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Torres Borda L, Roth P, Lumetzberger J, Auer U, Jenner F. Proximity tracking using ultra-wideband technology for equine social behaviour research. Sci Rep 2024; 14:9971. [PMID: 38693325 PMCID: PMC11063072 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-60805-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Sociopositive interactions with conspecifics are essential for equine welfare and quality of life. This study aimed to validate the use of wearable ultra-wideband (UWB) technology to quantify the spatial relationships and dynamics of social behaviour in horses by continuous (1/s) measurement of interindividual distances. After testing the UWB devices' spatiotemporal accuracy in a static environment, the UWB measurement validity, feasibility and utility under dynamic field conditions was assessed in a group of 8 horses. Comparison of the proximity measurements with video surveillance data established the measurement accuracy and validity (r = 0.83, p < 0.0001) of the UWB technology. The utility for social behaviour research was demonstrated by the excellent accordance of affiliative relationships (preferred partners) identified using UWB with video observations. The horses remained a median of 5.82 m (95% CI 5.13-6.41 m) apart from each other and spent 20% (median, 95% CI 14-26%) of their time in a distance ≤ 3 m to their preferred partner. The proximity measurements and corresponding speed calculation allowed the identification of affiliative versus agonistic approaches based on differences in the approach speed and the distance and duration of the resulting proximity. Affiliative approaches were statistically significantly slower (median: 1.57 km/h, 95% CI 1.26-1.92 km/h, p = 0.0394) and resulted in greater proximity (median: 36.75 cm, 95% CI 19.5-62 cm, p = 0.0003) to the approached horse than agonistic approaches (median: 3.04 km/h, 95% CI 2.16-3.74 km/h, median proximity: 243 cm, 95% CI 130-319 cm), which caused an immediate retreat of the approached horse at a significantly greater speed (median: 3.77 km/h, 95% CI 3.52-5.85 km/h, p < 0.0001) than the approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Torres Borda
- Equine Surgery Unit, Department of Companion Animals and Horses, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Roth
- Computational Medicine, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jennifer Lumetzberger
- Computational Medicine, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ulrike Auer
- Anaesthesiology and Perioperative Intensive Care Medicine Unit, Department of Companion Animals and Horses, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Florien Jenner
- Equine Surgery Unit, Department of Companion Animals and Horses, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria.
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Singh MK, Nimarko A, Bruno J, Anand KJS, Singh SP. Can Translational Social Neuroscience Research Offer Insights to Mitigate Structural Racism in the United States? Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging 2022; 7:1258-67. [PMID: 35609781 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2022.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Revised: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Social isolation and conflict due to structural racism may result in human suffering and loneliness across the life span. Given the rising prevalence of these problems in the United States, combined with disruptions experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, the neurobiology of affiliative behaviors may offer practical solutions to the pressing challenges associated with structural racism. Controlled experiments across species demonstrate that social connections are critical to survival, although strengthening individual resilience is insufficient to address the magnitude and impact of structural racism. In contrast, the multilevel construct of social resilience, defined by the power of groups to cultivate, engage in, and sustain positive relationships that endure and recuperate from social adversities, offers unique insights that may have greater impact, reach, and durability than individual-level interventions. Here, we review putative social resilience-enhancing interventions and, when available, their biological mediators, with the hope to stimulate discovery of novel approaches to mitigate structural racism. We first explore the social neuroscience principles underlying psychotherapy and other psychiatric interventions. Then, we explore translational efforts across species to tailor treatments that increase social resilience, with context and cultural sensitivity in mind. Finally, we conclude with some practical future directions for understudied areas that may be essential for progress in biological psychiatry, including ethical ways to increase representation in research and developing social paradigms that inform dynamics toward or away from socially resilient outcomes.
