Applied Animal Behaviour Science

Editorial Board

2013-06-01

Title Page

2013-06-01

Cattle habitat selection and associated habitat characteristics under free-range grazing within heterogeneous Montane rangelands of Alberta

Jillian Kaufmann, Edward W. Bork, Peter V. Blenis, Michael J. Alexander — 2013-04-24

Abstract: The integration of multiple uses on public rangeland requires reliable information on patterns of livestock use. We used GPS data and field plot utilization indices to examine cattle selection at the landscape and patch levels, respectively, within a heterogeneous Montane environment of SW Alberta, Canada. We also evaluated factors associated with patterns of summer cattle use, including topographic features, distance to water and roads, as well as forage quantity and quality. Cattle preferred lowland and upland grasslands, while avoiding conifer forests and clear cuts. Selection patterns differed markedly between the landscape and plot scales. At the landscape scale, forage use was related to abiotic factors, primarily slope (β=−0.70) but also distance to water (−0.34) and distance from roads (+0.21). The negative impact of slope was greater than that observed in previous studies, and has implications for identifying primary ranges and deriving sustainable carrying capacities in Montane landscapes. At the plot (feeding patch) scale, forage use was additionally related to biomass availability (β=+0.58), and to a lesser extent crude protein concentration (+0.16), highlighting the importance of forage characteristics in regulating cattle use. Lowland grasslands had the highest biomass and received the greatest forage use (43% utilization). Low visitation (44% of plots) and associated forage use (3% herbage utilization) by cattle within cut blocks, combined with conservative forage use across all habitats (3–43%), indicate grazing by cattle is consistent with maintaining other uses within this area, including riparian function, native grassland conservation and forest management.

Effective and accurate discrimination of individual dairy cattle through acoustic sensing

2013-04-26

Abstract: Acoustic sensing seems to be one of the best methods for monitoring of dairy animals at an organized farm for their better care and management. The main aim of present investigation was to establish the existence of significant differences for various acoustic features of vocal signals uttered from different individuals of a herd of crossbred cows. The mean call duration, mean pitch, 1st formant, periodicity and degree of voice breaks of adult lactating Karan Fries crossbred cattle were observed to be 2.37±0.03s, 191.57±2.40Hz, 790.71±5.54Hz, 97.76% (371.71 periodic pulses out of 380.20 pulses) and 7.64±0.44% respectively. Analysis of bioacoustics features extracted from 300 voice samples of ten adult lactating Karan Fries crossbred cows revealed that differences for amplitudes (minimum, maximum and mean), total energy, mean power, pitch (median, minimum, maximum, range and mean), pitch spreading (84–50, 50–16 and 90–10%), intensities (minimum, maximum and mean (P<0.01)), formants (F1, F2, F3, F4 and F5), bandwidths (B1, B3 and B4), number of pulse, number of period, mean period, unvoiced frames, degree of voice breaks, jitter, shimmer, mean noise to harmonic ratio (%) and mean harmonic to noise ratio (dB) were highly significant (P<0.001). Out of these only few acoustic features viz. Pitch (mean and range), formants (F1, F2, F3, F4 and F5), number of pulse, degree of voice breaks, shimmer and mean noise to harmonic ratio (%) were observed to have significant difference for each and every individual cow, therefore only these features could be suggested as the best suited acoustic features for discrimination of individual dairy cattle from their herd. Acoustic features of voice signals uttered from different cows proved to be a passive indicator in discrimination of individual cow.

