Horse Heart Rate and Behavioral Responses Towards Confinement and Turnout Conditio

Fatin Aqilanajwa Adenan, Dr. Kamaruzaman Soeed*, Izwyn Zulkapri, Nur Fadilah Darmansah

Abstract

Horses give poor response to confinement and demonstrated by increased in heart rate and changes in behavior response. Horse may develop stress which consequence to poor performance, health and behavioral problems. Therefore, this study focused on the response of horses towards confinement in a stable and outdoor turnout in an arena using behavioral indices and heart rate reading. Four horses were examined at 4-hour intervals over 24 hours in confinement condition and followed by 24 hours in an outdoor turnout condition. Behavioral assessment scoring form were used in this study to find score for behavioral responses. Reading of heart rates was taken using Polar Equine In-zone FT1 heart rate devices. Findings revealed fluctuate heart rate reading for both conditions. However, heart rate of the horse during turnout time (M=42.1, SD=3.7, n=4) obtained a higher inference score than the horse in confinement (M=38.0, SD=3.8, n=4). The Paired-samples T-test shows that the research result was significantly difference between confinement and turnout condition (t=-3.872, df=27, p<0.5). The findings might be due to horse’s adaptation, excitement and type of workload. Hence, the fluctuate reading of heart rate in confinement and outdoor turn out condition do not give significant effects on horse’s heart rate and behavioral responses. Thus, increase the number of the horse as the subjects would be one of the recommendations for further research. In addition, extend the research using other physiological measures such as saliva.