Species Focus Flashcards
Describe the social organisation of cattle in the wild.
- Naturally gregarious, live in herds of varying sizes
- Standard grouping – cows with calves, heifers, young bulls
- Larger herds may contain some adult bulls
- Bulls generally live separately from groups
- Bulls may defend specific areas free range
- Bulls interact with cow-calf groups for mating
Describe the social organisation of farmed cattle.
- Dairy: all adult and all juvenile female groups
- Beef suckler: mix of cows, calves, a few bulls during breeding season. Most natural
- Finishing beef herds: only steers or mix
What is the result of isolation in cattle and why?
Because they are naturally gregarious, living in herds, and are prey animals, stress indicators rise if they are isolated: heart rate, vocalisations, defecation and cortisol all increase.
What relationships and interactions do dairy cows form?
Form dominant-subordinate relationships that regulate access to limited/preferred resources without escalating aggression.
- Aggressive interactions are common when unfamiliar cows are mixed in and new dominance relationships are established, for example, for access to feeder spaces and cubicles.
- Social interactions are affiliative or agonistic
- Agonistic interaction regulate access to resources, re-affirm dominance relationships, such as head-head pushing at trough regulates access to feed.
- Affiliative interactions reinforce social bonds and stabilise social relationships, such as licking (allogrooming) in grooming partnerships.
What does competition for feeder space result in in dairy cows?
- Most agonistic behaviour in barn will be around feeders
- The % of time spent at feeder is related to dominance, with high rankers in the herd with the most feeding time
- Competitive success at feeder us positively corelated to milk yield
What is the purpose of foot baths in dairy cow farms?
- We foot bathe cows to reduce incidence of lameness caused by infectious disease (digital dermatitis and foul in the foot)
- Add a disinfectant solution to foot bath to reduce incidence of treponemes and dicholobacter
What substances can be used in the foot baths?
Formalin
Copper sulphate
Zinc sulphate
Commercial preparations
What do cows do not like?
Loud noises
Strong smells
Big steps
Tight corners
Croner they cannot see around
Shadows/dark areas
Slippery floors
Being alone
What do cows like?
Light airy spaces
Calm environment
Routine
Gentle curves
Safe flooring (non-slip)
To be part of a herd
To be within a stable social group
What are the characteristics of foot baths in order for them to be effective?
Length – long enough for all 4 feet to step in but not too long that cows defecate in it
Depth – deep enough for feet to be fully submerged but not so deep that a large step is needed
Good cow flow – cows walk through without hesitation and without getting stressed
Management – easy to fill, empty and clean
Flooring – not slippery
Why do dairy cows need to lie down?
- Cows need rest – they are highly performing animals
- Up to 30% more blood flows to udder when lying down
- Reduce incidence of lameness
- Allow more space in feed passages
What are the consequences of overstocking in dairy herds?
Subordinate cows are most likely to suffer
Reduced lying time
Increased lameness
Increased cortisol
Decreased growth hormone
Which beddings, most to least, do dairy cows prefer?
Deep sand
Mattresses
Water beds
Concrete with straw
What might it mean if dairy cows have lesions on the knees and hocks?
Bedding may be abrasive and or/not deep enough. Cubicles may not be long enough or wide enough for cows to lay down comfortably. The aim is to have less than 10% damaged hocks or other lesions.
Why do dairy cows use brushes?
Scratching/grooming for coat care
Being groomed = allogrooming. Happens in affiliative partnerships, reduces stress – possibly through oxytocin release
What are the potential risks of dairy cows using brushes?
Increased competition
Injury if not well maintained (low risk)
Describe social behaviour in wild sheep.
- Herbivorous prey species
- Naturally gregarious – in small groups for predator protection
- Matrifocal groups
- Daughters learn from mothers about distribution of food, water, shelter and other resources
Describe social behaviour in farmed sheep.
- Breed differences in home range sizes, social group sizes, and strength of social attachments.
- More highly selected/domesticated breeds, for higher tolerance for high density, such as Suffolk and Texel.
What is following behaviour in sheep?
Movement in single file following leader. Most dominant animal towards front, rarely leads.
What is agonistic behaviour in sheep?
Rare. Subtle behaviours to maintain dominance relationships, such as resting chin to displace.
What is social recognition in sheep?
Use visual and olfactory cues. Can recognise and remember more than 50 individuals by faces.
What are the foraging and feeding behaviour in sheep?
Well adapted to harsh climatic conditions and can use wide variety of food sources, including seaweed, lichen and cacti. They are grazers.
What is sheep maternal behaviour?
- In the wild: withdrawal from group into remate/sheltered/rugged terrain to reduce predation risk and increase bonding uninterrupted by other.
- Domestic: depends on breed and space provided.
- Followers, not hiders
- Selective attachment between ewe and lamb formed less than an 1h after birth.
- Maternal recognition grows by small, sounds and sight.
- Licking in first 6hours (lamb dry)
What are the key points for sheep management and welfare?
- Prey species: social isolation causes stress. Use of buddies recommended.
- Breed differences: differences in social and maternal behaviour between extensive and intensive systems/breeds
- In extensive systems: increased stress at handling, but sheep can learn handling is harmless or threatening.
What are the factors affecting behaviour in dogs?
- Species and breed effects
- Individual differences
- Epigenetics – modulated by environment
- Learning
- Physiological or pathological changes
How does learning affect behaviour in dogs?
- Occurs right through life but is particularly sensitive as a puppy
- Associated between events
- Directs individual towards important aspects of their environment
- Sensitive periods for learning in different developmental stages
How do physiological and pathological changes affect behaviour in dogs?