Trade-offs between feeding and social companionship in cattle: Intra-animal consistency over short and extended periods

Masahiko Hirata, Ikuko Taketomi, Yuka Matsumoto, Shotaro Kubo — 2013-04-12

Abstract: The conflict between sociability and foraging motivation in animals is considered to be of potential value for use in the management of grassland systems to improve grazing pattern of livestock over grasslands. However, individual differences in behaviors relating to this conflict have not been fully explored. Three experiments with two test repeats 1–3 days apart were conducted using 8–16 Japanese Black cows at intervals of approximately 3 weeks between Experiments 1 and 2 and 1 year between Experiments 2 and 3. Individual cows were tested in a grassed arena (85m×30m in Experiments 1 and 2, 130m×18m in Experiment 3) with an adjoining group pen holding the peers. Plastic washtubs (16 in Experiments 1 and 2, 25 in Experiment 3) containing 150g grain-based concentrate were placed at 5m increments on the centerline of the arena to entice test cows away from the group. Behavior of test cows were recorded for 30min as: maximum (Dmax) and mean (Dmean) distance from the group, number of total (Ntotal) and different (Ndiff) tub visits, and proportion of time eating concentrate (Peatconc) and grazing sward (Pgraze). Cows showed consistency in Dmax, Dmean, Ntotal and Ndiff over the short periods of 1–3 days (repeatability within experiments=0.41–0.80) and approximately 3 weeks (Pearson r between Experiments 1 and 2=0.81–0.91, P<0.05). Cows were further consistent in Dmax, Ntotal and Ndiff over the extended period of 1 year (Pearson r between Experiments 2 and 3 and between Experiments 1 and 3=0.68–0.93, P<0.05). By contrast, Peatconc and Pgraze showed poorer consistency within cows, giving low repeatability estimates (0.29–0.34) in Experiment 2 and low Pearson r between Experiments 2 and 3 (0.30–0.31, P>0.05). It was concluded that Dmax, Ntotal and Ndiff provide a reliable measure of the propensity for individual cows to trade sociability for feeding when the test is repeated over both short and extended periods. A test arena longer than 130m would be necessary for fully discriminating individual behavioral traits of cattle.

Measuring chronic social tension in groups of growing pigs using inter-individual distances

Simon P. Turner, Mintu Nath, Graham W. Horgan, Sandra A. Edwards — 2013-04-18

Abstract: Chronic social stress in pigs compromises immune function, reduces ADG, increases activity and skin lesions and affects feeding behaviour but to different extents in individuals and contemporary groups housed in the same way. Assessing the animals’ perception of chronic social stress is difficult. A large inter-individual distance has been suggested to indicate acute stress immediately following regrouping. The current study hypothesised that large inter-individual distances between grower pigs in groups whose composition was stable for 6 weeks would also be predictive of the expression of other traits sensitive to chronic social stress. Group sizes (20 and 80) and feeder space allowances (32.5 and 42.5mm/pig) were studied in a 2×2 factorial design replicated four times to simulate commercially relevant social environments. Inter-individual distances were calculated for individual resting pigs and defined as the mean distance to the nearest resting neighbour (MNND) and mean distance to all other resting group members (MD). Relationships between MNND or MD and potential stress response variates were examined by appropriate linear or generalised linear mixed models. The mean growth rate was poorer in large groups and the mean number of skin lesions was greater in pens with a small feeding space (P<0.05), suggesting that these treatments may have increased social tension, but the effects on the mean proportion of activity (P<0.001) and feeding behaviour (P<0.05) were not in the expected direction. Pigs which spaced at large distances from other group members had high ADG (P<0.05). However, large distances between pigs were associated with a higher mean level of activity (P<0.001) and a lower mean frequency of feeding bouts (P<0.05) and total feeding duration (P<0.05), as would be predicted if spacing behaviour was indicative of social stress. Furthermore, fewer lesions were found when pigs rested at a large distance from their nearest neighbour on days 3 and 21 post-mixing (P<0.05) but, on average, maintained close proximity to other group members in general on day 3 (P<0.05), suggesting that the group as a whole was more tightly clustered. Spacing behaviour, even in the confined conditions of commercial indoor environments, appears to relate to some measures of chronic stress, although the relationship with skin lesions was complex and that with ADG was not in the expected direction. Measuring spatial responses to activation of neuroendocrine stress response pathways or modifying affective state through anxiolytic drug administration could help to validate how spacing behaviour reflects the perception of chronic social stress.

