Subtle behaviour, as indicated by body postures, can be an indicator of an animal's emotional... more Subtle behaviour, as indicated by body postures, can be an indicator of an animal's emotional state. Previous studies carried out with different species have shown that changes in ear and tail postures, licking and showing the white of the eyes are related to animals emotions, and are expressed differently according to the animal´s experience. This study compared the body language of dairy cows related to different activities in a loose housing system. We observed a mixed group of 60 Swedish Red and Black Holstein cows in their second and third lactation. Using scan sampling the body language of cows were observed while they were using a mechanical brush (De Laval swinging cow brush SCB), while eating at one of the individual roughage feeding bins and while queuing for the voluntary milking system (De Laval VMS TM). Observations were performed during 8 different periods per day, for 20 days over a 9 week period in autumn 2013. The prediction was that different activities would e...
It has been shown in several species that stressful experiences increase the expression of groomi... more It has been shown in several species that stressful experiences increase the expression of grooming behaviour. In cattle, the use of brushes has been shown to increase around the time of calving. The aim of this study was to address the use of mechanical swinging brushes in relation to agonistic interactions between cows as a potential indicator of social tension within a herd. It was predicted that cows who have just received aggression would visit the brush more often than cows who were the actors in the conflict. We observed a mixed group of 54 Swedish Red and Black Holstein cows for 5 hours per day, one day a week over an 8 week period. Frequency and time of the occurrence of agonistic interactions (pushes, horning, threats and fights) were recorded, as was the frequency, duration and time of brush use. A social index was created in order to rank cows and classify them as low ranking (LR), middle ranking (MR), and high ranking (HR) cows. Data were analysed using the GLIMMIX proc...
The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) is increasingly being used to study attachment between dogs... more The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) is increasingly being used to study attachment between dogs and humans. It has been developed from the Ainsworth Strange Situation Procedure, which is used extensively to investigate attachment between children and their parents. In this experiment, 12 female beagle dogs were tested in two treatments to identify possible order effects in the test, a potential weakness in the SSP. In one treatment (FS), dogs participated together with a 'familiar person' and a 'stranger'. In a control treatment (SS), the same dogs participated together with two unfamiliar people, 'stranger A' and 'stranger B'. Comparisons were made between episodes within as well as between treatments. As predicted in FS, dogs explored more in the presence of the familiar person than the stranger. Importantly, they also explored more in the presence of stranger A (who appeared in the same order as the familiar person and followed the same procedure) than stranger B in SS. Furthermore, comparisons between treatments, where a familiar person was present in FS and stranger A was present in SS, showed no differences in exploration. In combination, these results indicate that the effect of a familiar person on dogs' exploratory behaviour, a key feature when assessing secure attachment styles, could not be tested reliably due to the order in which the familiar person and the stranger appear. It is proposed that in the future only counterbalanced versions of the SSP are used. Alternatively, since dogs reliably initiated more contact with the familiar person compared to the strangers, it is suggested that future studies on attachment in dogs towards humans should focus either on the behaviour of the dog in those episodes of the SSP when the person returns, or on reunion behaviour in other studies, specially designed to address dog-human interactions at this time. Citation: Rehn T, McGowan RTS, Keeling LJ (2013) Evaluating the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to Assess the Bond between Dogs and Humans. PLoS ONE 8(2): e56938.
Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a... more Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a need for a system to record external injuries in a standardised and simple way. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop and validate a system for injury recording in horses and to test its reliability and feasibility under field conditions. Methods: Injuries were classified into five categories according to severity. The scoring system was tested for intraand inter-observer agreement as well as agreement with a 'golden standard' (diagnosis established by a veterinarian). The scoring was done by 43 agricultural students who classified 40 photographs presented to them twice in a random order, 10 days apart. Attribute agreement analysis was performed using Kendall's coefficient of concordance (Kendall's W), Kendall's correlation coefficient (Kendall's τ) and Fleiss' kappa. The system was also tested on a sample of 100 horses kept in groups where injury location was recorded as well. Results: Intra-observer agreement showed Kendall's W ranging from 0.94 to 0.99 and 86% of observers had kappa values above 0.66 (substantial agreement). Inter-observer agreement had an overall Kendall's W of 0.91 and the mean kappa value was 0.59 (moderate). Agreement for all observers versus the 'golden standard' had Kendall's τ of 0.88 and the mean kappa value was 0.66 (substantial). The system was easy to use for trained persons under field conditions. Injuries of the more serious categories were not found in the field trial. Conclusion: The proposed injury scoring system is easy to learn and use also for people without a veterinary education, it shows high reliability, and it is clinically useful. The injury scoring system could be a valuable tool in future clinical and epidemiological studies.
Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to a... more Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to animals, using an internet-based questionnaire to which 1,902 female and 1,530 male student responded from 102 universities. Across countries female students had greater concern for animal welfare and rights than males, but especially so in more gender empowered countries. One contributing factor appeared to be the greater association of females than males with pets, and a possible outcome was greater female avoidance of meat consumption, especially red meat.
Early handling of animals including tactile stimulation (TS) has been shown to have beneficial ef... more Early handling of animals including tactile stimulation (TS) has been shown to have beneficial effects on the physical and psychological development of species where considerable maternal interaction, e.g. in the form of licking, already occurs. But little is known about the magnitude of these effects, if any, in species without this natural mechanism. Piglets from 13 litters (N = 127) were subjected to four treatments: AH -all piglets in a litter received TS; NH -none of the piglets in a litter received TS; 50/50H -half of a litter received TS and 50/50NH -half of a litter did not receive TS. The TS was performed by a human stroking the back of the piglet for 2 min from 5 to 35 days of age. At 4 weeks of age the piglets were tested twice in an open-field/human-approach test, with either a familiar (F) or an unfamiliar person (U). Body weight was measured at birth, 5, 9 and 12 weeks of age. In the tests, AH and 50/50H piglets allowed more physical contact, regardless of the familiarity of the person (AH: 22.5 ± 2.3 F; 24.1 ± 2.3 U, 50/50H: 18.1 ± 2.2 F; 25.3 ± 2.2 U, P = 0.05). Additionally, AH piglets vocalized least and were least often in the perimeter zone (PZ) of the arena (AH grunts: 6.0 ± 0.8, P = 0.002; 12.8 ± 0.8, P = 0.0005; 18.1 ± 0.8, P = 0.08; AH PZ: 3.9 ± 0.8, P = 0.009; 9.1 ± 0.8, P = 0.003; 12.6 ± 0.7, P = 0.004 in isolation, stationary and moving person phase, respectively). In contrast, NH piglets vocalized most and were most often in the PZ. 50/50NH had higher body weights at 12 weeks than 50/50H, whereas AH and NH piglets were intermediate (AH: 36.9 ± 0.9, NH: 35.6 ± 1.0, 50/50H: 34.2 ± 1.3, 50/50NH: 37.8 ± 1.3, P = 0.03). This study suggests that early handling changed the way piglets reacted to challenging situations in that handled piglets showed behaviour suggesting they were less fearful in a novel environment and less fearful of being handled by people in general. Interestingly though, the early handling did not result in the same beneficial effects on the physical development of the piglets, as handled piglets were not heavier. Instead, it was the 50/50NH piglets that were the heaviest, implying that the daily presence of a human moving around in the pen to handle the 50/50H piglets seemed to stimulate weight gain.
For dogs, humans are likely to be the most important feature in their environment influencing the... more For dogs, humans are likely to be the most important feature in their environment influencing their welfare. To investigate a commonly occurring human-dog interaction, behavioural and endocrine responses of 12 female beagle dogs were measured before, upon and after the return of a familiar person. Each dog was left by the person in a test arena to which it had been habituated prior to the experiment. Three different treatments were applied when the person returned and each dog experienced all these in a balanced design; the familiar person entered the test arena and 1) initiated physical and verbal contact in a calm and friendly way (PV), 2) there was verbal contact only (V) or, as a 'control', 3) the person ignored the dog (C). Interaction continued for 4min during which the person behaved in a standardized way according to the treatment. Blood samples were collected to investigate oxytocin and cortisol levels. Upon return, oxytocin increased initially, probably because of ...
Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is in... more Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is increasing. Here, we used a test of cognitive (judgement) bias, based on the finding that individuals experiencing different affective states judge ambiguous stimuli differently, to measure whether a positive low arousal affective state (e.g. ‘satisfaction’/‘contentment’) could be induced in domestic dogs as a result of their
Animals may experience positive affective states in response to their own achievements. We invest... more Animals may experience positive affective states in response to their own achievements. We investigated emotional responses to problem-solving in dogs, separating these from reactions to rewards per se using a yoked control design. We also questioned whether the intensity of reaction would vary with reward type. We examined the response (behavior and heart rate) of dogs as they learned to gain access to different rewards: (1) food (2) human contact, and (3) dog contact. Twelve beagles were assigned to matched pairs, and each dog served as both an experimental and a control animal during different stages of the experiment. We trained all dogs to perform distinct operant tasks and exposed them to additional devices to which they were not trained. Later, dogs were tested in a new context. When acting as an experimental dog, access to the reward was granted immediately upon completion of trained operant tasks. When acting as a control, access to the reward was independent of the dog's actions and was instead granted after a delay equal to their matched partner's latency to complete their task. Thus, differences between the two situations could be attributed to experimental dogs having the opportunity to learn to control access to the reward. Experimental dogs showed signs of excitement (e.g., increased tail wagging and activity) in response to their achievements, whereas controls showed signs of frustration (e.g., chewing of the operant device) in response to the unpredictability of the situation. The intensity of emotional response in experimental dogs was influenced by the reward type, i.e., greatest response to food and least to another dog. Our results suggest that dogs react emotionally to problem-solving opportunities and that tail wagging may be a useful indicator of positive affective states in dogs.
Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is in... more Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is increasing. Here, we used a test of cognitive (judgement) bias, based on the finding that individuals experiencing different affective states judge ambiguous stimuli differently, to measure whether a positive low arousal affective state (e.g. 'satisfaction'/'contentment') could be induced in domestic dogs as a result of their experiencing a food-based rewarding event. In this rewarding event, subjects (1 year old female Beagles) had to search for small amounts of food randomly placed within a maze arena. Using a balanced withinsubjects design, the dogs (N = 12) received a cognitive bias test either without experiencing the rewarding event (the 'Neutral' treatment), or directly after experiencing the rewarding event (the 'Post-consumption' treatment). In the test, dogs were trained that one visual cue (e.g. dark grey card) predicted a positive event (food in a bowl) whilst a different cue (e.g. light grey card) predicted a relatively 'negative' event (empty bowl). We hypothesised that dogs tested after experiencing the rewarding event, and in a presumed post-consummatory positive affective state, would be more likely to judge visually ambiguous stimuli (intermediate grey cards) positively, compared to dogs in the 'Neutral' treatment. In contrast, we found that they took significantly longer to approach an intermediate ambiguous stimulus, suggesting that they were less likely to anticipate food (a negative judgement) compared to dogs in the 'Neutral' treatment group. Various explanations for the observed results are discussed, in particular how reward acquisition and consumption may influence positive affective state induction in animals.
