"Salivary and fecal cortisol as measures of stress in horses" — comparison of collection methods.
Valid measures of stress are needed in horses to determine over-all stress levels and to identify stress triggers, used to ensure management is kept within the animals’ ability to cope and welfare is not compromised. Levels of circulating cortisol reflect HPA-axis activity, and excretion into saliva and faeces allow non-invasive sampling. We validated an enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) for horse salivary and faecal cortisol and validated these as indicators of acute and over-all stress levels in riding horses.