Behavior and performance in primiparous sows of two Min pig hybrid breeds in outdoor housing systems

Hong-gui Liu, Chao Wang, Jing Lv, Yun-qing Yu, Jun-ling Zhang, Jun Bao — 2013-04-18

Abstract: When sows and their litters are kept outdoors, the maternal ability, including maternal behavior, is very important for piglet health and survival. The aim of this study was to compare part of maternal behavior and performance in primiparous sows of two different conventionally bred Min pig hybrid breeds kept in outdoor housing systems. Damin sows (Large White×Min pig sows, n=21) and Changmin sows (Landrace×Min pig sows, n=21) were farrowed in individual pens. Sows’ postures (lateral, ventral, standing and sitting), changes of posture (lateral recumbency to other postures, ventral recumbency to other postures, standing to lying and sitting to lying), nursing behavior (duration and frequency of nutritive nursing, proportion of nursing terminated by the sow) and proportion of time spent outside the farrowing huts were observed by video for 72h after parturition and from 07:00 to 09:00h and 13:00 to 15:00h on the third and 6th day of each week from the 2nd to the 4th week after parturition. The duration of parturition, farrowing interval, number of live piglets, number of stillbirths, birth weights of the litters, number of piglet deaths during the first 3 days postpartum, number of piglet deaths from the 4th day postpartum to weaning, weaning weights of litters, and estrus interval of sows were compared between the two breeds. The two breeds showed no differences in postural behavior, changes of posture, nursing behavior and proportion of time spent outside the farrowing huts by the sows. The duration of parturition (P=0.043) and farrowing interval (P=0.032) were significantly higher in Damin sows than in Changmin sows. Birth weights (P=0.010) and pre-weaning weights (P=0.022) of the piglets were lower in Damin sows than in Changmin sows. Other performance parameters did not differ between the breeds. In conclusion, we understand that the high temperature did not have bad effects to the performance of two Min pig hybrid breeds in the summer, compared with other results, the two Min pig hybrid breeds may have a certain advantage in lateral recumbency during early lactation and piglets mortality. This may provides valuable information about choosing the reasonable outdoor breeds in the future.

Rescued goats at a sanctuary display positive mood after former neglect

Elodie F. Briefer, Alan G. McElligott — 2013-04-26

Abstract: 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 increasing in animals, suggesting that measures of optimism and pessimism could provide useful indicators of animal welfare. For obvious ethical reasons, serious poor treatments cannot be easily replicated in large mammals in order to study their long-term effects on moods. In this study, we tested the long-term effects (>2 years) of prior poor welfare on the moods of rescued goats at an animal sanctuary, using a spatial judgement bias experiment. A group of goats that had experienced poor welfare before arriving at the sanctuary (“poor welfare group”; n=9 goats) was compared with another group of goats that had experienced generally good care (“control group”; n=9 goats). We first trained the goats to discriminate between a rewarded and a non-rewarded location. We then compared the responses of the two groups of goats to ambiguous locations situated between the two reference locations. Our results showed that, after three days of training, both groups could equally discriminate rewarded and non-rewarded locations. There was no overall effect of the welfare group during the test, but there was an interaction effect between sex and welfare group. Surprisingly, females from the poor welfare group (n=4) reacted in the opposite way to that predicted, and showed a more optimistic bias than control females (n=5). This suggests that these females could be experiencing long-term optimistic bias triggered by release from stress. They were also more optimistic than males from the same group (n=5). Male judgement bias did not differ between the poor welfare and control groups (n=4 controls). Therefore, our results show that after several years of good care, rescued goats displayed optimistic moods (females) or similar moods as controls (males). This suggests that goats probably recover from neglect, and that sex differences in mood potentially exist. The optimistic or pessimistic biases experienced by domestic animals are likely to have a strong impact on their abilities to cope with their environment, and more generally on their welfare.