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of time left alone on dog behaviour and cardi... more The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of time left alone on dog behaviour and cardiac activity. Twelve privately owned dogs, with no history of separation related behaviour problems, were video-recorded on three different occasions when left alone in their home environment. The treatments lasted for 0.5 h (T 0.5 ); 2 h (T 2 ) and 4 h (T 4 ). Videorecording started 10 min before the owner left the house and continued until 10 min after the owner returned, so that interactions between dog and owner as well as behaviour during separation could be studied. Data on heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) were collected within the same time period in each treatment. In addition to analysing behaviours separately, behaviours were also grouped together and defined as new variables; physically active, attentive behaviour, vocal, interaction initiated by owner and interaction initiated by dog. There were no differences in behaviour between treatments at equivalent time intervals until the owner returned, although a number of differences were observed at reunion with the owner. Dogs showed a higher frequency of physical activity (P < 0.05) and attentive behaviour (P < 0.01) in T 2 (0.37 ± 0.07; 0.52 ± 0.08, mean frequency of occurrence/15 s ± SE) and T 4 (0.48 ± 0.08; 0.48 ± 0.07) compared to T 0.5 (0.20 ± 0.07; 0.21 ± 0.05). They also showed more tail wagging (P < 0.01) and interacted more with their owners (P < 0.01) in T 2 (0.27 ± 0.08; 0.47 ± 0.09) and T 4 (0.26 ± 0.04; 0.42 ± 0.09) compared to T 0.5 (0.09 ± 0.04; 0.14 ± 0.03). After a longer time of separation, the dogs also showed higher frequencies of lip licking (P < 0.05) and body shaking (P < 0.05) at the owner's return (T 0.5 = 0.09 ± 0.05; T 2 = 0.24 ± 0.08; T 4 = 0.27 ± 0.06 and T 0.5 = 0.03 ± 0.01; T 2 = 0.08 ± 0.03; T 4 = 0.07 ± 0.01, respectively). There was a tendency for higher HR (P < 0.1) during the first and second minute after reunion in T 2 (127.6 ± 1.25, mean bpm ± SE; 111.3 ± 1.24) compared to T 0.5 (106.2 ± 1.06; 87.5 ± 1.02). According to the results of this study, the effect of time left alone was shown by a more intense greeting behaviour by the dog towards their owner as well as by a higher frequency of physical activity and attentive behaviour when the owner returned, already after 2 h of separation. Although this study cannot distinguish between whether dogs were aware of the length of time they were alone (but did not signal it) or whether they were unaware until reminded of it by the return of their owner, it does confirm that dogs are affected by the duration of time at home alone.
Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a... more Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a need for a system to record external injuries in a standardised and simple way. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop and validate a system for injury recording in horses and to test its reliability and feasibility under field conditions. Methods: Injuries were classified into five categories according to severity. The scoring system was tested for intraand inter-observer agreement as well as agreement with a 'golden standard' (diagnosis established by a veterinarian). The scoring was done by 43 agricultural students who classified 40 photographs presented to them twice in a random order, 10 days apart. Attribute agreement analysis was performed using Kendall's coefficient of concordance (Kendall's W), Kendall's correlation coefficient (Kendall's τ) and Fleiss' kappa. The system was also tested on a sample of 100 horses kept in groups where injury location was recorded as well. Results: Intra-observer agreement showed Kendall's W ranging from 0.94 to 0.99 and 86% of observers had kappa values above 0.66 (substantial agreement). Inter-observer agreement had an overall Kendall's W of 0.91 and the mean kappa value was 0.59 (moderate). Agreement for all observers versus the 'golden standard' had Kendall's τ of 0.88 and the mean kappa value was 0.66 (substantial). The system was easy to use for trained persons under field conditions. Injuries of the more serious categories were not found in the field trial. Conclusion: The proposed injury scoring system is easy to learn and use also for people without a veterinary education, it shows high reliability, and it is clinically useful. The injury scoring system could be a valuable tool in future clinical and epidemiological studies.
Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to a... more Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to animals, using an internet-based questionnaire to which 1,902 female and 1,530 male student responded from 102 universities. Across countries female students had greater concern for animal welfare and rights than males, but especially so in more gender empowered countries. One contributing factor appeared to be the greater association of females than males with pets, and a possible outcome was greater female avoidance of meat consumption, especially red meat.
