ANIMAL WELFARE (Companion Animal Handling) Flashcards
Distant exam:
-don’t approach the animals right away
-increases safety
-improves animal comfort
-decreases fear, anxiety, and stress
-allows time to build a relationship with the owner
Facial expression:
-look at their face, it tells you everything
Dog body language:
*eyes, ears, tail
Relaxed
-tail down
-ears up
-mouth open
Interested:
-wider eyes
-mouth is closed
-tail straight out
Thresholds and intensities:
-behavioural threshold
-emotional threshold
Very high arousal:
-reactivity
-threatening warnings (growl, snarl, lunge)
-escape movements
High arousal:
-displacement (multiple, clustering)
-conflict behaviours
Low arousal:
-normal behaviour
Ladder of aggression:
*not reliable to use, but helps to understand the progression
-if dog takes each step, only 0.2s between each step
-if intensity of stress/threat matters: STEPS CAN BE SKIPPED
Displacement behaviours:
-unconscious behaviour
-normal behaviours out of context
-because they are normal, we tend to miss them
Displacement behaviours questions:
-are they normal but out of place?
-are they repetitive?
-is there more than one?
-context repeatable?
Conflict behaviour:
-I am unsure
-I want it but I don’t want it
Examples of conflict behaviour:
-wants the cookie, but not the human (lip lick, slow motion)
-barking (stay away) and wagging tail (I want to interact)
Body language of fear in dogs:
-slight and major cowering
-more subtle signs of fear and anxiety
More subtle signs of fear and anxiety:
-liking lips
-panting
-brows furrowed, ears to side
-moving in slow motion
-acting sleeping or yawing
-hypervigilant
-suddenly wont eat
-moving away
-pacing
Feline later of aggression:
-understand the steps they go though
-they go through the steps much faster
Body language of feline anxiety:
-slight crouching
-major crouching
Subtle signs of fear and anxiety: cats
-dilated eyes
-ears turned back, furrowed brow
-staring, focused on object
-hiding, looks half asleep
-laying on side, tail flicking
-hair raised
-walking with flat back, tail and head down
-ready to jump off perch
-suddenly grooming, excessive grooming
Displacement behaviour in cats:
-less in cats
>lip licking
>grooming out of no where
Set the stage
-comfortable environment
-handlers and positions to remain more calm and cooperative
>quite
>non-slippery flooring/tables
Pheromones
-physiologic and behavioural effects on animals of the same species
-Dog Appeasing pheromone (Adaptil)
-Feline facial pheromone analogue (Feliway)
Dog appeasing pheromone (Adaptil):
-reduces barking amplitude, restlessness, sniffing behaviour
-calmed, but not reduced struggling before venous catheterization
-stress reduction during vet visits
Location preferences:
-large dog: prefer the floor
-small dogs: feel less threatened on the table
-cats: prefer to be up high or hide
Principles of restraint:
-be organized
-wait until the pet is relaxed before starting
-encourage calm behaviour (provide distractions)
-minimal restraint (use food)
-towel wraps for cats
Restraint:
-most prefer least amount necessary
-use your hands and body to control movement
-move deliberately and slowly
-maintain constant touch if possible
-adjust handling based on patient’s needs
*consistent touch
If patient struggles for more than 3s (dogs), 1-2s (cats) or struggles repeatedly:
-fix your technique
-switch restraint position
-get assistance
-try chemical restraint
-ask: is it a must or a want?
In hospital training:
-desensitization and counter conditioning
>send home a counter conditioning plan
-sedation: pre-visit medication
