title: Right-nostril use during sniffing at arousing stimuli produces higher cardiac activity in jumper horses.
abstract: Lateralization in horses, Equus caballus, has been reported at both motor and sensory levels. Here we investigated left- and right-nostril use in 12 jumper horses freely sniffing different emotive stimuli. Results revealed that during sniffing at adrenaline and oestrus mare urine stimuli, horses showed a clear right-nostril bias while just a tendency in the use of the right nostril was observed during sniffing of other odours (food, cotton swab and repellent). Sniffing at adrenaline and urine odours was also accompanied by increasing cardiac activity and behavioural reactivity strengthening the role of the right hemisphere in the analysis of intense emotion and sexual behaviour.
authors: a Department of Veterinary Medicine , University of Bari "Aldo Moro" , Bari , Italy.
authors: Marcello
authors: M
authors: Siniscalchi
authors: Barbara
authors: B
authors: Padalino
authors: Lydiane
authors: L
authors: Aubé
authors: Angelo
authors: A
authors: Quaranta
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D006736:Horses / Q000502:physiology* / Q000652:urine; D008297:Male; D009666:Nose / Q000502:physiology*; D009812:Odorants; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology*; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D004837:Epinephrine
keywords: Cardiac activity; Horse (Equus caballus); Lateralization; Olfaction; Physiology