of the amounts of moisture, volatile-N and solid matter transferred from each component and type of bedding material to the haired hide. Transfers to wool flannel were also measured as a comparison to the haired hide. Woolen products are used in the horse industry and also come into contact with components of used bedding. Freshly voided feces and used beddings transferred more (P<.05) moisture (85 and 54%, respectively) than clean beddings. Wheat straw transferred less (P<.05) solid matter (86 and 64%, respectively) than wood shavings or pelleted newspaper. Wood shavings transferred more (P<.05) solid matter than wheat straw or pelleted newspaper to wool flannel resulting in a statistically significant used bedding X surface interaction. These data indicate that type as well as components of used beddings affect hair coat cleanliness. The ability of a bedding material to maintain hair coat cleanliness should also be a factor (e.g., cost, availability, moisture holding capacity, nontoxicity) in its consideration for use as a bedding for animals.     

Investigating duration of nocturnal ingestive and sleep behaviors of horses bedded on straw versus shavings

Horses are stabled overnight for a number of practical reasons; however, there is little research quantifying nocturnal equine behavioral patterns or the extent to which different environments influence nocturnal behavior. The aim of this study was to establish whether differences in duration of sleep and ingestive behaviors were apparent for horses bedded on straw (group 1) or shavings (group 2). Ten geldings of mixed breed (mean age: 7.3 ± 3.53 years) bedded on either shavings (n = 5) or straw (n = 5) were observed between 7 pm and 7 am. Duration of behaviors according to a predefined ethogram was recorded in minutes using a video recorder and continuous focal sampling. Mann–Whitney U tests were used to identify whether any significant differences in duration of ingestion and sleep behaviors occurred for horses bedded on straw compared with shavings. Of the total observation period, group 1 spent, on average, 29.3% of their time budget engaged in recumbent behaviors, compared with 12.2% for group 2. However, no significant differences in duration were established between horses bedded on straw or shavings for standing sleep, sternal recumbency, and lateral recumbency behaviors (P > 0.05). Ingestive behaviors occupied approximately one-third of the time budget, with no significant difference (P > 0.05) observed between groups. On average, group 1 spent a longer proportion of the observation period ingesting bedding (8.1%) compared with group 2 (1%). Duration of bedding ingestion appeared to peak between 1 am and 7 am for both groups. Although not quantified, general observations revealed horses were motivated to alternate between eating hay and bedding in both groups, owing to the prevalence of bedding ingestion. The results indicate that straw bedding facilitates the display of ingestive and sleep behaviors, whereas horses bedded on shavings spent a greater proportion of their nocturnal time budget engaged in “other” behaviors. Further research is required to investigate the extent to which different types of bedding material enrich the environment of horses that are stabled overnight.     

A note on lamb's choice for different types of bedding materials

The aim of this study was to analyze the lamb's choice of bedding material when 4 different types of bedding materials and cement floor (CT) area were available during the fattening period. A total of 16 lambs were selected and distributed in 2 groups of 8 lambs each and fattened for 18 days. The animals were housed randomly in 1 of 2 pens that were subdivided into 5 areas. Four of these areas had 1 of the 4 types of flooring: sawdust (SU), waste of paper (WP), straw (ST), and rice husk (RH), whereas the fifth had a CT, opposite the feeding and drinking troughs. A video-recording device was set up in a room close to the pens to record maintenance behavior. Two kinds of recording were carried out: scan sampling every 10 minutes (7 am-9 pm) throughout the entire experiment, and continuous behavior sampling recorded continuously for 12 h/d (8 am-8 pm) on days 1, 7, and 14 (a total of 36 h/pen). The behavior patterns recorded during the experiment included lying down, standing, walking, feeding, and drinking. The occupancy rates for the different bedding areas were significantly different (P ≤ 0.001), and the lambs demonstrated a clear preference for SU bed, with a 47% occupancy rate, followed by WP (17%), ST, and RH, with occupancy rates of nearly 6% and 7%, respectively. The occupancy rate in the area with no bedding material (CT) was 21%. Significant differences were also found in behavior patterns between the bedding zones. When the lambs on the SU bedding were observed, 80% of the time they were lying down and 20% of the time standing. When they occupied the WP area, they spent 63% of the time lying down and 37% standing; for the ST bedding, the rates were 23% lying down and 77% standing; and when the lambs were observed in the area with RH flooring, they spent 40% of the time lying down and 60% standing. The clear preference shown by the lambs for SU may be associated to the SU's physical and thermal properties compared with ST. If all factors are taken into account (cost, animal preferences, and technical performance), WP bedding becomes a interesting material as an alternative to the ST bedding traditionally used by sheep farmers.     

