Animal Behavior, Animal Welfare, and the Environment Flashcards
There are two types of animal aggression:
- Interspecies Aggression
- Intraspecies Aggression
Type of aggression that involves a series of behaviors between different species such as a predator attacking its prey, or anti-predatory behaviors. The latter is aggression to protect against a predator.
Interspecies Aggression
Type of aggression that is directed toward other members of the same species.
Intraspecies Aggression
This is where an animal, frequently the male, defends a territory against intruders. This may be a male defending a single female or a group, or “harem,” of females such that the male genes are passed on, or both males and females defend an area to protect sources of feed for themselves
and their off spring.
Territoriality
Social species and group-housed livestock need to maintain stability and reduce the chances of injury to members of the group.
Social hierarchy or “peck order”
One of the earlier uses of chickens was ___________, which is an activity taking advantage of the natural proclivity of roosters to fight.
Cockfighting
TRUE OR FALSE. Feather pecking can lead to the death of the victim and to cannibalism.
True
It can be either physical or psychological.
Stress
Physical stress
- extremes of temperature
- abnormally low blood concentrations of glucose.
Psychologic stress
transportation, a new environment, and being handled with or without pain,
for example, branding in cattle, dehorning in cattle, tail docking in sheep, and castration.
There are a variety of approaches to assess whether an animal is stressed, including the following:
- Behavioral indices
- Plasma concentrations of the adrenal stress hormones cortisol (mammals) and corticosterone (birds)
- Production metrics
- Health indices
- Physiologic indices
Stress in Livestock
Cattle show distinct responses to stress. Painful procedures such as dehorning or branding are accompanied by an increased release of cortisol from the adrenal cortex and increased heart rate. Painful procedures are often associated with kicking behavior. The bedding used for dairy cows affects lesions on the legs, with compost packs being superior to sand beds or waterbeds, which were in turn superior to rubber-filled mattresses.
She was educated at Franklin Pierce College (B.A.), Arizona State University (M.S. in animal science), and the University of Illinois (Ph.D. in animal science). She has written and spoken widely on the subject of autism, a subject
about which she speaks from firsthand knowledge.
Temple Grandin
Stress in Horses
In horses, the concentration of cortisol increases within minutes of a young or middle-aged horse being placed on a treadmill for an exercise test and stays high for at least an hour. No such response is observed in aged horses.
Behavioral indicators of stress in dogs include:
- auto-grooming
- paw lifting
- vocalizing (barking)
- tail wagging and higher posture.
Temperament
Temperament can be evaluated in domestic animals. In cattle, temperament is evaluated in a chute being scored between quiet and calm, and the opposite. Interestingly, cattle that were scored as more tranquil grew faster than those that were more agitated. This is consistent with the growth-impairing effects of the stress hormone cortisol not being as pronounced in more tranquil cattle.
____________ is heat production in a thermoneutral environment at rest and at least 12 hours after the previous meal. Body temperature is measured as deep or core temperature because the temperature at the surface or periphery varies.
Basal metabolic rate
___________ is an endogenous rhythm (within an animal) with a periodicity of about 24 hours. It is entrained to exactly 24 hours by environmental factors such as the light-dark cycle.
Circadian rhythm
____________ is heat lost because of the evaporation of water. It requires 539 cal to evaporate 1g of water compared with 100 cal to heat the same amount of water from 0°C to 100°C.
Evaporative heat loss
____________ is a temporary increase in the body temperature of a person or animal about the set point range due usually to infectious disease.
Fever
____________ is a behavior that increases the chances that the male will pass on its genes to as many offspring as possible.
The Coolidge effect
____________ is when the temperature of an animal goes above the set point because of extremes of heat and the inability of the
physiologic thermoregulatory processes to cope fully.
Heat stress
______________ maintain their body temperatures within narrow ranges because of thermoregulation.
Homeotherms
is when the core body temperature decreases below the normal range.
Hypothermia
