Animal Behavior
It is important that we study animal behavior because we need to see if an animal is not showing aggression or signs of stress. It is also very crucial to understand animal behavior to diagnose any problems with the animal.
Signs of stress (Dog will do this more than once)
-Yawning
-Penis crowning
-Teeth chattering
-Sweaty paws
-Lip licking
-Stress vocalization
-Pitch or deep whine
-Panting
-Cheek puffing
-'Whale eye'
-Lack of appetite
-Ears all the way back
-Freezing
-Pacing
-Slow or little movement
-Tucked tail for Dalmatian,Akita,Lab mix, Spitz, and Beagle
-Stiff posture
-Stretching
-Trembling
-Muscles ridges
-Urogenital
-Salivation
-Shallow or fast breathing
Signs of dog being calm
-Looking away
-Raising paw
-Sniffing
-Sneezing
-Scratching
-Blinking
-Shaking off
-Licking nose
-Sitting or lying down
-Approaches you\
Signs of happiness:
-Mouth open,panting,tongue exposed
-Ears alert
-Tail up
-Relax and/or looking relaxed
-Head tilt
Signs of being fearful:
-Tail tucked
-Body lowered to the ground
-Ears flat on head
-Avoiding eye contact
-Jumping at noises
-Raises paw when approached
-Shaking
Instinctive Behaviors:
These are types of behavior that occur because of an animal's natural instinct.
Marking: Social and Sexual purposes.
Pheromones: Present in urine giving off smell to all who encounter the mark.
Mating: Females give off pheromones that indicate she wants to breed a male finds her and they mate.
Predatory: In order for survival they must eat or be eaten.
Submission: The animal is not posing a threat.
Maternal: Mothers become protective and defensive after their young are born.
Learned Behaviors:
Animals are taught this behavior naturally or by observing.
Modeling:Taught by watching other members of pack (hunting).
Imprinting: Attachment to an object that will emit adult behaviors.
Types of Communication:
Auditory: Also known as vocalization, animals use this to communicate.
Olfactory: Scent/smell coming off something to indicate identity,readiness to breed,recognition of offspring, and location of prey.
Tactile: Touch used in social bonding, infant care, grooming,courtship,and mating.
Visual: Signs the animal sees that indicate another animals emotion.
Behavior Factors:
Environmental: Immediate physical surrounding of an animal including:
-Cleanliness
-Temperature
-Humidity
-Lighting
-Noise
-Exercise
-Human contact
-Social interaction
-Enclosure state
-Access to food
Health: Animal's state of physical and mental condition can cause abnormal behaviors. Animals who are in pain are more aggressive.
Experience: The way the animal is raised can cause him/her to act different than other animals of the same species/breed.
Genetic: Evolution affects animal behavior EX. Dogs can show common characteristics from their wolf ancestors.
Patterns of Behavior:
Ingestion: Way animal eat or drink food.
Eliminative: Marking territory or burying feces.
Sexual: Courtship and/or mating patterns of animals.
Mother and Young: Care giving behavior
Agonist: "Fight or Flight"
Gregarious: Pecking order can be aggressive or passive
Social: Interaction between animals
Shelter seeking: Animals find shelter because of elements
Investigative: How animals explore their surroundings
Basic Training Theories
Positive Reinforcement- Rewarding good and/or wanted behavior.(Ex. Dog performs a trick and you give it a treat)
Negative Reinforcement- An unpleasant stimulus used for wanted behavior. (Ex. Using Choke collar to make a dog sit)
Punishment- When a dog does something unwanted and you "get back at it" (Ex. Rubbing it's nose in urine or feces)
Extinction- Removal of positive reinforcement (Ex. Ignoring a dog when its barking)
A behaviorally healthy pooch
-Is friendly to other people and/or animals
-Can be left alone without panicking or getting anxious
-Is trained to eliminate in a specific area
-Does not bark excessively or spends time running around
Body language
-Posture says a lot about an animal, it can tell you how the animal is feeling. If the dog is standing tall,ears perked, and its wagging it's tail than this is what I call a happy and friendly dog. However you must bee careful because as a threat some dogs stand tall and have their ears perked. When approaching a patient be slow,calm, and have patience remember that the animal is in an unfamiliar environment. Some animals will use the "flight or fight" response were some will run while others will attack if they feel threaten.
Ethology
-Study of the way animals behave in their natural habitat/ home. Learning this can prevent injury to the animal and/or it's handler.
Why did you get rid of me?
-Shelter are overcrowded with animals that people have abandoned for several reasons. Most o the time its because the owner was not prepared enough to take care of an animal. Other times its because of the animal's behavior.
Our job
-If someone is worried about the way their pet is acting beware of what you say. Remember that not all animals act the same way. Try not to give misleading information. Try to help but before do some research and get to know the animal first.
Hospital Polices
-They don't provide you with behavioral advice but they do physical exams to see if the problem is health wise. The hospital provides diagnostics and therapeutic hep for some problems such as physical causes, thunderstorms and noise phobias, car sickness, house training, and cat litter box problems. [Help may vary by hospital]
Normal behavior
-Before you say that your pet is acting strange its important that you first understand how your pet normally behaves
Abnormal behaviors:
-Lose of appetite
-Restless
-Depressed
-Not alert/active
-Head low
-Isolating itself
-Coughing or strange breathing
-Abnormal vital signs
Stress factors
-When an animal is stressed or ill then it will act differently. High levels of untreated stress can reduce the animal's immune system or further problems can occur.
Remember: It's important to avoid loud noises in a home because they can affect your pet. It's crucial that there is a calm environment at ALL times to prevent any stress.