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Lürzel S, Bückendorf L, Waiblinger S, Rault JL. Salivary oxytocin in pigs, cattle, and goats during positive human-animal interactions. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2020; 115:104636. [PMID: 32160578 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.104636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2019] [Revised: 02/28/2020] [Accepted: 03/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Research on oxytocin (OT) has provided crucial insight into the neuroendocrine mechanisms of social behavior and human-animal interactions. Nonetheless, this peptide hormone remains challenging to sample, usually requiring invasive measures in the brain or blood, which limits its use. We conducted an analytical validation of the measurement of OT in the saliva of three common farm animal species: pigs, cattle and goats. We then investigated the biological significance of salivary OT concentrations by using a positive human-animal interaction paradigm. The paradigm varied in terms of human familiarity and included a control condition where the animal was alone in the testing pen. A total of 18 pigs, 18 cattle and 9 goats were subjected to each condition using a within-individual counterbalanced design. Animals were free to choose to interact with the human. Saliva samples were collected immediately before and after the 10-min test, and behavior during the test was analyzed. Oxytocin could be reliably measured by ELISA in the saliva of goats (without extraction), and in the saliva of pigs and cattle after extraction. Salivary OT concentration did not change consistently according to testing condition. However, salivary OT concentration was significantly associated with some behaviors, with different relationships depending on the species. In conclusion, OT can be reliably measured in the saliva of goats and, after extraction, in the saliva of pigs and cattle. The relationships of OT with human-animal interactions and animal behavior were complex and to some extent species-dependent, possibly reflecting the perception of the interaction by the animal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Lürzel
- Institute of Animal Welfare Science, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, A-1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Laura Bückendorf
- Institute of Animal Welfare Science, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, A-1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Susanne Waiblinger
- Institute of Animal Welfare Science, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, A-1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jean-Loup Rault
- Institute of Animal Welfare Science, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, A-1210, Vienna, Austria.
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Farmer K, Krüger K, Byrne RW, Marr I. Sensory laterality in affiliative interactions in domestic horses and ponies (Equus caballus). Anim Cogn 2018; 21:631-637. [PMID: 29948296 PMCID: PMC6097077 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-018-1196-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2017] [Revised: 05/14/2018] [Accepted: 06/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Many studies have been carried out into both motor and sensory laterality of horses in agonistic and stressful situations. Here we examine sensory laterality in affiliative interactions within four groups of domestic horses and ponies (N = 31), living in stable social groups, housed at a single complex close to Vienna, Austria, and demonstrate for the first time a significant population preference for the left side in affiliative approaches and interactions. No effects were observed for gender, rank, sociability, phenotype, group, or age. Our results suggest that right hemisphere specialization in horses is not limited to the processing of stressful or agonistic situations, but rather appears to be the norm for processing in all social interactions, as has been demonstrated in other species including chicks and a range of vertebrates. In domestic horses, hemispheric specialization for sensory input appears not to be based on a designation of positive versus negative, but more on the perceived need to respond quickly and appropriately in any given situation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate Farmer
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St. Andrews, St. Mary's Quad, South Street, St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, KY16 9JP, UK.
| | - Konstanze Krüger
- University of Regensburg, Zoology/Evolutionary Biology, Universitaetsstraße 31, 93053, Regensburg, Germany.,Department Equine Economics, Faculty Agriculture, Economics and Management, Nuertingen-Geislingen University, Neckarsteige 6-10, 72622, Nürtingen, Germany
| | - Richard W Byrne
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St. Andrews, St. Mary's Quad, South Street, St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, KY16 9JP, UK
| | - Isabell Marr
- Department Equine Economics, Faculty Agriculture, Economics and Management, Nuertingen-Geislingen University, Neckarsteige 6-10, 72622, Nürtingen, Germany
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Harvey BS, Dudzinski KM, Kuczaj SA. Associations and the role of affiliative, agonistic, and socio-sexual behaviors among common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Behav Processes 2016; 135:145-156. [PMID: 28017847 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2016.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2016] [Revised: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 12/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Little is known about the specific behavioral exchanges that occur on a day-to-day basis between dyads of common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). This study assesses the proportion of time dyads spend in proximity (within ∼2m) and the proportion of time spent in affiliative, agonistic, or socio-sexual contexts within and between age/sex dolphin pairings to better understand their social relationships. Observations of bottlenose dolphins housed at the Roatan Institute of Marine Sciences provided 10.5h of underwater footage from which to examine association coefficients and inter-individual interactions. These data suggest similar patterns to previous studies on bottlenose dolphins: mother-calf dyads shared the highest coefficients of association, followed by male-male, female-female, and male-female dyads. Four classes of association coefficients were defined for the population including low, medium, medium-high and high. This study is the first to quantitatively assess association patterns concurrently with affiliative, agonistic, and socio-sexual behaviors for bottlenose dolphins. The predominant relationships were affiliative.
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Affiliation(s)
- Briana Seay Harvey
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Dr. Hattiesburg, MS, 39406 USA.
| | - Kathleen Maria Dudzinski
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Dr. Hattiesburg, MS, 39406 USA; Dolphin Communication Project, P.O. Box 7485, Port St. Lucie, FL, 34985, USA
| | - Stan Abraham Kuczaj
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Dr. Hattiesburg, MS, 39406 USA
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