Subject: Cognition

Cognition and learning in horses (Equus caballus): What we know and why we should ask more

moreLauren Brubaker∗, Monique A.R. Udell

Published in 2016

Horses (Equus caballus) have a rich history of relationships with humans. Across different cultures and eras, they have been used for work, entertainment, cultural rituals, food, therapy and companionship and they continue to fulfil many of these roles today. As horses are one of the most commonly trained domestic animals, understanding how they learn and how their relationship with humans and other horses impacts their ability to learn can influence their welfare, training, breeding and management. Since, unlike dogs and cats, domesticated horses evolved from prey animals, the horse-human relationship raises interesting and unique scientific theoretical questions. There is still much to learn about the cognition and behaviour of horses from a scientific perspective. This review explores current research in three related areas of horse cognition: human-horse interactions, social learning, and independent learning in horses. Research on these topics is summarised and suggestions for future research are provided.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords: Learning, training, Cognitive processes, Human-animal relationships

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Bien dans son corps, bien dans sa tête : qu’est ce que le bien-être du cheval?

IFCE group

Published in 2017

Whether you are a rider, breeder, teacher or horse owner, you will find everything on horse welfare in this "go-to" text from the French Horse and Riding Institute. Nowadays, there is a real awareness of welfare issues for animals, and the horse is no exception to this. What is currently considered to be good or bad practice? What scientific evidence is there? What might future developments look like and what are the regulations? In order to answer these questions, this book offers the reader information that is informed by science and presented in a form that can be understood and used by both professionals and amateurs. With a context-setting preface and introduction written by Axel Kahn and Sylvie Brunel, the wealth of bibliographical research carried out by Christine Briant and her team makes it possible to grasp the concept of equine welfare (including that of donkeys and ponies), and to apply it to feeding, housing, health and behaviour.

Document Types: Scientific work

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords: Animal-based measurements, Anxiety, Learning, Training, Livestock buildings, Pain, Enrichment, Welfare indicators, Housing, Restraint equipment, Memory, Living environment, Fear, Cognitive processes, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Livestock farming system, Transport, Vocalisation

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Travailler son cheval selon les principes de l’apprentissage

IFCE group

Published in 2015

Whether you handle horses as a rider or driver and whatever style you do it in, this practical guide will help you to optimise your horse's training and working habits. The three chapters of this book, based on recent research in ethology, deal with the main types of learning in an accessible and concrete way. The different approaches are first defined and then analysed, with supporting examples and scenarios. The complexities of habituation and awareness, and of operating and Pavlovian conditioning are demystified with a view to their application in everyday life. The step-by-step tutoring through each process and provision of problem-solving tips will provide readers with genuine avenues to improve their relationship with horses. Fully illustrated with colour photos and drawings, this book is an essential tool for anyone wishing to apply training principles in their handling of riding and carriage horses. 

Document Types: Technical work

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords: Anxiety, Learning, Training, Fear, Cognitive processes, Human-animal relationships, Stress

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Ethologie animale. Une approche biologique du comportement

Anne-Sophie Darmaillacq, Frédéric Lévy

Published in 2015

What is ethology, the ideas behind it and its methods? How does an animal inhabit its space, make use of available food resources and build its social world? What are the cognitive processes at work in this? How can personality explain behaviour? Written by specialists from different fields but in an intentionally accessible and explanatory way with the help of numerous illustrations, this book offers an overview of ethology grounded in analysis of cutting-edge research in ethology.

Document Types: Scientific work

Keywords: Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Learning, Training, Consciousness, Memory, Living environment, Fear, Cognitive processes, Evolutionary processes, Human-animal relationships

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Livre Blanc: le bien-être de l’animal de compagnie

CAP WELFARE. Caroline Gilbert, Emmanuelle Titeux, Jérôme Michalon, Charly Pignon, Thierry Poitte, Fabrice Rosaci. Preface by Alain Boissy

Published in 2019

To improve understanding of the needs and expectations of pets and awareness of their emotions, encourage the veterinary profession to engage as stakeholders in this societal issue, and to produce a consultative document for practitioners.

Document Types: Technical work

Animal categories: Canines, Felines, Exotic pets

Keywords: Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Animal-based measurements, Anxiety, Consciousness, Pain, Societal issues, Enrichment, Welfare indicators, Fear, Cognitive processes, Stress, Vocalisation

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What Are the Positives? Exploring Positive Welfare Indicators in a Qualitative Interview Study with Livestock Farmers

Vigors B, Lawrence A

Published in 2019

Positive animal welfare is a relatively new concept that promotes the welfare benefits of providing animals with greater opportunities for positive experiences, as well as minimizing negative experiences. However, little is known about farmers' attitudes or  knowledge regarding positive animal welfare. This is a major obstacle to the promotion of positive welfare indicators on farms, where their use may depend on their acceptance by farmers. In response, this study uses qualitative interviews to explore farmers' positive attitudes towards welfare. A fair number of elements that correspond to positive welfare indicators in the literature are encountered in farmers' positive discussions of welfare. These include animal autonomy, play, positive effects, positive Human-animal relationships, social interactions and appropriate genetic selection.

Document Types: Scientific review

Keywords: Animal-based measurements, Enrichment, Cognitive processes, Human-animal relationships, Housing, Stress, Livestock farming system, Welfare indicators

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Effects of environmental complexity on welfare indicators of fast-growing broiler chickens

Tahamtani FM, Pedersen IJ, Riber AB

Published in 2019

The study aims to investigate the effects of different types of environmental complexity on leg health and welfare indicators for fast-growing chickens housed in accordance with mainstream European legislation.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords: Pain, Enrichment, Welfare indicators, Housing, Living environment, Stress, Livestock farming system

Douleurs animales : les identifier, les comprendre, les limiter chez les animaux d’élevage

INRA

Published in 2009

Document Types: Scientific review

Keywords: Consciousness, Pain

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Animal consciousness

Le Neindre P., Bernard E., Boissy A., Boivin X., Calendreau L., Delon N., Deputte B., Desmoulin-Canselier S., Dunier M., Faivre N., Giurfa M., Guichet J.L., Lansade L., Larrère R., Mormede P., Prunet P., Schaal B., Servière J., Terlouw C

Published in 2017

Document Types: Scientific review

Keywords: Consciousness, Metacognition

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Stress and welfare: two complementary concepts that are intrinsically related to the animal's point of view

Veissier I., Boissy A

Published in 2007

The closely associated concepts of welfare and stress may be considered as opposites since welfare cannot be achieved under stress and vice versa. Stress was first considered as an unspecific response to any challenge taxing the organism's resources where the HPA axis plays a central role. Along the same lines, welfare was considered as the state of an individual on a continuum between poor and good depending on the efforts required to adapt to the environment. However, these views cannot explain opposite results such as up- vs. down-regulation of the HPA axis and hypo- vs. hyper-behavioural reactivity under chronic stress. ... It is therefore suggested that the discrepancies found in the literature in terms of responses of the HPA axis or modification of behaviour under aversive conditions may stem from differences in the way a situation is evaluated. It is argued that stress comes from the animal's evaluation of the outcome of a situation, and that welfare is the state resulting from that evaluation.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Keywords: Animal-based measurements, Anxiety, Consciousness, Welfare indicators, Brain integration, Memory, Metacognition, Cognitive processes, Resilience, Stress

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