Atın Bakıma Karşı Davranışı

Year 2024, Volume: 17 Issue: 1, 22 - 28, 31.03.2024

Yavuzkan Paksoy

https://doi.org/10.30607/kvj.1387472

Abstract

Atların çeşitli amaçlar için evcilleştirilmesi ve seleksiyon, farklı fiziksel özelliklere ve davranış eğilimlerine sahip özel at ırklarının ortaya çıkmasına yol açmıştır. Özellikle insanlarla etkileşimde at davranışlarındaki bireysel farklılıkları anlamak pozitif deneyimleri arttırmak ve hayvan refahı bakımından önemlidir. Yaygın bir insan-at etkileşimi olan yele bakımı, atların duygusal tepkileri ve tercihleri hakkında değerli bilgiler sağlar. Bu çalışma, yedi farklı at ırkından 350 atın (101 İngiliz atı, 96 Arap atı, 123 Avrupa atı, 10 Belçika atı, 6 Fransız atı, 8 Hollanda atı, 2 Alman atı ve 1 Macar atı) yele bakım seansları sırasındaki davranışlarını belirlemek amacıyla gerçekleştirilmiştir. Çalışma, yele bakımı sırasında atın önden ve her iki yandan gözlemlenmesini ve at sahipleriyle yüz yüze görüşmeleri içermektedir. Araştırma, yaklaşma ve kaçınma davranışlarına odaklanarak atların duygusal tepkileri hakkında bilgi edinmeyi amaçlamakta ve ırk, yaş, cinsiyet ve yele yönü gibi özelliklerin etkilerini araştırmaktadır. Araştırma, yedi farklı at ırkı arasında kişilik farklılıkları olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Ayrıca, sadece %10,28'inin yele tımarı sırasında agresif davranışlar sergilediğini göstermektedir. Yele yönü bakımından ırklar arasında bazı farklılıklar gözlenmiştir. Araştırma sonucuna göre, at refahını artırmak ve insan-at bağını güçlendirmek amacıyla bakım uygulamalarında ırka özgü ve bireysel özelliklerin dikkate alınması gerektiğini sonucuna varılmıştır.

Keywords

Agresif Davranış, At Yelesi, Tıraş

The Horse Behaviour toward Grooming

Abstract

The domestication and artificial selection of horse for various purposes have led to the emergence of various horse breeds, often associated with specific physical characteristics and behavioural tendencies. Understanding individual differences in horse behaviour, particularly during interactions with humans, is essential for promoting positive experiences and welfare. Mane grooming, a common human-horse interaction, provides valuable information about the horse's emotional responses and the preferences. This study was conducted to determine the behaviour of 350 horse seven different horse breeds (101 Thoroughbred horses, 96 Arabian horses, 123 Hanoverian horses, 10 Belgian horses, 6 French horses, 8 Dutch horses, 2 German horses, and 1 Hungarian horse) during mane grooming sessions. The study involved observing the horse from the front and both sides during the mane grooming process and face-to-face interviews with horse owners. The research aims to obtain information about the emotional reactions of the horses by focusing on approach and avoidance behaviours, and it investigates the effects of characteristics such as breed, age, gender and mane direction. Research has revealed that personality differences among seven different horse breeds. Also, it shows that only 10.28 % exhibited aggressive behaviours during the mane grooming. Some differences have been observed among breeds in terms of mane direction. According to the results, it was concluded that breed-specific and individual characteristics should be taken into account in care practices in order to enhance horse welfare and strengthen the human-horse bond.