Respiratory and environmental effects of recycled phone book paper versus sawdust as bedding for horses

The physiological effect on the equine respiratory tract of recycled phone book paper vs. sawdust bedding was investigated in 12 mares with no clinical signs of respiratory disease. Mares were housed in a 20-stall barn and randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups (Group 1=sawdust; Group 2=phone book paper) for 14 days. After a 14-day turnout, Group 1 was assigned to phone book paper and Group 2 was assigned to sawdust for 14 days using a crossover experimental design. Endoscopic examinations of the upper respiratory tract and trachea along with tracheal washes (TW) were performed on days 0 and 14 of each trial. Cytologic examinations were performed on TW samples. Cell type and laboratory interpretation of TW samples were noted. There was no difference (P>0.05) in cell type between treatment groups within or across trials. Laboratory interpretation indicated no abnormalities in 30 of 48 TW samples. Stall conditions were visually rated and graded daily for drinking water cleanliness, depth of bedding and absorbency, overall cleanliness, ammonia odor, and aerial ammonia levels. The phone book paper bedding was more absorbent (P<0.01), had a cleaner appearance (P<0.01), and had lower aerial ammonia levels (P<0.01) than the sawdust bedding. The phone book paper was effective in controlling aerial ammonia and did not adversely affect the respiratory health of clinically normal horses based on the diagnostic tests performed in this study. Phone book paper did effect the outward appearance of the horses, as horses housed on phone book paper had a dustier outward appearance. In addition, pigment was seen in the TW samples of 12 horses bedded on phone book paper, whereas it was rarely noted in horses bedded on sawdust. Overall, phone book paper appeared to be a viable option for horse bedding when compared to sawdust.     

Composting characteristics of three bedding materials

Horse manure management is becoming a major concern in suburban areas of the United States. An average horse can produce eight to ten tons of manure per year, accumulating at a rate of two cubic feet per day, including bedding. If properly composted, the manure and bedding can be transformed into a very useful, odorless, pathogenfree product. The objective of this trial was to compare the characteristics of recycled chopped phone book paper, sawdust and wheat straw bedding during composting. Six horses were stalled on three bedding types: recycled phone book paper, sawdust and straw. Each day manure and soiled bedding types were separately collected and transported to compost sites over an eight-day period. Three compositing bins were each hand constructed from wooden pallets with 10 cm slats. The front of the bin was left open for manipulation of materials during the composting process. Initial volumes of the soiled bedding materials were 1m³, 1m³, and 1.5m³ for paper, sawdust and straw, respectively. Temperatures were taken for each bedding materials using a 51 cm REOTEMP compost thermometer. Temperatures were taken on Day 0 and every four days over the 65-day trial (n=52). Temperature was used to determine the need for moisture addition and aerating by turning to keep the piles microbially active. On Day 37 the C:N ratio was adjusted by the addition of ammonium sulfate, 0.1 kg, 0.1 kg and 0.14 kg for sawdust, phone book paper and straw piles, respectively. Mean standard error and range for compost temperatures (C) were: phone book paper, 33.17±10.33 (13–52); sawdust, 45.6±9.35 (27–58); straw, 30.42±6.57 (16–39). The sawdust composted more readily as compared to the phone book paper or straw. The paper and straw had poorer structure, which caused compaction of the material when moistened; thus, porosity, oxygen supply and microbial activity were reduced.     

Lying behavior in horses in relation to box size

To analyze if horses' lying behavior is influenced by the size of their lying area, 8 horses were kept, first, in a large box—(2.5 × height of the horse)²m²—and then in a small box—(1.5 × height of the horse)²m²—or vice versa. After a 5-day adaptation period, the lying behavior (frequency and duration of sternal and lateral recumbency, rotating behavior just before lying down, and rolling behavior just before getting up) was observed from video recordings on 3 consecutive nights. The results showed that the duration of sternal recumbency was significantly longer in the large boxes than in the small boxes (P = .002). Furthermore, box size exerted an influence on the frequency of the rolling behavior shown before getting up, but box size was not the only factor affecting this behavior. We conclude that observations of the resting behavior of horses are necessary to make recommendations for the minimal size of stalls for horses.     

