-
Factors affecting the Human Attribution of Emotions toward Animals
Contributor(s):: Wilkins, Abbie M., McCrae, Lucy S., McBride, E. Anne
Attribution of emotions to animals can affect human–animal interactions and dictate animal welfare laws. However, little is known about the factors that influence these attributions. We investigated the effect of belief in animal mind, pet ownership, emotional intelligence, eating orientation,...
-
Zoo visitor effect on mammal behaviour: Does noise matter?
Contributor(s):: Quadros, Sandra, Goulart, Vinicius D. L., Passos, Luiza, Vecci, Marco A. M., Young, Robert J.
The zoo visitor effect is the change in animal behaviour and physiology in response to the presence of a viewing public. It is thought to result from, amongst other things, visitor generated sound (i.e., noise), but this hypothesis has never been explicitly tested. We tested this hypothesis...
-
Which measures of acceleration best estimate the duration of locomotor play by dairy calves?
Contributor(s):: Luu, John, Johnsen, Julie Føske, Passillé, Anne Marie de, Rushen, Jeffrey
Measures of acceleration have been used as automated measures of the locomotor play of calves. We examined which measures of acceleration were best correlated with locomotor play and how the sampling rate of the accelerometer affected the correlations. Accelerometers were attached to 30 6–7...
-
The visitor effect in petting zoo-housed animals: Aversive or enriching?
Contributor(s):: Farrand, Alexandra, Hosey, Geoff, Buchanan-Smith, Hannah M.
Two studies were carried out on the effect of visitors on mixed-breed goats, llama, and Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs housed in a petting zoo display within a safari park. In the first study we investigated the effect of the presence and density of visitors on the animals’ behaviour and in the...
-
Using qualitative behaviour assessment to explore the link between stockperson behaviour and dairy calf behaviour
Contributor(s):: Ellingsen, Kristian, Coleman, Grahame J., Lund, Vonne, Mejdell, Cecilie M.
Dairy farming usually implies close and frequent contact between the stockperson and the animals. A good human–animal relationship (HAR) is therefore essential for good animal welfare. To fully understand the quality of the HAR both the stockperson behaviour and the animals’ reaction to the...
-
Temperamental turkeys: Reliability of behavioural responses to four tests of fear
Contributor(s):: Erasmus, Marisa, Swanson, Janice
Open field (OF), tonic immobility (TI), voluntary approach (VA) and novel object (NO) tests are used to assess fear responses, activity levels and coping styles of poultry. Fear tests are also used as part of welfare assessment programmes. Little is known about fear responses of turkeys....
-
Sward botanical composition and sward quality affect the foraging behaviour of free-range laying hens
Contributor(s):: Breitsameter, Laura, Gauly, Matthias, Isselstein, Johannes
In a two-year experiment, we investigated the influence of sward plant species composition (sward type), stocking duration and state of sward degradation on the foraging behaviour of chickens. Laying hens (ISA Warren) were pastured on 15 sward types including 14 monocultures of grassland plant...
-
Sleeping tight or hiding in fright? The welfare implications of different subtypes of inactivity in mink
Contributor(s):: Meagher, Rebecca K., Campbell, Dana L. M., Dallaire, Jamie Ahloy, Díez-León, María, Palme, Rupert, Mason, Georgia J.
Effects of sub-optimal housing on inactivity vary across species and experiments, probably because inactivity is heterogeneous, reflecting both positive states (e.g. relaxation) and negative ones (e.g. fear). We therefore aimed to identify specific subtypes of inactivity that could indicate poor...
-
Responses of conventional pigs and Göttingen miniature pigs in an active choice judgement bias task
Contributor(s):: Murphy, Eimear, Nordquist, Rebecca E., van der Staay, Franz Josef
Pigs are commonly kept in intensive farming systems. Their use as model animals in biomedical research has increased. Both conditions may impact upon their welfare. Recent definitions of welfare emphasize the importance of emotion. Mood congruent biases in judgement have been proposed as proxy...
-
Rescued goats at a sanctuary display positive mood after former neglect
Contributor(s):: Briefer, Elodie F., McElligott, Alan G.
Moods influence cognitive processes in that people in positive moods expect more positive events to occur and less negative ones (“optimistic bias”), whereas the opposite happens for people in negative moods (“pessimistic bias”). The evidence for an effect of mood on cognitive bias is also...
