20.500.12556/RUL-169129 Exploring the impact of housing routine on lying behavior in horses measured with triaxial accelerometer Introduction: Methods to assess the positive behavior of horses in relation to their environment can be used to provide information to enhance animal welfare. One of the most important experiences that can be observed in mammals is sleep, a universal behavior relevant for the welfare of all species. To achieve paradoxical sleep, horses must lie down in lateral recumbency for a sufficient time, but they only do so when feeling safe and comfortable. Recently, technological tools like accelerometers have opened the possibility of non-invasive continuous monitoring of lying behavior, thus implementing the way we assess equine behavior in relation to their management and environment. Methods: The aim of this study was to investigate whether a sudden change in housing routine affects lying behavior in horses. In 10 riding school horses, lying behavior was continuously monitored using triaxial accelerometers for two separate 5-day periods, each under a different housing routine (i.e., ordinary: in a paddock in small groups; modified: in single boxes). Results: The results show no statistical differences in the total daily duration of lying behavior between ordinary (25.19 ± 21.81 min) and modified (23.16 ± 20.05 min) housing routines. However, in the ordinary housing routine, when horses were kept outdoors in groups of varying sizes, larger groups exhibited synchronized lying behavior, with longer lying bouts, while smaller groups lay down more frequently throughout the day. Discussion: The results show that sudden change in housing routine does not have a significant effect on lying behavior, while group size appears to be an important factor for behavioral synchronization. However, the small sample size, the single location, and mixed-age and sex population may have influenced the findings. Accelerometers were shown to be beneficial for monitoring natural behaviors such as lying and thus inferring information about equine behavior in relation to daily routine management. horse lying accelerometer positive welfare animal-based measure konji uhlevitev etologija obnašanje živali počivanje spanje ležanje dobrobit živali metode trosmerni pospeškomer true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2025-05-14 04:01:20 2025-05-16 15:27:21 2025-05-20 09:59:36 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2025 0 0 9 str. art. 1572051 Vol. 12 2025 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 636.1:591.5 2297-1769 10.3389/fvets.2025.1572051 235660035 RAZ_Gobbo_Elena_2025.pdf RAZ_Gobbo_Elena_2025.pdf 1 FE9764B512FCC359AC84A171764544FA 92e0d00c7751b8076bb8ca70ab7a64cc24d570dff72740ae047ad7e761f3544d 0bd96f07-3258-11f0-b232-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=210412 https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2025.1572051/full 1 1d985bd2-3066-11f0-b232-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=210308 Biotehniška fakulteta 0 0 0