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Sad Circumstance Allows Researchers To Study How Feral Horses Perceive Death

Researchers in Portugal who witnessed the decline and death of a foal in a feral herd were given a unique opportunity to see how wild horses reacted to the situation. Drs. Renata Mendonça, Monamie Ringhofer, Pandora Pinto, Sota Inoue and Satoshi Hirata watched the foal, who had been injured in a presumed wolf attack, for six hours; they noted his behavior as well as that of his dam and other herd members in the vicinity. Every two minutes, they recorded things like the distance between the horses and the injured foal; every five minutes they recorded horses moving, resting, eating and interacting with others.

The herd walked during the first several hours and the foal moved when prompted by his dam. He eventually went down and could not rise. His dam stayed near him and nuzzled him occasionally. After 15 minutes, the herd left the mare and foal behind. The stallion returned and attempted to move the mare from the foal, and succeeded on the seventh try. The dam whinnied to the foal 10 times and the foal responded once.

A second group of horses arrived and stood within 20 yards of the foal for 40 minutes. Though all members of the group were interested in the foal, two mares remained interested after the others had left to graze. These mares licked and sniffed the foal for several minutes, while the foal's dam watched from a distance.

During this interaction, the dam whinnied for the foal 44 times, but the stallion prevented her from returning to her foal. The foal responded only once after the other mares had left.

The dam returned to the foal once and fought with bachelor stallions who were interested in her. She left the foal to join the herd that was about 200 yards away. The foal stood and called for her one time after she left, then fell and died within an hour.

The research team notes that the mare moving away even though her foal was alive makes sense from an evolutionary context; it ensured her own survival, which allows her to reproduce again and benefit the species. The scientists were surprised by the reaction of the other two mares toward the foal. Traditionally, horses are antagonistic toward foals that are note their own; that the two mares were not could mean that they perceived something different about the foal.

Though there is still much to learn about how horses perceive death, the research team advises that owners and managers take equine emotions and reactions into account when dealing with the death of a domesticated herd mate.

Helicopter Roundups Of Mustangs Safer Than Roundups Of Other Wild Species

Though the use of helicopters to gather feral mustangs has been controversial for years, a recent study has shown that these type of roundups are relatively safe for roaming horses in the Western United States, reports The Horse.

Dr. John Derek Scasta of the University of Wyoming reviewed 10 years of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) data and determined that the number of animal deaths (both naturally and those that were euthanized) related to the helicopter roundups were similar to bait-trapping, which is another method used to gather wild horses. He noted that either bait-trapping or the use of helicopters resulted in a significantly lower death rates than those found in roundups of other wild animal species.

To arrive at this conclusion, Scasta reviewed 70 captures from 2010 to 2019 that involved nearly 29,000 horses and more than 2,000 burros in nine Western states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. Of these captures, 36 used helicopters to gather the animals and 34 used bait-trapping. In bait-trapping, horses enter a wide enclosure that contains feed or water, with no humans present. In helicopter-driven gathers, a helicopter flies above and behind the herd, pushing horses into an enclosure.

In total, 96 horses and four burros died or were euthanized during or after the bait-trap gathers; 268 horses died during or after the helicopter gathers, The Horse reports. The mortality rate was 1.7 percent for bait-trap gathers and 1 percent for helicopter gathers. The majority of the deaths related to the wild horse and burro roundups are related to pre-existing or chronic conditions, such as poorly healed injuries, lameness or blindness.

The numbers are far fewer than the deaths that occur on similar roundups of elk, deer and caribou, which have reported mortality rates of up to 20 percent. The animals are generally gathered for scientific research projects. Typically, anything over a 2 percent death rate is considered unacceptable in the scientific community.

Three Signs That Indicate Colic Is Critical

Colic is the No. 1 killer of horses in the United States. The term encompasses any equine abdominal pain and it is the most-common reason why horses require emergency veterinary care. Though many colic cases are resolved with simple, on-farm medical management, some cases are critical.

Drs. Adelle Bowden, Gary England, Marnie Louise Brennan, Tim Mair, Wendy Furness, Sarah Freeman and John Burford reviewed the clinical notes from 941 colic cases seen by two major equine clinics in England. The study team was able to identify three “red flags” that indicated that a colic case was critical. “Critical” in this case means that the colic required medical or surgical in-hospital care or resulted in euthanasia or death.

There are three red flags were: an increased heart rate, increasing age and abnormal mucous membrane color. The study team determined that of the 941 cases, 225 (23.9 percent) were critical; 18 percent of the critical cases were euthanized and 1 percent of the cases died.

The researchers note that these three “red flag” parameters should be an essential component of the colicky horse's initial assessment. The team suggests further research into the role a horse's age plays in critical cases; clarification is needed on if older horses are more likely to have critical conditions or if owners are more likely to choose euthanasia instead of treatment in older horses.

Anthrax And Equines: A Deadly Combination

Though anthrax may be more familiar to people for its use as a biological weapon, the bacteria should also be a concern to equine owners for the potential harm, including death, it can cause to their animals.

Bacillus anthracis, the bacteria that causes anthrax, can lie dormant in soil for years; it is particularly hardy in alkaline soil. If anthrax spores are inhaled or ingested, or if they encounter a wound, horses can develop and anthrax infection. Ingestion is the most common way for horses to get an anthrax infection. Ingestion often occurs after a heavy rain, when anthrax spores are pushed to the surface of grass; it can also occur during drought conditions when grasses are eaten down to the soil.

Once anthrax enters the body, it becomes active and multiplies rapidly, causing toxins that spread throughout the body. The septicemia anthrax causes progresses rapidly; killing many affected animals within two to four days.

Horses with anthrax will have trouble breathing; they will also have a high fever, and swelling on the neck and chest. Affected horses may colic, have bloody diarrhea or have seizures. The disease can be spread to humans, so an anthrax infection must be reported to the state's veterinarian.

Anthrax is not endemic to all parts of the United States, so the vaccine is recommended only for horses that live in areas that are known to have anthrax spores. It is a live vaccine, so reactions to the injection site may occur. Antimicrobials may interfere with the vaccine response, so they should not be administered at the same time.

Read the AAEP's anthrax guidelines here.