Behavioural and physiological reactions of goats confronted with an unfamiliar group either when alone or with two peers

2013-04-15

Abstract: When introduced into a new herd, goats are confronted with unfamiliar animals. Their behavioural and physiological reactions during this confrontation are likely to differ depending on the presence or absence of familiar conspecifics (peers). To assess these reactions, we confronted 12 goats both alone and with two peers (confrontees) with established groups (n=4 groups) consisting of goats unfamiliar to the confrontee (unfamiliar goats) (12 goats×2 confrontations=24 confrontations in total). Each confrontation lasted for one hour. Agonistic interactions, sniffing behaviour and level of activity were recorded throughout the confrontations. In addition, concentrations of cortisol metabolites were measured in faecal samples taken in the evening before the confrontation and three successive samples after the confrontation. Before the start of the experiment, we evaluated the dominance relationships of the involved goats within their respective housing groups by direct observations made during the main feeding times. Data were analysed using generalised linear mixed-effects models with the fixed effects presence of peers (yes, no), rank category (high, medium, low) and repeated confrontation (numeric variable). For the analysis of activity level and concentrations of faecal cortisol metabolites, period (minutes 0–15, 16–30, 31–45, 46–60) and sample (control, 13, 14, 15h after the confrontation), respectively, were included as additional fixed effects. Unfamiliar goats directed fewer agonistic interactions towards confrontees when the latter were accompanied by peers compared to when they were alone (without peers: 57; with peers: 20 interactions per animal and confrontation). The same was true for the proportion of agonistic interactions involving physical contact (without peers: 69; with peers: 53%) and the number of sniffing behaviours (without peers: 16; with peers: 9 interactions per animal and confrontation). On the other hand, confrontees with peers were more likely to direct agonistic and sniffing behaviour towards unfamiliar goats than those on their own. Confrontees with peers had lower concentrations of faecal cortisol metabolites after confrontations (without peers: 273; with peers: 198ng/g). For confrontees (with and without peers), activity level was highest during the first 15min of the confrontation and decreased over its course. For the unfamiliar goats, the activity pattern was similar but was modulated by rank, with higher values for low-ranking goats than for medium- and high-ranking ones. In conclusion, our results indicate that the presence of peers is advantageous for goats being introduced into groups of unfamiliar goats.

Improved acceptance of Chromonaela odorata by goat kids after weaning is triggered by in utero exposure but not consumption of milk

2013-04-17

Abstract: The aim of the current study was to determine whether the improved post-weaning intake of Chromonaela odorata by goat kids is related to either the in utero period of the goat kids or the subsequent suckling period. It was hypothesized that kids born to dams fed C. odorata during pregnancy and receiving milk from dams not exposed to C. odorata during pregnancy show an improved acceptance to consume this plant. Twenty female goats were successfully synchronized and divided into 4 groups. Two groups (1 and 3) were offered 50g of dried C. odorata leave meal (COLM) mixed with a basic diet for the last 3 months of pregnancy until 1 week before parturition. At birth the kids from the goats in group 1 and 2 were cross fostered without colostrum or milk from their own mother. While waiting for the delivery of kid from another goat, the kid was fed milk replacer or milk from any goat dam in the same treatment. Kids from groups 3 and 4 remained with their mothers. After weaning (2.5 months old), one kid from each goat dam was selected for COLM intake which was measured for 30min over a 4 week period. Feeding activities of the individually housed goat kids was monitored with a camera system. Kids born to dams receiving COLM during pregnancy consumed higher amounts of the COLM supplemented test feed during all feeding preference tests compared to kids from the control group, particularly during week 3 and 4 (P<0.001). Shorter latency, longer time spent on each meal and total eating time, chewing time and higher meal size (P<0.05) were different in the kids born from does that ingested COLM during pregnancy. It is concluded that prenatal exposure to C. odorata via maternal ingestion significantly increases the intake of C. odorata by weaned goat kids. This improved intake is due to the in utero learning and not the transfer of (secondary) components via the milk of the mothers fed C. odorata during pregnancy.