Lack of straw during finishing affects individual and social lamb behavior

The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of straw bedding on individual and social behavior in lambs. Four groups of 6 lambs of the Rasa Aragonesa breed (n = 24; 17.2 ± 0.2 kg live weight and approximately 60 days old) were formed and fattened for 28 days, in an experimental design that included 2 treatments and 2 replicates. One treatment was given cereal straw either to eat or to lie on, whereas the other treatment had no straw. All groups were housed in 5.6 m² feedlot pens (ad libitum commercial concentrate and water). The lambs in each pen were recorded using a digital video camera (08:00-20:00 hours) for 28 days to measure lying, standing, walking, feeding, and drinking behavior as well as the use of space (scan sampling every 10 minutes). Stereotypies, social interactions, and productive performance parameters were observed by continuous sampling on days 1, 7, 14, 21, and 28 of fattening. There were no significant differences in terms of productive performance. In general, the frequency of standing, walking, and eating concentrate was higher in lambs without straw (P ≤ 0.001). As expected, lambs spent more time standing in the straw box when this substrate was available (P ≤ 0.001). Aggressive interactions decreased after 2 weeks in both treatments, but just lambs without straw kept low levels until the end of the trial (P ≤ 0.05). Affiliative interactions increased in both groups throughout the experiment, indicating greater group cohesion. Stereotypic behaviors were more frequent in lambs with no straw on all observation days (P ≤ 0.05). The absence of cereal straw was a source of stress for the lambs, which affected their behavior during fattening. Providing straw can be a practical way to increase environmental enrichment aimed at improving welfare.     

Electromechanical registration of the resting behavior of fattening pigs]

The resting behaviour of four weanling pigs has been continuously recorded by an electromechanical apparatus for 8 weeks. The duration of different postures: standing, ventral recumbency, lateral recumbency and frequency of standing periods were recorded as influenced by different environmental factors. 1. Floor with and without bedding at 21 degrees C. 2. Floor without bedding at 27 degrees C environmental temperature. 3. Feeding once daily versus twice. Duration of recumbency periods was increases at 21 degrees C if bedding was provided. This also improved daily gain. At elevated environmental temperatures the animals preferred the lying posture on concrete floor. Feeding twice increased the duration of recumbency. The same was the case as the animals grew older. Disturbance by caretaking activities in neighbouring dens increased the duration of standing.     

不同饲喂次数对荷斯坦泌乳牛日常行为的影响

目的 研究不同饲喂次数对经产和初产荷斯坦泌乳牛日常行为的影响。方法 随机选取28头泌乳天数在100 d左右的健康荷斯坦奶牛,包括14头经产牛和14头初产牛,分为日饲3次处理组和日饲2次处理组,每组包含经产牛和初产牛各7头。对泌乳牛的采食、卧床躺卧、运动场躺卧、卧床站立、运动场站立、过道站立、饮水、使用体刷、舔舐盐砖等行为进行连续5 d的观察,并对2个处理组上述行为的每日发生频率和花费时间进行比较。结果 当日饲3次变为日饲2次时,经产牛和初产牛每日采食频率和时间显著（P<0.05）降低,每日总躺卧时间显著（P<0.05）增加。日饲3次和日饲2次条件下,经产牛每日卧床躺卧、卧床上躺卧和站立、舔舐盐砖时间均显著（P<0.05）大于初产牛,经产牛每日采食、总躺卧、总站立、饮水频率和时间与初产牛差异不显著（P>0.05）。结论 当饲喂次数减少时,会对经产牛和初产牛的每日采食频率和时间以及每日总躺卧时间产生显著影响。     

Flooring preference and behavior in sound and lame sows

The objectives of this study were to assess sow flooring preference and behavior during sound, induced lame and lameness recovery states. Thirty-four multiparous, non-pregnant sows were compared prior to and following lameness induction (day 0). Behavior was recorded on six days (days ?1, +1, +2, +3, +4 and +10). Three flooring locations (Alley, Concrete and Mat) and four behaviors (lying lateral, lying sternal, sitting and standing) were recorded. Sows increased Mat frequency and decreased Alley frequency on day +1 (most lame) relative to day ?1. Lying lateral frequency increased, whereas lying sternal and standing frequencies decreased between day ?1 and day +1. Sows appear to prefer the Mat within 24?h following lameness induction. Lying lateral is likely a more comfortable position than standing or lying sternal in these lame sows. In conclusion, these behaviors may be reliable indicators to further ascertain if a sow is lame.     