- Influence perception of environment
- Processing of sensory information
- Decision making
- Ability to show behaviour
Describe the ancestral species of the modern dog.
- Also a common ancestor with the modern grey wolf
- Wolves hunt large prey co-operatively in groups
- Highly social – family group structure
- Groups maintain specific territories
Describe how dogs were domesticated.
- First species to be domesticated 100,000 years ago
- Help with herding, hunting, guarding
- Subsequent selection of breeds – 0.5-90kg, Kennel Club founded in 1873
Describe the modern dog as a consequence of domestication.
- Human control of reproductive activity and selection of specific traits
- Dog is behaviourally very different from wolf
How did dominance previously explain dog behaviour?
- Dominance is a quality of an established relationship between individuals
- It is not a description of an individual animal
- Not an inherited trait
- Not a motivation to show behaviour
What are the misunderstandings about dog behaviour?
Early research on captive wolf populations showed an apparently ‘pyramidal’ structure with high levels of aggression and interpreted individuals competing for social status.
Applied to relationships between dogs and between dogs and humans.
What are the consequences of misunderstandings about dogs?
These assumptions are wrong because subsequent research changed ideas about wolf behaviour, showing them as co-operative family groups with a reproductive strategy based on high investment into offspring. Misinterpreting dominance has an impact on dog welfare because how dog behaviour is interpreted influences how people behave with their dogs.
How are wolf and dog social behaviour similar?
- Highly social
- Motivated to maintain contact with social group
- Able to show and read complex visual signalling
How is dog social behaviour different from wolf social behaviour?
- No co-operative hunting or rearing of young
- No restriction of mating
- No fixed structure in groups
- Fluid relationships between each pair
How do social relationships in dogs develop?
- Interactions between each pair of animals
- Develop through learning about each other in different contexts and resources available (one dog may be more dominant over food but the other may be more dominant over frisbees)
What is early learning in the dog?
Social skills: learning about the social signalling of other group members occurs extensively in the socialisation and juvenile periods of development.
Describe possible interactions between dogs.
- Associate specific cues shown by other dogs with consequences
- Some may generalise to all dogs, such as play bows
- Some associations may be specific to particular type of dog and/or situations, such as large male dogs that are tense
Describe olfaction in the dog.
- Very important sense, particularly social communication
- Up to 300 million receptors and humans have 5 million receptors
- Information that humans unaware of such as pheromonal communication
- Scent glands located all over the body
- Independent nostrils are directional
- Wet noses capture scent particles
Describe hearing in the dog.
- Hear a wide range of human frequencies of 40-60,000 Hz, while humans have 20-20,000 Hz
- 18 or more muscles control the dog pinna
- Allows dog to finely tine the position of ear canal to localise a sound and hear it more accurately from father away
- There are breed differences, with upright ears being better
Describe vision in the dog.
- Fewer cone receptors, and are red-green colour blind as a result
- Wider field of vision of 240 degrees
- Less sharp images, as the visual acuity that a dog sees at 20 ft is similar to what a human would see at 75 ft.
- Tapetum allows better vision in low light.
Describe ears as visual signals in the dog.
- Wide variety of sizes and shapes
- Forward and pricked: alert, interested and confident
- Back or to the side: anxious
- Fully back/flattened against head: fearful
- Ears changing position: unsure
Describe the eyes as visual signals in the dog.
- Direction of gaze: direct stare (facial expression?), averted to side, averted looking down
- Vary in shape and size: open wide/closed can indicate fear/pain
- Pupil dilation
Describe the mouth as a visual signal in dogs.
- Relaxed: lips covering teeth
- Yawning: tired or anxious?
- Panting: play, exertion or stress response
- Lip licking: hungry/appeasement
- Lips retracted, exposing teeth: snarl/grin
Describe a dog’s visual signals in response to a threat.
Preliminary aggressive threat: ears back, direct stare, lips are pulled over her teeth
More serious threat: muzzle extends forward and giving a low growl
Even more serious threat: wrinkled muzzle to expose front teeth, growling loudly, preparing to lung forward and attack
Describe the tail position as a visual signal in the dog.
Wagging: stiff/relaxed
Breed differences: curl over in pug and naturally tucked in whippet
Describe the body as a visual signal in the dog.
- Ridged/relaxed
- Leaning forward ready to lunge
- Weight on back legs (uncertain)
- Low/cowering
- Paw lifting – uncertain
- Piloerection
- Roll over – can be relaxed and want affection but may be appeasement roll in defence so dog can get up quickly
- Bow – willingness to play
Describe the body language and visual signals of a relaxed/contended dog.
- Relaxed body posture
- Weight spread equally
- Head level
- Facial muscles relaxed
- Mouth closed or slightly open with corners turned slightly upwards (‘smile’)
- Eyes averted slightly to side
- Tail waves level with body back from side to die or in a circle
Describe the body language and visual signals of an excited/aroused dog.
- Head held high
- Stiffer/faster wagging of tail
- Higher tail position
- Hackles raised
- Tense body posture
How are unfamiliar dogs introduced?
- Meet offset/side to side to avoid direct facing
- On/off lead? Long line?
- What if they become tense?
- 3 second rule – pull away after 3 seconds as situation is unlikely to be resolved
What are the applications to domestic environments in dogs?
- Puppies need to be socialised
- Can learn negative associations as easily as positive ones
- Controlled and careful introductions
- Interactions with people – same process
- Learn species facial, vocal, scent cues that predict an important outcomes, for example, angry voice, dilated pupils might predict punishment and baby voice and a smile predict award.
- Misunderstanding canine social signals