It is important that we study animal behavior because we need to see if an animal is not showing aggression or signs of stress. It is also very crucial to understand animal behavior to diagnose any problems with the animal.
Signs of stress (Dog will do this more than once)
-Yawning
-Penis crowning
-Teeth chattering
-Sweaty paws
-Lip licking
-Stress vocalization
-Pitch or deep whine
-Panting
-Cheek puffing
-'Whale eye'
-Lack of appetite
-Ears all the way back
-Freezing
-Pacing
-Slow or little movement
-Tucked tail for Dalmatian,Akita,Lab mix, Spitz, and Beagle
-Stiff posture
-Stretching
-Trembling
-Muscles ridges
-Urogenital
-Salivation
-Shallow or fast breathing
Signs of dog being calm
-Looking away
-Raising paw
-Sniffing
-Sneezing
-Scratching
-Blinking
-Shaking off
-Licking nose
-Sitting or lying down
-Approaches you\
Signs of happiness:
-Mouth open,panting,tongue exposed
-Ears alert
-Tail up
-Relax and/or looking relaxed
-Head tilt
Signs of being fearful:
-Tail tucked
-Body lowered to the ground
-Ears flat on head
-Avoiding eye contact
-Jumping at noises
-Raises paw when approached
-Shaking
Instinctive Behaviors:
These are types of behavior that occur because of an animal's natural instinct.
Marking: Social and Sexual purposes.
Pheromones: Present in urine giving off smell to all who encounter the mark.
Mating: Females give off pheromones that indicate she wants to breed a male finds her and they mate.
Predatory: In order for survival they must eat or be eaten.
Submission: The animal is not posing a threat.
Maternal: Mothers become protective and defensive after their young are born.
Learned Behaviors:
Animals are taught this behavior naturally or by observing.
Modeling:Taught by watching other members of pack (hunting).
Imprinting: Attachment to an object that will emit adult behaviors.
Types of Communication:
Auditory: Also known as vocalization, animals use this to communicate.
Olfactory: Scent/smell coming off something to indicate identity,readiness to breed,recognition of offspring, and location of prey.
Tactile: Touch used in social bonding, infant care, grooming,courtship,and mating.
Visual: Signs the animal sees that indicate another animals emotion.
Behavior Factors:
Environmental: Immediate physical surrounding of an animal including:
-Cleanliness
-Temperature
-Humidity
-Lighting
-Noise
-Exercise
-Human contact
-Social interaction
-Enclosure state
-Access to food
Health: Animal's state of physical and mental condition can cause abnormal behaviors. Animals who are in pain are more aggressive.
Experience: The way the animal is raised can cause him/her to act different than other animals of the same species/breed.
Genetic: Evolution affects animal behavior EX. Dogs can show common characteristics from their wolf ancestors.
Patterns of Behavior:
Ingestion: Way animal eat or drink food.
Eliminative: Marking territory or burying feces.
Sexual: Courtship and/or mating patterns of animals.
Mother and Young: Care giving behavior
Agonist: "Fight or Flight"
Gregarious: Pecking order can be aggressive or passive
Social: Interaction between animals
Shelter seeking: Animals find shelter because of elements
Investigative: How animals explore their surroundings
Basic Training Theories
Positive Reinforcement- Rewarding good and/or wanted behavior.(Ex. Dog performs a trick and you give it a treat)
Negative Reinforcement- An unpleasant stimulus used for wanted behavior. (Ex. Using Choke collar to make a dog sit)
Punishment- When a dog does something unwanted and you "get back at it" (Ex. Rubbing it's nose in urine or feces)
Extinction- Removal of positive reinforcement (Ex. Ignoring a dog when its barking)
A behaviorally healthy pooch
-Is friendly to other people and/or animals
-Can be left alone without panicking or getting anxious
-Is trained to eliminate in a specific area
-Does not bark excessively or spends time running around
Body language
-Posture says a lot about an animal, it can tell you how the animal is feeling. If the dog is standing tall,ears perked, and its wagging it's tail than this is what I call a happy and friendly dog. However you must bee careful because as a threat some dogs stand tall and have their ears perked. When approaching a patient be slow,calm, and have patience remember that the animal is in an unfamiliar environment. Some animals will use the "flight or fight" response were some will run while others will attack if they feel threaten.
Ethology
-Study of the way animals behave in their natural habitat/ home. Learning this can prevent injury to the animal and/or it's handler.
Why did you get rid of me?
-Shelter are overcrowded with animals that people have abandoned for several reasons. Most o the time its because the owner was not prepared enough to take care of an animal. Other times its because of the animal's behavior.
Our job
-If someone is worried about the way their pet is acting beware of what you say. Remember that not all animals act the same way. Try not to give misleading information. Try to help but before do some research and get to know the animal first.
Hospital Polices
-They don't provide you with behavioral advice but they do physical exams to see if the problem is health wise. The hospital provides diagnostics and therapeutic hep for some problems such as physical causes, thunderstorms and noise phobias, car sickness, house training, and cat litter box problems. [Help may vary by hospital]
Normal behavior
-Before you say that your pet is acting strange its important that you first understand how your pet normally behaves
Abnormal behaviors:
-Lose of appetite
-Restless
-Depressed
-Not alert/active
-Head low
-Isolating itself
-Coughing or strange breathing
-Abnormal vital signs
Stress factors
-When an animal is stressed or ill then it will act differently. High levels of untreated stress can reduce the animal's immune system or further problems can occur.
Remember: It's important to avoid loud noises in a home because they can affect your pet. It's crucial that there is a calm environment at ALL times to prevent any stress.