不同卧床材料对海福特母牛舒适度、繁殖及健康状况的影响

[目的] 为了研究不同卧床材料对海福特母牛舒适度、繁殖及健康状况的影响。[方法] 将600头海福特母牛随机分为 4 组,每组150头,分别散放饲养于混凝土地面、砖铺地面、木屑垫料、细沙子卧床,测定微生物数量,观察母牛舒适度、受胎率、健康状况;[结果] 结果表明,细沙子和砖铺地面的霉菌显著低于混凝土地面和木屑垫料(P<0.05);细沙子中的金黄色葡萄球菌数量极显著低于混凝土地面和木屑垫料(P<0.01);细沙子中的大肠杆菌数量最少,显著低于混凝土地面、砖铺地面和木屑垫料(P<0.05)。细沙子和木屑垫料能显著提高海福特母牛躺卧率(86%和90%,P<0.05),显著高于混凝土地面和砖铺地面;使用细沙子和木屑垫料比混凝土地面和砖铺地面显著降低了海福特牛肢蹄病发病率(14%和5%,P<0.05)。细沙子垫料与混凝土地面、砖铺地面、木屑垫料相比较,显著提高了海福特母牛受胎率和犊牛成活率(92%、98%,P<0.05)。[结论]细沙子垫料与混凝土地面、砖铺地面、木屑垫料相比较,显著降低了霉菌、金黄色葡萄菌和大肠杆菌的数量,提高了海福特母牛躺卧率、受胎率和犊牛成活率,降低了肢蹄病发病率。     

Sternal bone biopsy in standing horses

OBJECTIVE: To develop a technique for sternal bone biopsy in standing horses. STUDY DESIGN: Experimental study. ANIMALS: Five adult horses. METHODS: Horses were restrained in a standing stocks and sedated. The sternal biopsy site, identified by ultrasonographic examination, was clipped and prepared for aseptic surgery and infiltrated with local anesthetic. An electric bone biopsy drill (Osteocore; Institut Straumann AG, CH-4437, Waldenburg, Switzerland)), which yielded 4-mm-diameter bone specimens, was used to obtain sternal biopsies through a small skin incision. Sections (7 microm) of the bone specimens were stained with toluidine blue and Goldner's green trichrome and observed microscopically to determine suitability for histological and histomorphometric evaluation. RESULTS: The most suitable sternal biopsy site was at the 4th or 5th sternebra. The surgical procedure was easy to perform and well tolerated by the horses, and adequate samples were obtained on the first attempt. The only complications were incisional edema in all horses and wound drainage in 1 horse. CONCLUSIONS: Sternal bone biopsy may be successfully performed in standing horses, and the technique described in this report yields architecturally intact bone specimens. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The sternum is an accessible site for cancellous bone biopsy specimens in standing horses.     

Comparison of the composting process using ear corn residue and three other conventional bulking agents during cow manure composting under high‐moisture conditions

To elucidate the characteristics of ear corn residue as a bulking agent, the composting process using this residue was compared with processes using three other conventional materials such as sawdust, wheat straw and rice husk, employing a bench‐scale composting reactor. As evaluated via biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), ear corn residue contains 3.3 and 2.0 times more easily digestible materials than sawdust and rice husk, respectively. In addition, mixing ear corn residue with manure resulted in reduced bulk density, which was the same as that of wheat straw and was 0.58 and 0.67 times lower than that of sawdust and a rice husk mixture, respectively. To evaluate temperature generation during the composting process, the maximum temperature and area under the temperature curve (AUC_TEMP) were compared among the mixed composts of four bulking agents. Maximum temperature (54.3°C) as well as AUC_TEMP (7310°C●h) of ear corn residue were significantly higher than those of sawdust and rice husk (P < 0.05), and they are similar to that of wheat straw mixed compost. Along with the value of AUC_TEMP, the highest organic matter losses of 31.1% were observed in ear corn residue mixed compost, followed by wheat straw, saw dust and rice husk.     