Icelandic horses with the Silver coat colour show altered behaviour in a fear reaction test

Emma Brunberg, Sanna Gille, Sofia Mikko, Gabriella Lindgren, Linda J. Keeling — 2013-05-09

Abstract: The colour of a horse's coat has long been discussed to reflect its temperament. One opinion is that Silver coloured horses are nervous, difficult to handle and react more strongly to different fear stimuli. The objective with the present study was to investigate if mutations associated with the Silver coat colour affect fear reactions in Icelandic horses. The hypothesis was that horses with the Silver mutation Arg618Cys in PMEL show stronger fear reactions than horses without the mutation (e.g. Black/Brown or Chestnut horses). Twenty-seven Icelandic horses (nine Silver, nine Chestnuts and nine Black/Brown) matched for sire, were exposed to the fear stimulus (a suddenly moving plastic bag) while feeding from a container. The test was repeated five times and behavioural responses and latency to return to the feed container were recorded. All horses were genotyped for the Silver mutation. The proportion of Silver horses that were hesitant to approach the test set-up before each trial was significantly higher (P<0.05) than the proportion of non-Silver horses and this difference was most pronounced before the first two trials. No differences in reaction vigour or latency to resume feeding were found between the differently coloured horses. The results suggest that Silver horses are more cautious in novel situations rather than more reactive in fearful situations. One likely explanation for this difference is that the Silver mutation is associated with multiple congenital ocular anomalies (MCOA) syndrome and visual impairment. Furthermore, offspring (regardless of coat colour) from sires with a Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (BLUP, an index indicating which traits a horse will pass on to its offspring) value above 100 for the temperament trait ‘Spirit’, showed a greater fear reaction (P<0.01) and reacted for a longer time (P<0.01) than horses from sires with a lower (<100) index. These results indicate that horses with a high BLUP value for ‘Spirit’ seem to express stronger fear reactions. Breeding for Silver coat colour and the ‘Spirit’ trait, as it is currently defined, may need to be reconsidered if these results are confirmed in a larger cohort.

Early experiences modulate stress coping in a population of German shepherd dogs

Pernilla Foyer, Erik Wilsson, Dominic Wright, Per Jensen — 2013-04-22

Abstract: Early experiences may alter later behavioural expressions in animals and these differences can be consistent through adulthood. In dogs, this may have a profound impact on welfare and working ability and, it is therefore interesting to evaluate how experiences during the first weeks of life contribute to shaping the long-term behaviour. We analysed data from 503 dogs from 105 litters, bred at the Swedish Armed Forces Dog Kennel. For each dog, the data comprised information on dam and sire, sex, litter size, sex ratio of litter, date of birth, and weight at birth, and at 10 days of age. Between the ages of 377 and 593 days, the dogs were tested in a temperament test, assessing their suitability as working dogs. The behaviour test comprised 12 different sub-tests, and was scored on a behavioural rating scale. A principal component analysis showed that the test performance could largely be attributed to four principal components (explaining 55.7% of variation), labelled Confidence, Physical Engagement, Social Engagement and Aggression. We analysed the effects of the different early life variables and sex on the principal component scores (PC scores) using linear modelling. PC scores on Confidence were affected by parity, sex and litter size, and Physical Engagement was affected by parity, growth rate, litter size and season of birth. Social Engagement was affected by growth rate and sex, and Aggression was affected by sex. Some of these effects disappeared when they were combined into a single linear model, but most of them remained significant also when controlling for collinearity. The results suggest that the early environment of dogs have long-lasting effects on their behaviour and coping styles in a stressful test situation and this knowledge can be used in the work with breeding of future military or police working dogs.

