1. Behavioural indicators 2
Module 7
Behavioural indicators 2

2. Learning Objectives
To recognise and interpret behavioural indicators of animal welfare
To learn how to identify possible causes of abnormal behaviour

3. Summary of Content How to: Recognise ‘normal’ behaviour
Identify a range of behavioural indicators
Interpret behavioural indicators that animals display
Identify possible causes of abnormal behaviour

4. Introduction
Module 6 looked at how behavioural indicators are used by animal welfare science to identify how the animal feels about changes and choices within its environment
In this session we shall look at how you can use behavioural indicators to learn about the welfare status of animals
The experiments that explore animal behaviour and motivation must be carried out under strictly controlled conditions if they are to provide valid evidence. This makes for good science, but often means that experimental situations are rather different to ‘real life’. For example, animals may need sessions to be taught how to gain their rewards in tests of motivation. Animals may be kept in very small groups while undergoing these experiments.
Evidence generated in this way must be interpreted carefully when viewed on the farm, in a domestic environment or in the laboratory.
This session will concentrate on much more straightforward observation of animal behaviour.
The intention is that anyone who observes animals closely should be able to learn how to assess their behaviour. Once such an assessment has been made, we shall then explore how to interpret findings to make judgements about the welfare status of animals seen in practical settings.
It is important to recognise that this is not an exact science, performed under the controlled conditions of animal welfare science. Animal behaviour is highly complex and influenced by many factors, both intrinsic and external. However, the more familiar you become with animals, the better you should be able to recognise when something is wrong. (All those who have animals of their own will know that it is usually very easy to notice when something is not right.)

5. Behavioural indicators - the ‘normal’ animal
Alertness
Curiosity
Range of activities
Interaction with other members of the herd/flock
Interaction with humans/Aversion to humans
Play
The normal animal, depending on its species, environment, etc. shows a range of behaviour as shown on the slide. We need to be familiar with the normal animal in order to:
Identify deviations from normal that may show that an animal’s welfare is poor and/or that it is showing signs of disease
Notice positive indications of well-being (not just suffering)
Identify signs that animals have been well-treated or badly-treated by humans.
These are the aspects that we shall explore.

6. The ‘normal’ animal: Alertness
In evolutionary terms, alertness is essential. Prey species evolved constantly to monitor their environment for signs of danger, so that they could react swiftly to avoid it. Although sheep have been domesticated for hundreds of years, they remain watchful and alert for any change in the environment.
Equally, the survival of hunting species depends upon active and watchful monitoring of the environment. A dog sleeping in front of the fire will usually respond at once to an unusual sound.

7. The ‘normal’ animal: Curiosity
Animals that are introduced to a new environment will explore it. Often a lag phase precedes the exploration phase, while the animals assess whether there may be dangers associated with their novel environment. The level of curiosity shown varies with age. Adult cattle or horses, for example, quickly settle down to graze, while young animals may spend a long time exploring. Individual responses may vary with experience – animals that have been badly treated or have never experienced novelty may take a very long time before they show signs of curiosity about their environment.
Again, this is probably a result of evolutionary change – wild animals evolved to exploit new environments whilst looking for food, water and habitats for nesting or breeding.

8. The ‘normal’ animal: Range of activities
Many factors affect the range of activities seen:
Species (for example, a dog has very different activities from a chicken).
Breed.
Age - young animals are more active, more likely to play, and spend more time sleeping.
Environment - may be limited to what is available within a pen. Animals in the wild may have adapted to new urban environments.
Group size and interaction (e.g. presence of dominant male and young males).
Season (e.g. breeding, migration).

9. The ‘normal’ animal: Interaction with other members of group/herd/flock
A number of factors influence interaction between members of the group.
Species: Some are solitary or form small family groups. Others, such as wild dogs, sheep and cattle, live in groups.
Breed.
Size of group: On the farm, group size may be very large (e.g. broiler chickens, dairy herds). Animals get to know individuals in small groups, not in very large groups. Hierarchy can be much better established in small groups.
Presence or absence of breeding males or dominant adult female to take the lead.
Age range: There may be competition between animals of different ages in a group. For example, older cows may bully heifers when they join the dairy herd and prevent them from feeding.

10. The ‘normal’ animal: Interaction with humans
The behaviour of a ‘normal’ animal varies with its previous experience:
If never handled or wild, it is likely to be fearful, and may show aggression when cornered.
If previous experience with humans has been positive, the animal is likely to be friendly, curious, and will approach a stationary human after a period.
If previous experience with humans has been negative, the animal may be fearful and restless or aggressive.

11. The ‘normal’ animal: Play
Young animals tend to play more than adults, and we associate play with a feeling of well-being.
Potential reasons for play include:
To develop activities they will need when older; e.g. young cats learn to hunt by stalking other members of the group or the mother’s tail.
To develop and strengthen muscles (needed for flight, hunting, fighting, etc.).
To strengthen bonds with other members of the group.

12. The ‘normal’ animal: Behaviour influenced by species, age, breed and sex
As explained above, we need to become familiar with each species, and animals of a range of ages, before we can truly understand the normal animal. This requires a lot of practice and time spent observing animals in different situations.

