Institute of Animal Breeding and Husbandry, Christian-Albrechts-University, Kiel, Germany.
Institute of Animal Breeding and Husbandry, Christian-Albrechts-University, Kiel, Germany.
J Equine Vet Sci. 2020 Dec;95:103270. doi: 10.1016/j.jevs.2020.103270. Epub 2020 Sep 17.
Equine headshaking syndrome is a problematic behavior that has been described in literature for more than 100 years. The signs of headshaking syndrome appear frequently and violently so that riding the horse can be dangerous. The aim of this research was to gain an overview of the underlying causes of equine headshaking syndrome to identify effective treatment options, reduce the distress of horses and, in a second step, potentially improve therapeutic possibilities for horse owners and veterinarians. Most studies on prevalence originate from Anglo-American countries, so this research was to provide an overview of German horses; therefore, an online survey was designed by experts in the field (researchers and veterinarians) and answered by German horse owners. Questionnaires were pretested by a small group of horse owners (n = 5) and redesigned accordingly. The final questionnaire consisted of 27 questions, which were divided into seven open questions with an associated text field and 20 multiple-choice questions (Supplementary Material 1). For some of the multiple-choice questions, multiple answers were permitted. In total, 163 completed questionnaires were obtained from owners of headshaking horses (n = 163). Gender distribution of the horses resulted in 64.4% geldings, 33.7% mares, and 1.8% stallions. Most horses were German warmbloods (55.4%). The average age was 12.7 years (with a wide range of 5 to 34 years). The vertical movement of the head was the most frequently mentioned symptom in 75.5% of the evaluated horses. In 18.4% of the cases, the horse owners identified stress as the main trigger for headshaking. Furthermore, 18.4% claimed that their horses suffered from additional stereotypical behavior. The percentages do not refer to the same horses here. 11.0% of the participants in this study tried scientifically evaluated therapies such as surgical therapy (1.2%) or medical treatment (9.8%). In addition, 54.0% of the owners utilized a nose cover to reduce the symptoms of the headshaking syndrome. A high percentage of 84.0% used alternative therapies such as physiotherapy (31.9%), change of equipment (22.7%), or change of riding style (29.4%). Overall, this study provides a useful overview of causes and effective therapies.
马摇头综合征是一种常见的行为问题，已有 100 多年的文献记载。该综合征的症状频繁且剧烈，以至于骑马变得很危险。本研究旨在概述马摇头综合征的潜在原因，以确定有效的治疗方案，减轻马的痛苦，并在第二步中，为马主和兽医提供潜在的治疗选择。大多数关于患病率的研究都来自英裔美国国家，因此这项研究旨在概述德国马；因此，由该领域的专家（研究人员和兽医）设计了一项在线调查，并由德国马主回答。问卷由一小部分马主（n=5）进行了预测试，并进行了相应的修改。最终问卷由 27 个问题组成，分为 7 个带有相关文本字段的开放式问题和 20 个多项选择题（补充材料 1）。对于一些多项选择题，允许选择多个答案。共有 163 名患有摇头综合征的马主完成了问卷（n=163）。马的性别分布为 64.4%为去势马，33.7%为母马，1.8%为种马。大多数马为德国温血马（55.4%）。平均年龄为 12.7 岁（范围为 5 至 34 岁）。在评估的马中，头部的垂直运动是最常被提到的症状，占 75.5%。在 18.4%的情况下，马主认为压力是摇头的主要诱因。此外，18.4%的马主声称他们的马还患有其他刻板行为。这里的百分比不是指同一匹马。在这项研究的参与者中，有 11.0%尝试了经过科学评估的治疗方法，如手术治疗（1.2%）或药物治疗（9.8%）。此外，54.0%的马主使用鼻罩来减轻摇头综合征的症状。84.0%的马主使用替代疗法，如物理疗法（31.9%）、更换设备（22.7%）或改变骑马风格（29.4%）。总的来说，这项研究提供了一个有用的原因和有效治疗方法的概述。
