Icelandic Horses are becomming increasingly common in Sweden. The owners of Icelandic Horses in Sweden usually believe their Horses to be different from other breeds. Icelandic Horses are predominantly considered to be less reactive, less neophobic and easier to handle than other breeds. Swedish owners of Icelandic Horses also usually try to house and handle their Horses in a way similar to the traditional extensive Icelandic way. There are no scientific studies of breed differences between Icelandic Horses and other breeds, or of the housing of Swedish Icelandic Horses.

Skiascopy, also called retinoscopy, is a method for determining the refractive power of the eye. There are only a few, old studies made on equine refraction. The aim of this study was to investigate the refractive power in a population of Swedish Horses. The study consists of a review of relevant studies done on animals and an experimental part where the refractive power of 93 Horses of different age, breed and usage was examined. A pilot study of 12 Horses was performed regarding the importance of cycloplegia when doing skiascopy on Horses. The results of the pilot study show no significant difference in the skiascopy results between the group before and after cycloplegia were induced. Consequently, there is no need of inducing cycloplegia before doing skiascopy in adult Horses. The study shows that Horses usually were emmetropic (normally sighted) with minor deviations toward myopia or hyperopia.

During the winter 2011 Isaksson and Andersson did a time budget study on Nordens Ark?s Przewalskis Horses during daytime when there were visitors and caretakers in the park. This time budget study was made during daytime and when there were no visitors or caretakers in the park. The Horses where observed in the morning (5.30-6.30 am) and in the evening (5.45-6.45 pm) during four days. In addition to a time budget, the Horses? positions in the enclosure were registered.

During the winter 2011 Isaksson and Andersson did a time budget study on Nordens Ark?s Przewalskis Horses during daytime when there were visitors and caretakers in the park. This time budget study was made during daytime and when there were no visitors or caretakers in the park. The Horses where observed in the morning (5.30-6.30 am) and in the evening (5.45-6.45 pm) during four days. In addition to a time budget, the Horses? positions in the enclosure were registered.

The aim of the study was to investigate feeding routines, management, health and level of activity of riding Horses in Sweden. This was obtained by a survey requesting information from owners who kept Horses at a non-professional level. Owners to approximately 500 Horses were contacted and the usable response of the survey was 56 %. The dominating breed in the study was Swedish warmblood (38 %). Fiftytwo percent of the Horses were geldings, 45 % were mares and 3 % were stallions.

SUMMARYThe Swedish laws of animal welfare emphasize the social needs of the horse but nothing is said about how to fulfill this. Though there are few studies done in this subject it can be difficult to understand if the needs are fulfilled. The purpose of this study was to learn more about the horse?s social needs in box stable and to increase other people?s knowledge and understanding of the horse behavior to increase the welfare of the stabled horse. The questions where: How does the horse choose to place itself depending on what horse is next to it? How many attempts does the horse do to take contact and nose contact with the horse next to it? How does the box design affect the horse behavior?22Eight Horses were videotaped during 24 nights.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate if pulsed inhaled nitric oxide (PiNO) could be used as a treatment for hypoxemia during general anaesthesia in colic Horses. Previous studies have shown a positive response in Horses receiving PiNO in comparison to controls, but these studies have only included healthy individuals. A total of 30 Horses were included in this present study, they all underwent abdominal surgery because of acute colic that could not be medically treated. Fifteen of the Horses received PiNO and 15 Horses served as a control group. Arterial oxygenation was improved in all Horses receiving PiNO.

The German equine housing system, HIT Active Stable?, are adjusted for keeping Horses in groups, and are well establishes in Germany. Now the system attracts attention here in Sweden. The purpose of this study was to investigate if the Horses have any be-haviours need of free access to roughages like straw or hay, after they have been visit the concentrate feeding station. A study was carried out at family Krohn?s active stables in Bönningstedt, Germany.

Today it is common to have adult Horses stabled for most of the day. This limits the Horses? ability to perform some of their natural behaviors such as foraging and movement. The purpose of this review was to compare the feral Horses? diurnal rhythm and time budget with stabled Horses.

Working Horses in developing countries are mostly used for transportation. They are often owned by people with limited economical resources and lack of knowledge about how to take care of the Horses and due to this the Horses often suffer from problems such as dehydration, poor body condition, lesions and parasitic infections. The aim of this master thesis was to investigate if free veterinary care improved the health and hydration status of working Horses in Nicaragua and it was performed as a part of a project called ?Free veterinary assistance for working Horses and training of their owners as veterinary promoters in the Pacific coast of Nicaragua?. Five parameters were used to investigate whether free care improved the health of working Horses in six towns along the Pacific Coast of Nicaragua.

Instrumental conditioning, the use of reinforcement and punishment, is used when training Horses and these procedures may have different consequences regarding animal welfare. The aim of this study was to investigate what kind of reinforcers that are used in training Horses and when these reinforcers are used. This study has its focus on positive reinforcement and its advantages and disadvantages. Interviews of five A-level and B -level equestrian coaches about their training methods were conducted to complement the literature search and give a greater understanding to why certain methods are used or not in training Horses. The results show that negative reinforcement seems to be the foundation of training Horses whereas positive reinforcement is used but not to the same extent.

This review paper summaries scientific research about horse thermoregulation and the consequences of using a blanket. Horse owners put blankets on their Horses to protect them when they are clipped, to protect them from bugs, to keep them clean and so on. This can have consequences for the horse which their owners might be unaware of. I have tried to answer following questions by searching the available scientific literature; ? How can the horse maintain thermoregulation? ? Is there a risk of suffering when Horses wear a blanket? ? Is there a risk of suffering when Horses do not wear a blanket? ? How can animal inspectors estimate the welfare of Horses when they wear or do not wear a blanket? My result shows that Horses who wear a blanket have an increased risk of becoming overheated, develop a chafing, have an increased exposure hazard and have a restrained natural behaviour.

A number of studies in human medicine has documented positive effects of whole body vibration treatment in humans. The Vitafloor system, witch is based on treatment of Horses with vibration, has the purpose to be used in training of healthy Horses and as rehabilitation for Horses with injuries in their musculosceletal system. The purpose of this study was to analyse what happens with a clinically healthy horse during treatment with Vitafloor. The methods used is mainly thermography before and after treatment, but also blood samples, measurement of rectal temperature, heart rate, clinical examination and observation of psychic reactions has been done. Statistic significant changes in skin temperature in hoofs and fetlocks of front legs has been observed after treatment with Vitafloor. Analyzing of the blood samples showed a tendency for decrease in Kalium, and two of the Horses had changes in CK. No negative effect has been observed with the treatment of Horses with Vitafloor, and the Horses seems to like the treatment. .

This work reveals the results of BAL performed on Horses included in a larger study that assessed the relationship of amount and type of inhaled particles in equine stable air on indices of respiratory inflammation in Horses and people. During this study an unanticipated and marked elevation in lung eosinophils was detected in a number of the Horses. The possible significance and cause of this pulmonary eosinophilia was investigated further, and is the main focus of the work presented.

During late autumn/winter in the years of 2005/2006 and 2006/2007 a questionnaire study was made in Västra Götaland county in the south west of Sweden. Inspectors responsible of animal welfare answered the questionnaires during their routine visits to different horse stables in the county. The questionnaires contained questions about the number of Horses at the farm, hoof condition, body condition, how often the Horses were fed outside and the pasture condition. The purpose of this study was to investigate if a connection could be seen between environmental factors and health factors within the Horses in this material. The connections that were analysed were between; hoof health and pasture condition, how many times the Horses were fed outside and the body condition and between the number of Horses in the pasture and pasture condition.