The importance of emotional health Flashcards
What factors make up the health triad?
Physical
Cognitive
Emotional
Give 4 positive emotional motivations
- Desire seeking
- Social play
- Lust
- Care
Give 4 negative emotional motivations
- Frustration
- Fear-anxiety
- Pain
- Panic-grief
What is the purpose of positive and negative emotions?
Positive emotions drive an animal to engage/interact with something
Negative emotions are protective
What is the desire seeking system?
Motivates the animal to move to places where they have more potential of finding and consuming resources needed for survival
What are some clinical behaviour examples of desire seeking in puppies and kittens?
Eating
Sleeping
Resting
Playing
What are some clinical examples of desire seeking problem behaviour?
Fridge raiding
Counter surfing
Chasing other species
Scratching
What is the fear anxiety system?
Relates to the preservation of comfort provided by the predictable access to essential resources and the management of threats
Helps animals to avoid dangers - more adaptive to feel fear
What are some clinical examples of fear anxiety in puppies and kittens?
- First vets visit
- Encountering a new species
- Human approach
What are some clinical examples of fear-anxiety related problem behaviour?
Snarling, hiding
Retreating behaviour
Avoidance
What are the fear anxiety strategies designed to achieve?
- Take the animal away from the stimulus
- Move the stimulus away from the animal
- Limit damage that can be caused by the stimulus
What is the pain system?
Related to the maintenance of body integrity and function - response to the environmental stimuli which are related to actual or potential tissue damage
Pain is related to which other negative emotion?
Fear-anxiety (protection of the physical body)
What is the lust system?
Organises the specific reproductive needs, ranging from the attraction or the selection of a partner through courtship to any potential bond to mating with a sexual partner
What does the lust system lead to behaviour-wise?
Social interaction of a sexual nature - engaging, approach and interaction
What are some examples of canine lust related problem behaviour?
- Marking with urine to communicate sexual status
- Mounting behaviour
- Interest in scent leading to lack of recall
- Tension between animals in a household
What is the care system?
Dedicated to maintain the bonds to the individual offspring through recognisable parental care
Give an example of canine care related problem behaviour
False pregnancy – hormonal influence on nurturing behaviour with no offspring to care for – combination of care and frustration
When is the panic-grief system activated?
When the ones receiving nurturing care are separated from their source of nurturing
What is the panic grief system?
Safeguarding of the survival of young and therefore the protection of the genetic survival of the species
What are clinical examples of panic-grief behaviour in puppies and kittens?
Vocalisation
Seeking nurture
Give clinical examples of panic (grief) - related canine problem behaviour
Chewing doors
Howling
Watching through window
What is the social play system?
Gives information to individuals about their own social competence and potential in relation to others
How is the social play system intraspecific?
Relates to action within your own species - leads to interaction through tactile play
What is a main benefit of the social play system?
Allows a threat to be rehearsed – behaviours displayed are often threatening, individuals are learning to respond to threat appropriately – need to have an environment in which participants are secure so there is not a fear response initiated – communication essential
What are some clinical examples of social play related problem behaviour?
- Human attemps at social play with dogs and cats – miscommunication, lack of correct signals, context of play not set
- Within different breeds - canine world
- Age differences
How does social play behaviour differ in kittens vs adult cats?
Cats are not socially obligate so once they become socially mature (at 2-3 years of age), the motivation for social play is diminished, can cause conflict between kittens and adult cats
What acts as triggers for the frustration system?
Failure to meet expectations, obtain recourses of retain control
Failure to be able to respond to an emotional motivation successfully
Which system intensifies and accelerates behavioural responses?
Frustration system
Why does the frustration system lead to confrontational behaviours?
When animals do not have control over a situation, when they are irritated or restrained
What are some clinical examples of frustration related problem behaviour?
- Toy withdrawal leading to barking, jumping up
- Wanting to go on walks, eat, play, etc
- Pulling on leads: can’t fulfil desire-seeking or social play
- Cats - bird feeder outside the window
In behavioural medicine what are the most important emotions in terms of developing clinical concerns?
o Pain
o Frustration
o Fear (Anxiety)
o Panic (Grief)
Which emotions are less likely to be problematic unless they are coupled with frustration?
o Social Play
o Lust
o Seeking (Desire)
o Care
