Animal Management
Veterinary Medical Applications
c5B
Whether it's a dog barking
a warning, a cat arching its
back, or crickets chirping,
animals are constantly
sending messages to each
other.
Animal Communication
• Like humans, animals use body language to
communicate.
• Can you think of some examples of animals
communicating?
• Many animals use sound as
a medium for
communication as well.
Some animals use sounds
that are out of the range of
human hearing (20-20,000
hertz).
• Elephants for example use
low pitch sounds to
communicate with other
herds up to ten miles away.
• Dolphins and whales also
use sound to communicate,
singing elaborate songs that
are an important part of
their social networks.
• On the other hand, some
animals come close to
mimicking human language.
• Parrots can mime the voice and
speech of humans, while
gorillas can learn many of the
complexities of human sign
language.
• One gorilla named Koko,
combines signs to make new
words and uses them routinely
to ask for food and water or
express her emotions. She is
even able to understand human
speech and to respond
accordingly.
Communication
• Human-animal communication is easily observed in everyday
life.
• The interactions between pets and their owners, for example,
reflect a form of spoken, while not necessarily verbal,
dialogue.
Terms to know:
• Behavior- the actions or reactions of an
animal under a given set of circumstances
• Conditioning- training to cause a response in
specific manner to a specific stimulus
• Ethology- the study of animal behavior in a
natural environment or habitat
Terms to Know:
• Temperament- the manner in
which a particular animal
behaves and reacts to
various stimuli
• Husbandry- the careful
management and care of an
animal or group of animals
• Psychotropic- A drug that
affects the mind, emotions,
or behavior.
Breed Identification:
• Being able to identify common breeds of animals
is useful because each breed has it’s own unique
traits that can be used to determine behavior and
disease patterns
• Breed ID is only a general guideline of how each
individual animal will behave.
Breeds Identification Project:
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Cattle
Swine
Goats
Lambs
Dogs
Cats
Lizards
Snakes
Birds
Fish
Rabbits
Behavior and Communication
• The study of animal behavior in a natural
environment is called ethology
• Learning to understand animal behavior is an
important part of animal husbandry
• A trained person can recognize an animal in
distress by its abnormal posture or vocalizations
• Vets use their knowledge of animal behavior as a
tool
Communication
• Animals communicate using:
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Auditory
visual signals
Olfactory
tactile senses
Types of Communication
• What do the following terms mean??
– Auditory
– Olfactory
– Tactile
– Visual
• http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/po
dcasts/show/2005.12.11/
Auditory
• Animals use sounds to communicate
• Animals vocalize when disturbed, distressed or
hungry
• Group interactions and relationships are maintained
through sound
• Mothers identify their offspring through distinctive
auditory signals
Olfactory
• Breath odor, urine, feces and body odor play a role in
olfactory communication
• Individual odor recognition and release of
pheromones trigger immediate behaviors
• Use the scent of their urine to mark territory
boundaries
Tactile
• Touch is used in social bonding,
infant care, grooming, courtship
and mating
• Mutual grooming helps to solidify
and promote bonding
Visual
• Visual messages may be communicated by a
variety of means such as color, posture, shape
or movement.
• Visual signals are made by the ears, eyes, tail
and general posture of an animal
Aggressive Threat
• Behavior is shown by the pack leader or dominate
dog when approaching another individual
Active Submissive
• Behavior shown by a
dog to approach a more
dominant individual
• Exhibited by dogs other
more active animals
Passive Submission
• Behavior shown by a dog
that feels it has no other
choice or be attacked
– Ears flattened against head
– Makes no eye contact
– Rolls on side to reveal
stomach and genitals
– Front legs bent and hanging
limply in the air
– Tail tucked tightly to body
– May also urinate
Play Initiation
• Behavior frequently seen in puppies,
but may also be exhibited by older dogs
– Ears raised, mouth opened in a relaxed grin
– Lowers front half of body in a “bowing” posture
– Tail wags and sometimes entire hindquarters
– may nudge or paw individual or present with a toy
Behavior Factors
• Do animals have emotions?
• Are the psychological needs of animals the
same as humans?
• Should human values be imposed on animals?
• These moral and ethical viewpoints are
constantly debated…
Human/Animal Connection
• Human and animals are connected spiritually, economically,
and ethically
• Humans have a responsibility for the humane care of pets,
zoo, and farm and lab animals
• Factors that influence behavior may include:
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Genetics
Health
Environment
Handling of animals
• These factors impact the physical, mental, and emotional
well-being of an animal
• The physiological changes such as anorexia, depression or
aggression
Environment
• The immediate physical surroundings of the
animal including:
– Cleanliness
– Temperature
– Humidity
– lightning and noise
– human contact and social interaction
– enclosure size
Health
• An animal’s state of physical and mental
health can contribute to abnormal behavior.
• Animals in pain or poor health may be more
aggressive
• Surgical procedures such as castration and
spaying are used to reduce aggression and
roaming
• Psychotropic drugs can be used to reduce
fears and anxieties, depression or aggression
Experience
• The way an animal is raised affects it’s behavior
• Early enrichment and exposure to common situations should
be encouraged
• Can you explain the term “imprinting?”
Genetics
• Genetics play a role in basic
temperament and behavioral
characteristics
• Animal breeders have long
recognized the heritability of
basic temperaments in familial
lines
• Many aspects of animal behavior
are also affected by evolution
• Dogs exhibit behaviors shaped by
their wolf ancestors
• Comparative studies have shown
that there are breed and species
differences in learning ability
Basic Training Theories
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Positive Reinforcement
Negative Reinforcement
Punishment
Extinction
Can you compare and contrasts these techniques?
Positive Reinforcement
• Correct behavior is rewarded with a pleasant stimulus.
• Example: dog is told to sit, it sits, dog receives treat
within 3 to 5 seconds
• Owner can also reinforce unwanted behavior with
positive reinforcement
– Allowing dog to come inside when barding encourages barking
– Allowing begging, stealing, and jumping on people encourages
these behaviors
– Showing excitement or even mild punishment can be a reward if
dog is getting attention
Negative Reinforcement
• **NOT PUNISHMENT**
• Animal escapes or avoids an unpleasant
stimulus by performing a behavior
• Example; using a choke collar to make dog sit,
dog avoids tightening collar by sitting
• Fear-biting is negatively reinforced.
• Person approaches (negative stimulus) dog
bites, person back away removing the
negative stimulus and rewarding the dog
Punishment
• The presentation of a negative stimulus
immediately following a behavior that serves
to decrease the probability that the behavior
will be repeated
• This is the most over-used and abusing
behavior modification technique
• *Punishment after the fact is not affective**
Extinction
• Removal of positive reinforcement
• Example- ignoring a barking dog
• This behavior may increase for a while, but
eventually the barking will stop
• The trick is that you must outlast the dog
• This is one of the most effective techniques,
but is difficult to implement correctly
Homework
• In 350 words or more, discuss some of
the ways in which animals
communicate
• Discuss the reasons and techniques
behind their communication and how
their communication with each other
differs from their communication with
man
• Consider: hunger, territory, mating
desire, illness etc…