Astroturf as a dustbathing substrate for laying hens

Gina M. Alvino, Cassandra B. Tucker, Gregory S. Archer, Joy A. Mench — 2013-04-25

Abstract: Furnished cages for laying hens often contain an Astroturf (AT) pad which may be sprinkled with feed to promote foraging and dustbathing. We evaluated AT and AT plus feed (ATF) to determine if hens use these substrates for dustbathing. Hens (N=30) without prior exposure to substrate were housed singly in cages at 34 weeks of age. Using a 3×3 Latin square design, groups of 10 hens were provided with a dustbox containing either sand (control), an AT pad, or an AT pad with 200g of feed (ATF) delivered daily, with three 20-day treatment Periods. The treatment order was: sand–ATF–AT (1); ATF–AT–sand (2); AT–sand–ATF (3). Behavior was recorded for 8 or 9 days each Period, from 11:00 to 22:00h. Three measures of dustbathing were evaluated: bout number per day, bout length, and total time spent dustbathing per day. Data were collected and processed to evaluate dustbathing activity in the substrate, on the wire floor and in both locations combined (overall). Data were analyzed using the GLM or Kruskal–Wallis and Dwass-Steel-Critchlow-Fligner tests. Although there were some differences in statistical significance between Periods, in general hens provided with sand exhibited fewer bouts both overall and on wire, and longer bouts both overall and one wire, than AT or ATF hens, and longer bouts both overall and in substrate than AT. Hens with sand also spent significantly (all P≤0.04) more time dustbathing on substrate (median min=18.71±5.16) and less time on wire (0.59±1.56) than AT (0.33±2.62 and 13.39±7.15, respectively) and ATF (2.05±4.43 and 11.26±4.37, respectively) treatments during Period 1, and also more time dustbathing on substrate (7.66±8.13) than hens in the AT treatment (0.00±2.52) during Period 2. Exposure to AT and ATF during the first two treatment periods reduced hens’ use of sand during the third treatment period, with only 11% of bouts occurring in sand during Period 3 as compared to 64% and 41% during Periods 1 and 2, respectively. These findings demonstrated that AT did not provide an adequate dustbathing substrate, even with the addition of feed, as hens were less likely to dustbathe on both AT and ATF than sand, and were also less likely to dustbathe on sand if they were initially exposed to AT and ATF as dustbathing substrates.

Exploring the dog park: Relationships between social behaviours, personality and cortisol in companion dogs

Lydia Ottenheimer Carrier, Amanda Cyr, Rita E. Anderson, Carolyn J. Walsh — 2013-04-29

Abstract: The relationships between behaviour, owner-rated personality, and cortisol were examined in companion dogs that visited a local off-leash dog park. In Study 1, salivary cortisol increased significantly from baseline levels following 20min in the dog park (P=0.013), but not in the same dogs following a 20min on-leash walk. In Study 2, cortisol was correlated with dog park visit frequency, such that dogs which visited the park least often had higher cortisol levels (r=−0.34, P=0.013). Hunched posture in dogs was associated with higher cortisol, even after the effect of park visit frequency was removed. Cortisol appeared to be independent of all other measured behaviours and signals indicative of play, stress, agonism, and mounting, as well as dog time budgets. Nor was cortisol related to dog personality scores as measured by the Monash Canine Personality Questionnaire-Revised (MCPQ-R). Scores on the Extraversion, Amicability, and Neuroticism scales predicted some observations in the park: more extraverted dogs showed higher activity (measured as time budget state changes; R2=0.21, P<0.001) and spent more time in conspecific dyads (R2=0.083, P=0.033), more amicable dogs showed more behaviours indicative of play (R2=0.10, P=0.014), and more neurotic dogs showed higher frequencies of hunched posture (R2=0.10, P=0.008). Time budget states correlated with specific behaviours, e.g., focal dog's time spent in dyads correlated highly with total play signals/behaviours in the session (r=0.69, P<0.001). Thus, in a social context such as an off-leash dog park, changes in cortisol may be largely independent of social behaviour/signalling (with the possible exception of postural changes), and personality scores may predict some social behaviours, but not necessarily changes in cortisol. Given that this dog park sample contains dogs which appear to score higher than average for Extraversion, additional relationships between personality, behaviour and cortisol may be detected in broader dog populations and/or other social contexts. As the popularity of off-leash dog parks is increasing in North America, understanding factors related to individual dogs’ experiences in such parks may be important for welfare reasons.

