Managing Horses

Question 1

understanding the social nature of horses is important for planning housing arrangements
barns, pastures, turnout lots, stallion management
ages of horses, feeding programs, horse genders, available space, health and disease management, boarding amenities

Answer 1

equine social groups

Question 2

linear, pecking order, not static
developed , maintained by aggression
once established, prevents severe fights

Answer 2

dominance

Question 3

dams statues, age, gender, athleticism, temperament and attitude

Answer 3

factors that influence position in a herd

Question 4

ideal for horses, not always practical
social groupings may differ from that of a feral herd (age, gender, segregation, not as stable over time)

Answer 4

group pasture housing

Question 5

dominance, submission, access to food and water, personal space

Answer 5

aggression being a concern in pasture housing

Question 6

more common in group hoses horses
less common and severe in semi feral population
most common in intact males
foals have the lowest rate

Answer 6

injuries in group pastures

Question 7

what do domesticated horses fight over the most

Answer 7

concentated food!!!! sometimes water

Question 8

low quality forage=

Answer 8

low energy because keeping their mouths busy prevents cribbing and other issues

Question 9

foals with dams, weanlings kept together, sexes kept separate

Answer 9

foal pastures

Question 10

young horses housed with adults showed greater social behavior, decreased agonistic behavior, more time spent resting, these changes reversed once removed from groups

Answer 10

french study on age groups and behaviors

Question 11

allow for social interaction, turnout time, socialize with other of the same stallion

Answer 11

stallion housing

Question 12

observe horse to horse interactions, make new introductions gradually, distribute feed rapidly to multiple stations, locate water in open areas

Answer 12

managing pasture aggression

Question 13

when is the handler most at risk

Answer 13

turning out individuals into a group
bringing in concentrated feeds
during moments of herd flight response
separating bonded herd mates

Question 14

social nature of the animal important when planning this
ability to see other horses
physical contact
light
place to retreat if threatend
layout should allow social contact, air flow, human saftey, and ease of feeding

Answer 14

stall and barn

Question 15

not the best environment for a horse (confinement or social isolation
increased risk for abnormal behavior)

Answer 15

the stall dilemma

Question 16

different from work and exercise

Answer 16

turnout time

Question 17

lower quality forage, more of it
low in energy, protein, not moldy
reduced proportion of concentrations

Answer 17

high forage diet

Question 18

stall design for social interaction
design for locomotor sterotypies

Answer 18

alleviating the effects of stalling