Subtle behaviour, as indicated by body postures, can be an indicator of an animal's emotional... more Subtle behaviour, as indicated by body postures, can be an indicator of an animal's emotional state. Previous studies carried out with different species have shown that changes in ear and tail postures, licking and showing the white of the eyes are related to animals emotions, and are expressed differently according to the animal´s experience. This study compared the body language of dairy cows related to different activities in a loose housing system. We observed a mixed group of 60 Swedish Red and Black Holstein cows in their second and third lactation. Using scan sampling the body language of cows were observed while they were using a mechanical brush (De Laval swinging cow brush SCB), while eating at one of the individual roughage feeding bins and while queuing for the voluntary milking system (De Laval VMS TM). Observations were performed during 8 different periods per day, for 20 days over a 9 week period in autumn 2013. The prediction was that different activities would e...
It has been shown in several species that stressful experiences increase the expression of groomi... more It has been shown in several species that stressful experiences increase the expression of grooming behaviour. In cattle, the use of brushes has been shown to increase around the time of calving. The aim of this study was to address the use of mechanical swinging brushes in relation to agonistic interactions between cows as a potential indicator of social tension within a herd. It was predicted that cows who have just received aggression would visit the brush more often than cows who were the actors in the conflict. We observed a mixed group of 54 Swedish Red and Black Holstein cows for 5 hours per day, one day a week over an 8 week period. Frequency and time of the occurrence of agonistic interactions (pushes, horning, threats and fights) were recorded, as was the frequency, duration and time of brush use. A social index was created in order to rank cows and classify them as low ranking (LR), middle ranking (MR), and high ranking (HR) cows. Data were analysed using the GLIMMIX proc...
The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) is increasingly being used to study attachment between dogs... more The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) is increasingly being used to study attachment between dogs and humans. It has been developed from the Ainsworth Strange Situation Procedure, which is used extensively to investigate attachment between children and their parents. In this experiment, 12 female beagle dogs were tested in two treatments to identify possible order effects in the test, a potential weakness in the SSP. In one treatment (FS), dogs participated together with a 'familiar person' and a 'stranger'. In a control treatment (SS), the same dogs participated together with two unfamiliar people, 'stranger A' and 'stranger B'. Comparisons were made between episodes within as well as between treatments. As predicted in FS, dogs explored more in the presence of the familiar person than the stranger. Importantly, they also explored more in the presence of stranger A (who appeared in the same order as the familiar person and followed the same procedure) than stranger B in SS. Furthermore, comparisons between treatments, where a familiar person was present in FS and stranger A was present in SS, showed no differences in exploration. In combination, these results indicate that the effect of a familiar person on dogs' exploratory behaviour, a key feature when assessing secure attachment styles, could not be tested reliably due to the order in which the familiar person and the stranger appear. It is proposed that in the future only counterbalanced versions of the SSP are used. Alternatively, since dogs reliably initiated more contact with the familiar person compared to the strangers, it is suggested that future studies on attachment in dogs towards humans should focus either on the behaviour of the dog in those episodes of the SSP when the person returns, or on reunion behaviour in other studies, specially designed to address dog-human interactions at this time. Citation: Rehn T, McGowan RTS, Keeling LJ (2013) Evaluating the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to Assess the Bond between Dogs and Humans. PLoS ONE 8(2): e56938.
Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a... more Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a need for a system to record external injuries in a standardised and simple way. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop and validate a system for injury recording in horses and to test its reliability and feasibility under field conditions. Methods: Injuries were classified into five categories according to severity. The scoring system was tested for intraand inter-observer agreement as well as agreement with a 'golden standard' (diagnosis established by a veterinarian). The scoring was done by 43 agricultural students who classified 40 photographs presented to them twice in a random order, 10 days apart. Attribute agreement analysis was performed using Kendall's coefficient of concordance (Kendall's W), Kendall's correlation coefficient (Kendall's τ) and Fleiss' kappa. The system was also tested on a sample of 100 horses kept in groups where injury location was recorded as well. Results: Intra-observer agreement showed Kendall's W ranging from 0.94 to 0.99 and 86% of observers had kappa values above 0.66 (substantial agreement). Inter-observer agreement had an overall Kendall's W of 0.91 and the mean kappa value was 0.59 (moderate). Agreement for all observers versus the 'golden standard' had Kendall's τ of 0.88 and the mean kappa value was 0.66 (substantial). The system was easy to use for trained persons under field conditions. Injuries of the more serious categories were not found in the field trial. Conclusion: The proposed injury scoring system is easy to learn and use also for people without a veterinary education, it shows high reliability, and it is clinically useful. The injury scoring system could be a valuable tool in future clinical and epidemiological studies.
Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to a... more Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to animals, using an internet-based questionnaire to which 1,902 female and 1,530 male student responded from 102 universities. Across countries female students had greater concern for animal welfare and rights than males, but especially so in more gender empowered countries. One contributing factor appeared to be the greater association of females than males with pets, and a possible outcome was greater female avoidance of meat consumption, especially red meat.
Early handling of animals including tactile stimulation (TS) has been shown to have beneficial ef... more Early handling of animals including tactile stimulation (TS) has been shown to have beneficial effects on the physical and psychological development of species where considerable maternal interaction, e.g. in the form of licking, already occurs. But little is known about the magnitude of these effects, if any, in species without this natural mechanism. Piglets from 13 litters (N = 127) were subjected to four treatments: AH -all piglets in a litter received TS; NH -none of the piglets in a litter received TS; 50/50H -half of a litter received TS and 50/50NH -half of a litter did not receive TS. The TS was performed by a human stroking the back of the piglet for 2 min from 5 to 35 days of age. At 4 weeks of age the piglets were tested twice in an open-field/human-approach test, with either a familiar (F) or an unfamiliar person (U). Body weight was measured at birth, 5, 9 and 12 weeks of age. In the tests, AH and 50/50H piglets allowed more physical contact, regardless of the familiarity of the person (AH: 22.5 ± 2.3 F; 24.1 ± 2.3 U, 50/50H: 18.1 ± 2.2 F; 25.3 ± 2.2 U, P = 0.05). Additionally, AH piglets vocalized least and were least often in the perimeter zone (PZ) of the arena (AH grunts: 6.0 ± 0.8, P = 0.002; 12.8 ± 0.8, P = 0.0005; 18.1 ± 0.8, P = 0.08; AH PZ: 3.9 ± 0.8, P = 0.009; 9.1 ± 0.8, P = 0.003; 12.6 ± 0.7, P = 0.004 in isolation, stationary and moving person phase, respectively). In contrast, NH piglets vocalized most and were most often in the PZ. 50/50NH had higher body weights at 12 weeks than 50/50H, whereas AH and NH piglets were intermediate (AH: 36.9 ± 0.9, NH: 35.6 ± 1.0, 50/50H: 34.2 ± 1.3, 50/50NH: 37.8 ± 1.3, P = 0.03). This study suggests that early handling changed the way piglets reacted to challenging situations in that handled piglets showed behaviour suggesting they were less fearful in a novel environment and less fearful of being handled by people in general. Interestingly though, the early handling did not result in the same beneficial effects on the physical development of the piglets, as handled piglets were not heavier. Instead, it was the 50/50NH piglets that were the heaviest, implying that the daily presence of a human moving around in the pen to handle the 50/50H piglets seemed to stimulate weight gain.
For dogs, humans are likely to be the most important feature in their environment influencing the... more For dogs, humans are likely to be the most important feature in their environment influencing their welfare. To investigate a commonly occurring human-dog interaction, behavioural and endocrine responses of 12 female beagle dogs were measured before, upon and after the return of a familiar person. Each dog was left by the person in a test arena to which it had been habituated prior to the experiment. Three different treatments were applied when the person returned and each dog experienced all these in a balanced design; the familiar person entered the test arena and 1) initiated physical and verbal contact in a calm and friendly way (PV), 2) there was verbal contact only (V) or, as a 'control', 3) the person ignored the dog (C). Interaction continued for 4min during which the person behaved in a standardized way according to the treatment. Blood samples were collected to investigate oxytocin and cortisol levels. Upon return, oxytocin increased initially, probably because of ...
Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is in... more Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is increasing. Here, we used a test of cognitive (judgement) bias, based on the finding that individuals experiencing different affective states judge ambiguous stimuli differently, to measure whether a positive low arousal affective state (e.g. ‘satisfaction’/‘contentment’) could be induced in domestic dogs as a result of their
Animals may experience positive affective states in response to their own achievements. We invest... more Animals may experience positive affective states in response to their own achievements. We investigated emotional responses to problem-solving in dogs, separating these from reactions to rewards per se using a yoked control design. We also questioned whether the intensity of reaction would vary with reward type. We examined the response (behavior and heart rate) of dogs as they learned to gain access to different rewards: (1) food (2) human contact, and (3) dog contact. Twelve beagles were assigned to matched pairs, and each dog served as both an experimental and a control animal during different stages of the experiment. We trained all dogs to perform distinct operant tasks and exposed them to additional devices to which they were not trained. Later, dogs were tested in a new context. When acting as an experimental dog, access to the reward was granted immediately upon completion of trained operant tasks. When acting as a control, access to the reward was independent of the dog&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;s actions and was instead granted after a delay equal to their matched partner&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;s latency to complete their task. Thus, differences between the two situations could be attributed to experimental dogs having the opportunity to learn to control access to the reward. Experimental dogs showed signs of excitement (e.g., increased tail wagging and activity) in response to their achievements, whereas controls showed signs of frustration (e.g., chewing of the operant device) in response to the unpredictability of the situation. The intensity of emotional response in experimental dogs was influenced by the reward type, i.e., greatest response to food and least to another dog. Our results suggest that dogs react emotionally to problem-solving opportunities and that tail wagging may be a useful indicator of positive affective states in dogs.
Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is in... more Interest in the induction and measurement of positive affective states in non-human animals is increasing. Here, we used a test of cognitive (judgement) bias, based on the finding that individuals experiencing different affective states judge ambiguous stimuli differently, to measure whether a positive low arousal affective state (e.g. 'satisfaction'/'contentment') could be induced in domestic dogs as a result of their experiencing a food-based rewarding event. In this rewarding event, subjects (1 year old female Beagles) had to search for small amounts of food randomly placed within a maze arena. Using a balanced withinsubjects design, the dogs (N = 12) received a cognitive bias test either without experiencing the rewarding event (the 'Neutral' treatment), or directly after experiencing the rewarding event (the 'Post-consumption' treatment). In the test, dogs were trained that one visual cue (e.g. dark grey card) predicted a positive event (food in a bowl) whilst a different cue (e.g. light grey card) predicted a relatively 'negative' event (empty bowl). We hypothesised that dogs tested after experiencing the rewarding event, and in a presumed post-consummatory positive affective state, would be more likely to judge visually ambiguous stimuli (intermediate grey cards) positively, compared to dogs in the 'Neutral' treatment. In contrast, we found that they took significantly longer to approach an intermediate ambiguous stimulus, suggesting that they were less likely to anticipate food (a negative judgement) compared to dogs in the 'Neutral' treatment group. Various explanations for the observed results are discussed, in particular how reward acquisition and consumption may influence positive affective state induction in animals.
