RESUMO
A pioneer of veterinary radiology, she was a born teacher and a role model.
RESUMO
Investigating how those responsible for the care of nonhuman animals understand the concept of animal welfare is important for animal welfare improvement. In-depth interviews with 31 equine stakeholders were used to explore their perceptions and understanding of welfare. The results showed the stakeholders understood the concept of welfare in 4 ways. Firstly, welfare was understood in terms of the provision of resources-for example, food. Secondly, a "horse-centered" understanding of welfare was articulated; this understanding included the horses' mental state and was linked to natural behavior. Thirdly, the word welfare had negative connotations, and for some, good welfare was achieved through avoidance of negative states. Finally, interviewees discussed incidents that occurred in their own familiar contexts but suggested that these were not welfare problems. Evidence indicated that the ways in which equine stakeholders understood the concept of welfare might have been acting as a barrier to the alleviation of some equine welfare problems. There is a need for strategies aimed at improving equine welfare to consider stakeholder constructs of welfare and the ways in which these constructs are generated and acted upon.
Assuntos
Criação de Animais Domésticos/normas , Bem-Estar do Animal , Atitude , Cavalos , Animais , Comportamento Animal , Inglaterra , Cavalos/fisiologia , Cavalos/psicologia , Humanos , Entrevistas como Assunto , Reino Unido , País de GalesRESUMO
The equine industry in Great Britain has not been subject to the same pressures as the farming industry to engage with welfare assessment, but this may change as concern about equine welfare increases. Stakeholder attitudes toward welfare assessment may impact the implementation of welfare assessment practices. Focus-group discussions regarding welfare assessment were conducted with 6 equine stakeholder groups: leisure horse owners (caregivers; n = 4), grooms (n = 5), veterinary surgeons (n = 3), welfare scientists (n = 4), welfare charity workers (n = 5), and professional riders (n = 4). Three themes emerged from the discussions: (a) Participants predominantly interpreted welfare assessment as a means of identifying and correcting poor welfare in an immediate way; (b) participants believed that horse welfare varied over time; and (c) attributes of the assessor were viewed as an important consideration for equine welfare assessment. The views of equine industry members give insight into the value welfare assessments may have to the industry and how equine welfare assessment approaches can achieve credibility within the industry and increase the positive impact of welfare assessments on equine welfare.
Assuntos
Bem-Estar do Animal , Atitude , Cavalos/psicologia , Criação de Animais Domésticos , Animais , Grupos Focais , Humanos , Pessoal de Laboratório/psicologia , Percepção Social , Reino Unido , Médicos Veterinários/psicologiaRESUMO
The objective of this study was to assess the reliability of lameness scoring in horses. One veterinary surgeon examined nineteen lame horses on four occasions. Gait was recorded by camcorder, and scored from 0 to 10 ranging from sound to non-weight bearing lameness. A global score of overall change in lameness during the study was also determined for each horse. To measure intra-assessor reliability of the scoring systems, one veterinary surgeon scored videotapes of the horses' gaits on two occasions. To measure inter-assessor reliability, three veterinary surgeons viewed the videotapes, assigning individual lameness scores plus global scores to each horse. Reliability of individual lameness scoring was good intra-assessor, but only just within our acceptable limit inter-assessor. However, global scoring of change in lameness throughout the study was found to be reliable overall. Since clinician scoring is commonly used to assess lameness in horses, this is an important finding, fundamental to future clinical studies.
Assuntos
Doenças dos Cavalos/diagnóstico , Coxeadura Animal/diagnóstico , Osteoartrite/veterinária , Animais , Feminino , Marcha/fisiologia , Cavalos , Estudos Longitudinais , Masculino , Variações Dependentes do Observador , Osteoartrite/fisiopatologia , Reprodutibilidade dos Testes , Gravação de VideoteipeAssuntos
Legislação Veterinária , Padrões de Prática Médica , Drogas Veterinárias , Animais , Reino UnidoRESUMO
The transrectal ultrasonographic appearance of the lumbosacral joint was assessed in 43 horses with no history or clinical evidence of back pain or hindlimb lameness. In the majority of horses (34/43, 79.1%) the lumbosacral disc had uniform or mildly heterogeneous echogenicity. However, variation in the ultrasonographic appearance of the lumbosacral joint was also identified, including hyperechogenic regions within the lumbosacral disc with or without an acoustic shadow, and mild or moderate irregularity of the opposing surfaces of the last lumbar and the first sacral vertebral bodies. Marked irregularity of the bony surfaces or marked disruption of the lumbosacral disc was not seen in any horse. The mean distance between the ventral aspects of the last lumbar and first sacral vertebrae was 14.2 mm (range: 7.1-26.5 mm, median: 14.4 mm). The degree of protrusion of the ventral aspect of the lumbosacral disc ranged from 0 to 5 mm (mean: 1.32 mm, median: 1.2 mm). The mean angle between the ventral surfaces of the last lumbar and first sacral vertebrae was 147 degrees (range: 118-165 degrees, median: 150 degrees). There was no significant effect of age, breed, gender, or the size of the horses on either subjective findings in the lumbosacral joint or objective measurements.
Assuntos
Membro Posterior/diagnóstico por imagem , Plexo Lombossacral/diagnóstico por imagem , Região Lombossacral/diagnóstico por imagem , Envelhecimento , Animais , Tamanho Corporal , Lateralidade Funcional , Cavalos , Coxeadura Animal/diagnóstico por imagem , Masculino , Orquiectomia , Valores de Referência , UltrassonografiaRESUMO
This study aimed to establish comprehensive reference values for horses working in developing countries, and to compare them against accepted values for horses in developed countries, supporting diagnosis and clinical decision-making. Horses in developing countries usually perform strenuous work in hot, resource-limited conditions, so their 'normal' blood parameters may differ from other horses. Blood was analysed from 203 working horses in Pakistan, meeting defined clinical criteria. Age, sex, body condition and work-type showed small significant effects, but none were clinically relevant. Of the 32 reference intervals, 28 overlapped those of UK horses. However, the entire reference interval for creatine kinase was higher than for UK horses, while those for erythrocytes, albumin and albumin:globulin ratio were lower. Haematocrit and haemoglobin concentrations were also low. Therefore, apparently healthy working horses may have chronic muscle damage from overwork, and may have sub-clinical anaemia. Interventions combating these conditions could improve animal welfare, although it is unclear whether differences between UK and Pakistan reference values reflect chronic abnormalities, or are in fact physiological adaptations enabling horses to cope with the challenging conditions.