The acquisition and maintenance of dogs’ aversion responses to kiwi (Apteryx spp.) training stimuli across time and locations

Arnja R. Dale, Shivaun Statham, Christopher A. Podlesnik, Douglas Elliffe — 2013-05-13

Abstract: Dogs (Canis familiaris) pose a significant threat to kiwi (Apteryx spp.) through predation. In an attempt to balance kiwi conservation and the need for dogs to be used for hunting purposes in kiwi habitat, the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) developed the Kiwi Aversion Training (KAT) programme. KAT involves a training session in which a dog is presented with KAT stimuli (stuffed kiwi, frozen kiwi, and kiwi feathers) and a brief period (0.5–1.5s) of aversive electrical stimulation from an electric shock collar is applied when the dog makes contact with the training stimuli. This paper reports three experiments: (1) investigating whether dogs can learn to avoid the KAT stimuli through aversion training; (2) investigating maintenance of aversion to the KAT stimuli 1 month after initial training; and (3) investigating maintenance of aversion to the KAT stimuli 1 year after initial training. All dogs showed aversion responses to the KAT stimuli during the initial KAT training and also when exposed to the KAT stimuli 1 month after training without an electric collar being worn. 1 year after initial training, 87% (48/55) of dogs avoided the KAT stimuli. This research indicates that KAT effectively produces aversion towards the KAT stimuli that generalizes to another location, is independent of the electric collar being worn, and that lasts at least 1 year after training.

Effectiveness of fluoxetine to control fur-chewing behaviour in the chinchilla (Chinchilla lanigera)

María G. Galeano, Rubén D. Ruiz, Marta Fiol de Cuneo, Marina F. Ponzio — 2013-04-29

Abstract: Due to its complexity and the relative lack of scientific reports, fur-chewing may be considered as one of the most challenging behavioural problems common to captive chinchillas. The development of this behaviour in commercial farms and the increasing popularity of this species as a pet have increased the public demands for a treatment. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effectiveness of fluoxetine to control the development of chinchillas’ fur-chewing behaviour, using an oral dose of 10mg/kg/day for a 90 days treatment period. For the measurement of the fur-chewing affected area and its variation during treatment as external sign of whether or not the behaviour was controlled, digital pictures were taken at 0, 45, 75 and 90 days of treatment and after drug withdrawal at 140 days. Results indicated that the greatest difference in percentages of body area affected by the behaviour in control vs. treated animals was observed after 75 days of treatment. However, this was not due to a decrease in the amount of body area affected by fur-chewing in treated animals, but conversely to an increase in the symptoms observed in control animals, that showed a ~10% increase in the fur-chewing affected body area than at the beginning of the experiments. Only ~46% of the fluoxetine treated animals showed a significant reduction in the body area affected by fur-chewing. In summary, the use of fluoxetine in fur-chewing chinchillas showed limited success, mostly reducing the progression of the behaviour.

Jo Hockenhull — 2013-05-13

The editorial team's hopes for this volume, as stated in the introduction, are ambitious and two-fold; firstly that it will stimulate an increase in interest in the field of human–animal interactions (HAI) and secondly, that this interest will result in an increasing number of high quality studies in this area. This dual aim resonates throughout the book, essentially forming both the framework for the individual chapters as well as the structure of the volume itself.