Influência do enriquecimento ambiental no padrão comportamental de equinos estabulados de diferentes idades

Abstract

The goal of this work is to test the hypothesis that environmental enrichment can influence the well-being of young and adult horses living in stalls. In this study, 2 tests were performed, which evaluated 2 groups of horses classified in young GJ (3 years old) and adults ga (10 years old), that live in individual stalls. All adult animals performed urban patrol activity. In test 1, the behavioral events of the animals were evaluated in GJ (n = 7) and GA (n = 23), during the 7 days of the week. Each group was observed in 4 shifts, 2 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. In the second test, EA items were evaluated in GJ and GA, when the animals were submitted to two EA treatments in the stall (mirror and a toy with rope). Observations were made by using the same method used in test 1. In both tests, the relative frequency (RF) distribution of the behavioral events per shift and day of observation for GJ and GA were calculated. In test 2, the mean frequencies of the behavioral events of each treatment were analyzed in a lineation with 3 simultaneous 3x3 Latin squares. Significant differences were observed in behavioral events in relation to observation shifts in GJ (P <0.001). In GJ, the highest daily total FR of drinking / eating (44.46%) and sleep / rest behaviors (23.32%) was observed, while in GA the predominant behaviors were eating / drinking (26.94%) and sleep / rest (26.89%). Considering the stereotypy behavioral category, GJ had a FR of 5.54%, whereas in GA a FR was 4.45%. When comparing the frequencies of the behaviors between GJ and GA, the behaviors with the highest RF were eating / drinking and sleep / rest. In the GJ the EA of the use of the mirrors in the stall influenced significantly the behaviors of Sleep / rest, Climb in the trough and lick / bite. In GA the mirrors influenced the Sleep / Rest and Alert behavior. In the EA the toy with rope didn’t influence the behavior of the horses. The visual stimulus of the mirror seems to change the perception that the horses have of the environment, reducing the incidence of stereotypies and moments of idleness. Some objects may present better response as a form of EA varying according to the type of the object used and the way it is used. In GA where the interaction of the animals with the EA objects was little, the low interaction may indicate that for "mature" adult horses leaving the stalls for work, not all types of AD are effective. Studies with other types of EA are required for adult horses that live in stalls with a proposal of cognitive, social or food enrichment. Another possibility is that adult horses do not show interest in enrichment of the physical type. Besides that, can be inferred that the patrolling activity may have an influence on the stress dissipation of this group. With this, it can be concluded that the use of mirrors as environmental enrichment has a positive influence on the well-being of young horses.