Lecture 19: Species Specific Behaviour Ruminants

Question 1

What are some different kinds of ruminants? How diverse are they?

Answer 1

-6 families >200 species
-Chevrotains aka living fossils (changed much) have short legs around 3kg
-Muskdeer have upper k9 (males) no headgear and musk gland

Question 2

What are ruminant characteristics?

Answer 2

-Multi- chambered stomach
-Dentition
-Cranial appendages (head gear)
-Body variation
-Cursorial locomotion
*keep in mind how this can impact behaviour

Question 3

What is the purpose of multi-chambered stomach?

Answer 3

-4 chambers in ruminants
-Foregut fermenters
-Higher efficiency to digest plant material
-Browsers (leaves roots, shoots), intermediate feeders, grazers (grasses)

Can sometimes switch depending on availability

Question 4

What are the dentition of ruminants?

Answer 4

-Loss of upper incisors
-High prevalence of high-crowned or hypsodant teeth
-Adaptation to herbivore diet

Question 5

What are cranial appendages (head gear)?

Answer 5

-Differ depending on what family looking at

Can take different forms:
-Antlers in Cervidae: exposed living bone- shed and will regenerate
-Horns in Bovidae: permanent, implications how we keep them
-Ossicones in Giraffidae: simplest but biggest unknown since only in giraffes
-Pronghorns in Antilocapridae: covered by skin/hair, keratin sheet

Question 6

How does body variation differ?

Answer 6

Body size range 2-1200kg (depends on age, sex and production, and environment ex giraffe)

Question 7

How does cursorial locomotion (running faster over long period of time) differ?

Answer 7

-Adaptation from forests to opening habits
-Cursorial body plans for rapid/sustained movement

-My notes: Forest–> open space adapted to have rapid/sustained movement

Question 8

TRUE OR FALSE: There are only 9 domesticated species of ruminants?

Answer 8

TRUE
1. European cattle 9. Zebu cattle
2. Sheep
3. Goats
4. Water buffalo
5. Yak
6. Bali Cattle
7. Mithun
8.Raindeer

Question 9

What is the difference in social organization in sheep and goats?

Answer 9

-Gregarious species in small-moderate groups of females and young (different from how we keep on farm)
-Social recognition based on visual, olfactory and auditory
-Males move away when age, and then come back for breeding

Question 10

What are some differences between goats and sheep?

Answer 10

-Sheep use visual cues more, while goats use olfactory signals (often find goats with tail raised)
-Goats sometimes mores aggressive or reactive, and exploratory compared to sheep (goats more likely to attack vs sheep run away)

Question 11

What are different housing systems and how do they influence behaviour?

Answer 11

a) tie stalls- stationary
b) Free-stall-similar but not tired free to move
c) Strawyard
d) compost pack
e) outdoor exercise yard
f) pasture

-Most housing based on single sex, age groups, production level

Note* tie stalls and forestal meant to have alleyway for walking, dedication, bredding are separate to keep clean

Question 12

What system is cow traffic referring to?

Answer 12

-Free stall system rely on cow behaviour
-Based on motivation for feeding and milking

Question 13

TRUE OR FALSE: when lying and rising, not much room is required so dont need to account for that in housing.

Answer 13

FASLE
-do need to account for room that is required for lying and rising

Question 14

What are some patterns of behaviour?

Answer 14

-Rumination, feeding and lying behaviour are ALL related
-4+ hours after feeding rumination peaks
-Rumination accosted with lying down
-Patterns to predict what they will do next
-Lying and ruminating happen at same time)
-Large variation between individuals

Question 15

What are the 2 types of synchronization behaviour?

Answer 15

1. Collective behaviour- individual responds to other animals ‘social facilitation to allelomimicry’ (do some thing, of 1 goes down others go down too)
2. Concurrent responses- individual makes own decision at same time as other animals bc of external or internal factors (rush hour humans, bc external cues not bc saw one person doing it)

Question 16

What animals synchronize their behaviour and why?

Answer 16

Cattle, goats, and sheep
-Decrease pressure of predation
-Increase effectiveness and anti-predation strategies
-Increase social cohesion

-Lying down, foraging, ruminating, walking

Question 17

What are the exceptions of synchronization behaviour?

Answer 17

-Around parturition
-Will try to seclude themselves
-‘Hider’ (goats) vs ‘Follower’ (cow sheep) strategies
-Hider- less synchronization between mother and offspring
-Follower- More synchronization between mother and offspring

Question 18

What are the popular foraging behaviours and what animals correspond to each?

Answer 18

Browsers & grazers (intermediate)-goats
Grazers- Sheep (sometime also considered intermediate), cattle

Question 19

What is the new theory regarding foraging behaviours?

Answer 19

-Argued that browsers & grazers were misleading
-Flexible system of overlapping feeding types based on selectivity

Question 20

What factors impact foraging behaviour?

Answer 20

Impacted by many factors
-Time of the day
-Season/temperature
-Feed availability
-Production system
-Social groups

-Ex pasture was more diurnal rhythm vs fee stalls which was lower but more distinct peaks

Question 21

What is the foraging behaviour of goats?

Answer 21

-‘Eye-level’ feeders (reduce risk of predators, parasite infection
-Can foraging in elevated position (bipedal) to to 2m, 8% of time spent feeding on rear legs
-Kneeling at feed rack (observed in 60-80% of farms

Question 22

What feeder is a goat most likely to access? floor, eye level or high level?

Answer 22

-Least likely to vista floor level feeder
-Eye level is moderate
-Most likely to visit, and displace one another at high level, more motivated

Question 23

What are some points bought up regarding eliminative behaviour?

Answer 23

-Cattle don’t eliminate away from resting areas (pigs, horses)
-Cow was taught to use grass pad but backing up isn’t a natural behaviour

Question 24

How does pasture access affect ruminants?

Answer 24

-Better consumer perceptions (conspired to poultry and pigs that are usually kept inside)
-Cows as motivated to access pasture as to access feed
-Less evidence for preference in goats and sheep
-Benefits to hoof health and lameness recovery
-Free-choice access to pasture cows were less lame than those indoors

Question 25

Should climbing opportunities be provided for goats?

Answer 25

-Suggested to be positive for welfare but lack of opportunity not necessarily negative
-Related to other behaviours (resting on elevated platforms, play behaviour in kids)
-If given the opportunity will climb but will it result in neg welfare dont know

Question 26

What is the function of horns?

Answer 26

-Found in females and males
many functions
-Physical/social status
-Offense/defense
-Self-grooming
-Thermoregulation (heat dissipation)

Question 27

What are the implications on harpooned animals?

Answer 27

-Need more space (greater inter-individual distance)
-Less physical interactions because visual signs/threats before gets physical but greater risks of injuries when physical interactions do occur
-Can disbud or dehorn (cattle, dairy) not recommended in sheep
-Option for selective breeding of polled animals (can tell difference on top of head, polled more rounded peak with ‘cow lick’ vs horned is more square)

Question 28

What are agonistic and affiliative behaviour?

Answer 28

Affiliative: grooming
Agonisitc: more known/ easier to recognize because more consequences (usually negative)

Question 29

What is affiliative behaviour?

Answer 29

Social grooming associated with
-Positive emotions
-Social bonds
-Calming effect
-Improved coat hygiene

Question 30

What is a summary of ruminants?

Answer 30

-Diverse well adapted/widespread
-Main characteristics: multi-chambered stomach, dentition, cranial appendages (head gear), body variation, cursorial locomotion
-Gregarious animals kept in varying housing systems that influence behaviour (but with individual and species-specific differences)