-
Playful handling as social enrichment for individually- and group-housed laboratory rats
Contributor(s):: Cloutier, Sylvie, Baker, Chelsea, Wahl, Kim, Panksepp, Jaak, Newberry, Ruth C.
Social housing is recommended for laboratory rats because they are highly social mammals but research constraints or medical issues often demand individual housing and, when social housing is practiced, it typically involves housing with only one or two conspecifics. We hypothesized that playful...
-
Play behavior as an indicator of animal welfare: Disbudding in dairy calves
Contributor(s):: Mintline, Erin M., Stewart, Mairi, Rogers, Andrea R., Cox, Neil R., Verkerk, Gwyneth A., Stookey, Joseph M., Webster, James R., Tucker, Cassandra B.
Play behavior may be reduced during negative experiences (e.g. pain) and serve as an indicator of animal welfare. To test this, the effects of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and a local anesthetic (LA) on dairy calf play behavior and wound sensitivity of calves after hot-iron...
-
Novelty exploration, baseline cortisol level and fur-chewing in farm mink with different intensities of stereotypic behaviour
Contributor(s):: Svendsen, Pernille M., Palme, Rupert, Malmkvist, Jens
The present study aimed to examine the extent to which abnormal behaviours, stereotypic behaviour and fur-chewing, commonly used indicators of reduced welfare, are interrelated and linked to other welfare indicators in mink. Three groups were used based on behavioural observations, mink with no...
-
The naked truth: Breeding performance in nude mice with and without nesting material
Contributor(s):: Gaskill, Brianna N., Winnicker, Christina, Garner, Joseph P., Pritchett-Corning, Kathleen R.
In laboratories, mice are housed at ambient temperatures between 20 and 24°C, which is below their lower critical temperature of 30°C, but comfortable for human workers. Thus, mice are under chronic thermal stress, which can compromise many aspects of physiology from metabolism to pup growth....
-
A multi-enclosure study investigating the behavioural response of meerkats to zoo visitors
Contributor(s):: Sherwen, Sally L., Magrath, Michael J. L., Butler, Kym L., Phillips, Clive J. C., Hemsworth, Paul H.
The scientific literature indicates that visitors may affect both the behaviour and welfare of zoo animals. Captive born slender-tailed meerkats, Suricata suricatta, at three exhibits were studied under two treatments (1) unregulated visitor behaviour and (2) regulated visitor behaviour, where...
-
Mobile abattoir versus conventional slaughterhouse—Impact on stress parameters and meat quality characteristics in Norwegian lambs
Contributor(s):: Eriksen, Marit Skog, Rødbotten, Rune, Grøndahl, Ann Margaret, Friestad, Mari, Andersen, Inger Lise, Mejdell, Cecilie M.
The aim of the present study was to investigate possible differences in certain stress parameters and meat quality characteristics between Norwegian lambs slaughtered at a mobile abattoir (at two different localities) versus lambs slaughtered at a conventional, stationary slaughterhouse. Lambs...
-
Learning performance of gestating sows called to the feeder
Contributor(s):: Kirchner, Jasmin, Manteuffel, Christian, Manteuffel, Gerhard, Schrader, Lars
A call feeding station in which sows learn to be allowed to enter a feeding station only after being called by an individual acoustic signal has been shown to reduce agonistic interactions in front of the feeding station. Here, we tested important prerequisites for integration of a call feeding...
-
Is training zoo animals enriching?
Contributor(s):: Melfi, Vicky
Husbandry training of zoo animals (training) has been associated with many benefits, and indisputably is a valuable tool; training facilitates movement of animals within their environment, and participation in husbandry and medical procedures. Training has also been considered to be enriching....
-
The importance of diet choice on stress-related responses by lambs
Contributor(s):: Catanese, Francisco, Obelar, Marianela, Villalba, Juan J., Distel, Roberto A.
Farm animals are commonly restricted to a reduced array of foods, like total mixed rations or pastures with low species diversity. Under these conditions, animals are less likely to satisfy their specific and changing nutrient requirements. In addition, foods and flavors eaten too frequently or...
-
The implications of husbandry training on zoo animal response rates
Contributor(s):: Ward, Samantha J., Melfi, Vicky
Positive reinforcement training (hereafter known as training) has increasingly been adopted in zoos, to facilitate complex veterinary procedures without sedation or restraint and support husbandry requirements. However, empirical studies to establish the efficacy of training or investigate its...