Keywords

Aggressive Behavior, Grooming, Horse Mane

References

• Anderson, M.K., Friend, T.H., Evans, J.W., Bushong, D.M., (1999). Behavioural assessment of horses in therapeutic riding programs. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 63, 11–24.
• Bastian, J. (2022, May 8). How grooming can improve connection with your horse. Irish Sport Horse Magazine. https://www.irishsporthorsemagazine.com/how-grooming-can-improve-connection-with-your-horse/
• Clutton-Brock, J., (1999). A Natural History of Domesticated Mammals. Cambrige University Press, Cambridge, UK. Coolican, H., 2004. Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology. Hodder and Stoughton.
• Creighton, E., (2003). Matching horses for courses: development of robust tests of equine temperament to address equine welfare. In: 37th International Congress of The International Society of Animal Ethology, Fondazione Iniziative Zooprofilattiche e Zootecniche, Brescia, Venice, p. 148.
• Dalla Costa, E., Minero, M., Lebelt, D., Stucke, D., Canali, E., & Leach, M. C. (2014). Development of the Horse Grimace Scale (HGS) as a pain assessment tool in horses undergoing routine castration. PLoS one, 9(3), e92281.
• Feh, C., De Mazières, J., (1993). Grooming at a preferred site reduces heart rate in horses. Anim. Behav. 46, 1191–1194.
• Highland Pony Society, (2006). Highland ponies—Characteristics. www.highlandponysociety.com/highlandponys.htm
• Hintze, S., Smith, S., Patt, A., Bachmann, I., & Würbel, H. (2016). Are eyes a mirror of the soul? What eye wrinkles reveal about a horse’s emotional state. PloS one, 11(10), e0164017.
• Hislop, J., (1992). Breeding for racing. The Kingswood Press, London, UK.
• Houpt, K.A., Kusunose, R., (2000). Genetics of behaviour. In: Bowling, A.T., Ruvinsky, A. (Eds.), The Genetics of The Horse. CABI, Oxon, UK, pp. 281–306.
• Irish Draught Horse Society of Great Britain, (2006). Breed Standard. www.irishdraughthorsesociety.com/breed_standards.htm
• Jo King, A. (2021). Why Do Horses Have Manes. Access address: https://www.petmd.com/horse/why-do-horses-have-manes.
• Lansade, L., Nowak, R., Lainé, A.-L., Leterrier, C., Bonneau, C., Parias, C., Bertin, A. (2018). Facial expression and oxytocin as possible markers of positive emotions in horses. Sci.Rep. 8, 14680.
• Lansade, L., Bonneau, C., Parias, C., & Biau, S. (2019). Horse’s emotional state and rider safety during grooming practices, a field study. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 217, 43-47.
• Lansade, L., Trösch, M., Parias, C., Blanchard, A., Gorosurreta, E., & Calandreau, L. (2021). Horses are sensitive to baby talk: pet-directed speech facilitates communication with humans in a pointing task and during grooming. Animal Cognition, 24(5), 999–1006. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-021-01487-3
• Le Scolan, N., Hausberger, M.,Wolff, A., (1997). Stability over situations in temperamental traits of horses as revealed by experimental and scoring approaches. Behav. Process 41, 257–266.
• Merkies, K., & Franzin, O. (2021). Enhanced understanding of Horse–Human interactions to optimize welfare. Animals, 11(5), 1347. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11051347
• Mills, D.S., (1998). Personality and individual differences in the horse, their significance, use and measurement. Equine Vet. J. Suppl. 27, 10–13.
• Momozawa, Y., Ono, T., Sato, F., Kikusui, T., Takeuchi, Y., Mori, Y., Kusunose, R., (2003). Assessment of equine temperament by a questionnaire survey to caretakers and evaluation of its reliability by simultaneous behaviour test. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 84, 127–138.
• Momozawa, Y., Kusunose, R., Kikusui, T., Takeuchi,Y., Mori, Y., (2005). Assessment of equine temperament questionnaire by comparing factor structure between two separate surveys. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 92, 77–84.
• Pervin, L.A., John, O.P., (1997). Personality Theory and Research. John Wiley and Sons, New York.
• Seaman, S.C., Davidson, H.P.B., Waran, N.K., (2002). How reliable is temperament assessment in the domestic horse (Equus caballus)? Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 78, 175–191.
• Svensson, E., Telldahl, Y., Sjöling, E., Sundkvist, A., Hulth, H., Sjøvold, T., & Götherström, A. (2012). Coat colour and sex identification in horses from Iron Age Sweden. Annals of Anatomy - Anatomischer Anzeiger, 194(1), 82–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aanat.2011.11.001
• Visser, E.K., van Reenen, C.G., Schilder, M.B.H., Barneveld, A., Blokhuis, H.J., (2003b). Learning performances in young horses using two different learning tests. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 80, 311–326.
• Whishaw, I. Q., & Kolb, B. (2016). The mane effect in the horse (Equus ferus caballus): Right mane dominance enhanced in mares but not associated with left and right manoeuvres in a reining competition. Laterality: Asymmetries of Brain, Behaviour, and Cognition, 22(4), 495–513. https://doi.org/10.1080/1357650x.2016.1219740
• Wolff, A., Hausberger, M., Le Scolan, N., (1997). Experimental tests to assess emotionality in horses. Behav. Process 40, 209–221.