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of time left alone on dog behaviour and cardi... more The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of time left alone on dog behaviour and cardiac activity. Twelve privately owned dogs, with no history of separation related behaviour problems, were video-recorded on three different occasions when left alone in their home environment. The treatments lasted for 0.5 h (T 0.5 ); 2 h (T 2 ) and 4 h (T 4 ). Videorecording started 10 min before the owner left the house and continued until 10 min after the owner returned, so that interactions between dog and owner as well as behaviour during separation could be studied. Data on heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) were collected within the same time period in each treatment. In addition to analysing behaviours separately, behaviours were also grouped together and defined as new variables; physically active, attentive behaviour, vocal, interaction initiated by owner and interaction initiated by dog. There were no differences in behaviour between treatments at equivalent time intervals until the owner returned, although a number of differences were observed at reunion with the owner. Dogs showed a higher frequency of physical activity (P < 0.05) and attentive behaviour (P < 0.01) in T 2 (0.37 ± 0.07; 0.52 ± 0.08, mean frequency of occurrence/15 s ± SE) and T 4 (0.48 ± 0.08; 0.48 ± 0.07) compared to T 0.5 (0.20 ± 0.07; 0.21 ± 0.05). They also showed more tail wagging (P < 0.01) and interacted more with their owners (P < 0.01) in T 2 (0.27 ± 0.08; 0.47 ± 0.09) and T 4 (0.26 ± 0.04; 0.42 ± 0.09) compared to T 0.5 (0.09 ± 0.04; 0.14 ± 0.03). After a longer time of separation, the dogs also showed higher frequencies of lip licking (P < 0.05) and body shaking (P < 0.05) at the owner's return (T 0.5 = 0.09 ± 0.05; T 2 = 0.24 ± 0.08; T 4 = 0.27 ± 0.06 and T 0.5 = 0.03 ± 0.01; T 2 = 0.08 ± 0.03; T 4 = 0.07 ± 0.01, respectively). There was a tendency for higher HR (P < 0.1) during the first and second minute after reunion in T 2 (127.6 ± 1.25, mean bpm ± SE; 111.3 ± 1.24) compared to T 0.5 (106.2 ± 1.06; 87.5 ± 1.02). According to the results of this study, the effect of time left alone was shown by a more intense greeting behaviour by the dog towards their owner as well as by a higher frequency of physical activity and attentive behaviour when the owner returned, already after 2 h of separation. Although this study cannot distinguish between whether dogs were aware of the length of time they were alone (but did not signal it) or whether they were unaware until reminded of it by the return of their owner, it does confirm that dogs are affected by the duration of time at home alone.
Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a... more Background: The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a need for a system to record external injuries in a standardised and simple way. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop and validate a system for injury recording in horses and to test its reliability and feasibility under field conditions. Methods: Injuries were classified into five categories according to severity. The scoring system was tested for intraand inter-observer agreement as well as agreement with a 'golden standard' (diagnosis established by a veterinarian). The scoring was done by 43 agricultural students who classified 40 photographs presented to them twice in a random order, 10 days apart. Attribute agreement analysis was performed using Kendall's coefficient of concordance (Kendall's W), Kendall's correlation coefficient (Kendall's τ) and Fleiss' kappa. The system was also tested on a sample of 100 horses kept in groups where injury location was recorded as well. Results: Intra-observer agreement showed Kendall's W ranging from 0.94 to 0.99 and 86% of observers had kappa values above 0.66 (substantial agreement). Inter-observer agreement had an overall Kendall's W of 0.91 and the mean kappa value was 0.59 (moderate). Agreement for all observers versus the 'golden standard' had Kendall's τ of 0.88 and the mean kappa value was 0.66 (substantial). The system was easy to use for trained persons under field conditions. Injuries of the more serious categories were not found in the field trial. Conclusion: The proposed injury scoring system is easy to learn and use also for people without a veterinary education, it shows high reliability, and it is clinically useful. The injury scoring system could be a valuable tool in future clinical and epidemiological studies.
Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to a... more Simple Summary: We surveyed university students in 11 Eurasian countries for their attitudes to animals, using an internet-based questionnaire to which 1,902 female and 1,530 male student responded from 102 universities. Across countries female students had greater concern for animal welfare and rights than males, but especially so in more gender empowered countries. One contributing factor appeared to be the greater association of females than males with pets, and a possible outcome was greater female avoidance of meat consumption, especially red meat.
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Papers by Therese Rehn