Summary The summer body condition of 47 adult feral ponies on Assateague Island (off the coast of Maryland, USA) was assessed in June 1988 using a visual body condition scoring system. Winter body condition for 36 of the ponies was assessed in February and March, 1989. The ponies were categorised by gender, reproductive status and location on the island, and body condition scores of the ponies in each category were then compared by statistical analyses. No significant seasonal differences were found in the body conditions of the ponies. However, body condition of stallions was better than that of mares. Also, lactating mares had lower body condition scores than non‐lactating mares. Finally, in the summer, ponies on the southern part of the island were in better condition than those on the northern end where food and other resources were more limited. Thus gender, reproductive status and habitat, according to the criteria of this study, all had an effect on the body condition of Assateague Island feral ponies, whereas seasonal effects were not evident. Future studies could clarify the correlation between the condition of the mares during the breeding season and birth rate and survival of foals the following spring.

This is a descriptive study of Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification data related to ethical complaints and violations from 1993 to 2006. The authors reviewed complaints filed against certified rehabilitation counselors involving rules from the pre-2001 Code of Ethics and standards in the current code and analyzed the ensuing actions or sanctions. Of the 113 complaints received during this period, 71 were accepted by the commission's Ethics Committee for further review. Of these, violations were found in 36 cases-that is, only 31.9% of cases in which complaints were filed ultimately resulted in actions or sanctions being imposed. Beyond researching the complaints and violations, this study also considers the demographics of the counselors against whom complaints were filed and of the counselors who were found to be in violation of the code.

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