Body temperature and behaviour of mares during the last two weeks of pregnancy

Average daily core body temperature and behavioural patterns of pregnant mares were studied, in search of definitive signs of parturition within 24 h of the event. Nineteen pony mares were sampled twice daily for core body temperature. A significant temperature drop, averaging 0.1 degrees C (0.2 degrees F) was observed during the day prior to parturition. Between 18.00 h and 06.00 h, during the two weeks before parturition, Thoroughbred and Standardbred mares (n = 52) spent an average 66.8 per cent of their time standing, 27.0 per cent eating, 4.9 per cent lying in sternal recumbency, 1.0 per cent lying in lateral recumbency, and 0.3 per cent walking. On the night before parturition, mares spent significantly less time lying in sternal recumbency than on previous nights and on the night of parturition all behaviour patterns except eating were significantly different from the nights of the two weeks before parturition. There was an increase in walking (5.3 per cent), lying in sternal recumbency (8 per cent) and lying in lateral recumbency (5.3 per cent) whereas standing (53.3 per cent) was decreased. In 58 observed pregnancies, 54 mares (97 per cent) foaled in a recumbent position and 50 mares (86 per cent) foaled between 18.00 h and 06.00 h.     

Bedding hygiene,cleanliness and lying behaviour for heifers housed on wood chip or straw deep bedding

The aim of this project was to compare the hygienic quality of the bedding, as well as the parasitic load, cleanliness and lying behaviour in heifers kept on either straw or wood chip deep bedding. Fourteen heifers kept in two pens were housed on straw or wood chip bedding for 43 days, after which the bedding material was switched for 43 additional days. Significantly more mould was found in wood chip than in straw and there was a tendency towards less yeast in wood chip. The heifers had a low faecal parasitic load. The results indicate that the wood chip treatment resulted in somewhat cleaner animals. The heifers had a significantly longer total lying time when kept on straw. In conclusion, wood chip deep bedding could be an option as bedding material, but the impact on hygiene of bedding material and lying behaviour needs to be further investigated.     

Quality of different bedding materials and their influence on the compostability of horse manure

The air quality of the stable and management and composting of manure can be improved by choosing bedding material with certain desirable properties. The optimal bedding material doesn't cause hygiene problems in the stable. It absorbs ammonia, is economic in use, and decomposes quickly with manure. The objective of this trial was to compare both quality of different bedding materials and their influence on the composting process of horse manure. Bedding materials used in the study were wood chips, straw, peat, hemp, linen, sawdust, shredded newspaper and the mixtures, peat/wood chips, peat/sawdust, and peat/straw. Peat and peat mixtures had the best quality of ammonia absorption, water holding, and manure fertilization value. The number of fungi and bacteria were lower in shredded newspaper and wooden materials than in straw, linen, hemp, and peat. The composting temperature became high enough for at least a partial destruction of parasites and seeds within the rubbish heaps in all boxes. Only peat manure was ready for further plant production after one month's composting period. Other bedding materials were decomposed only partially or not at all during the study.     

Animal behavior and animal welfare

The value of behavioral techniques in assessing animal welfare, and in particular assessing the psychological well being of animals, is reviewed. Using cats and horses as examples, 3 behavioral methods are presented: (1) comparison of behavior patterns and time budgets; (2) choice tests; and (3) operant conditioning. The behaviors of intact and declawed cats were compared in order to determine if declawing led to behavioral problems or to a change in personality. Apparently it did not. The behavior of free ranging horses was compared with that of stabled horses. Using two-choice preference tests, the preference of horses for visual contact with other horses and the preference for bedding were determined. Horses show no significant preference for locations from which they can make visual contact with other horses, but they do prefer bedding, especially when lying down. Horses will perform an operant response in order to obtain light in a darkened barn or heat in an outside shed. These same techniques can be used to answer a variety of questions about an animal's motivation for a particular attribute of its environment.     

The relationship between recumbent rest and masturbation in stallions

The night time behavior (1900-0700) of 12 stallions was observed using videorecording. All of the stallions masturbated sometime during the night for an average of 3.3 bouts lasting 3.0 + 0.4 min. Ten of the 12 stallions lay down during the night for bouts lasting 14.5 + 2.1 min. Both lying and masturbation occurred most frequently in the early morning hours. Forty percent of the bouts of lying were followed within 5 min by bouts of masturbation indicating that there may be association between REM sleep, which occurs only during recumbent rest in horses, and masturbation. These results suggest that nocturnal bouts of masturbation may be used to distinguish psychogenic from physical causes of impotence in horses.