13. The experienced stockman
The person who knows most about a group of animals is the stockperson in charge of them. This can be valuable when investigating a particular problem, but can also be a very effective way to learn about animals in your locality. Their breeding, experience, etc. may be unique to your area.

14. Behavioural indicators of poor welfare
Limited range of activity
Panting and/or sweating
Huddling or shivering
Depression
Abnormal fear or aggression towards humans
Stereotypies and other behavioural abnormalities
As we can see from this slide, when we look for behavioural indicators of poor welfare, we look for an absence of the behavioural signs that indicate normality. This is because it is much easier to become familiar with what is normal than to categorise all the ways that animal behaviour may be abnormal.
The behavioural signs listed here are simply those that are seen most frequently. Other signs, such as increased vocalisation, may or may not indicate a problem.
It might seem more logical to explore the issue in terms of the poor welfare systems that are likely to result in the behavioural signs listed here. However, as veterinarians, you will see animals displaying abnormal behaviour. It is then up to you to investigate the causes of that abnormal behaviour – some of which will be the result of poor welfare.

15. 1a) Limited range of activity
May affect individuals or a whole group, and includes:
Restricted space in intensive farming systems or laboratory housing
Close tethering
Lameness
Increased lying time (due to lameness, disease, obesity or weakness)
In module 6, (Behavioural indicators 1), we looked at animal welfare science experiments where the range of normal behaviours carried out by animals has been recorded in an ethogram. If you watch normal animals for a while, you see all sorts of behaviour (sleeping, scratching, playing, stretching, eating, grazing, drinking, walking, etc.). In some farming systems, animals may be able to perform only a very small number of activities. Often animals will be seen doing nothing – but ‘normal’ animals seldom do nothing. It is considered that the environment of dairy cows who spend a lot of time ‘idling’ (neither eating, drinking, sleeping, nor chewing cud) is probably poor.

16. 1b) Limited range of activity due to confined housing
An animal such as an orang-utan should perform a vast range of activities. A lot of time would be spent travelling through the forest and foraging for suitable feed. When confined to a small cage the animal has few behavioural options.
We intuitively can assume that animals that are prevented from carrying out most of their normal activities will suffer.
However, as discussed in module 6 (Behavioural indicators 1), we cannot be sure, and other behavioural and physiological assessment techniques have been used to explore the welfare implications of factors such as confined housing. (See modules 3, 4 and 6).
Animal welfarists would probably all agree that animals should be given the benefit of the doubt and ‘Freedom to express normal behaviour’ is one of the Five Freedoms revised by FAWC in 1993.

17. 1c) Limited range of activity due to close tethering
Close tethering similarly prevents animals from expressing many forms of natural behaviour. Tethering sows is now banned in countries in the European Union (to come into force in 2006).
The animal in the picture is perhaps showing signs of ‘learned helplessness’ as a result of close tethering. This is a condition where animals lose responsiveness to stimuli, as a result of a prolonged period of being prevented from performing normal activities. Webster (1994) suggests that learned helplessness describes “the state of mind in an animal that has given up” and calls it ‘hopelessness’. Others have suggested that there may be some adaptive benefit from the state (so that the animal no longer notices its state of deprivation), although this is a contentious viewpoint.

18. 1d) Limited range of activity due to lameness
Lame animals suffer as:
They are in pain
They do not interact normally with other herd members
They are often thin because they cannot move easily to feed
They may suffer urine scalding or develop sores from lying down for long periods
Lameness is an extremely important welfare issue because:
It indicates severe suffering. Grazing species such as sheep have adapted to show signs of pain only if it is severe, so a cow or sheep that is hobbling with lameness is likely to be suffering from very severe pain.
It is extremely common. In some farming systems such as broiler chicken rearing, some degree of lameness is the norm rather than an abnormality, and incidence rates of 25% or more are common in many farming systems.
Lame animals that are used for draft purposes may be forced to work. This increases suffering and may exacerbate the condition causing further lameness.
Lameness is a condition that is easily recognised, even by untrained people.

19. 1e) Increased lying time due to weakness, disease, obesity
Weakness may be the result of chronic starvation
Many diseases cause exhaustion or collapse
Obesity is an important issue among pet animals
As veterinarians we will often encounter these cases.
Starvation that is so profound as to result in weakness suggests more welfare issues than just a limited range of activity. However, animals that are chronically short of food may simply fail to perform their normal repertoire of activity, particularly self-grooming, playing and exploring.
Most disease is associated with suffering other than just loss of normal activity. However, the first sign of disease may be the animal’s failure to react normally within a group.
In some countries, obesity is common and associated with increased incidence of chronic disease in animals, as in humans. Obese animals may have difficulty getting up and moving about, be reluctant to take exercise and be highly susceptible to heat stress. Although obesity is an indicator of poor welfare, owners of obese pets are often extremely caring towards their animals, so it may be difficult for the veterinarian to tackle this problem.

20. 2. Panting and/or sweating
Heat stress
Fever
Overcrowding
Fear
Identify the cause by measuring ambient temperature, stocking density, and by clinical examination for other signs of disease
Identify the causes of panting and/or sweating:
Measure ambient temperature and ventilation.
Measure stocking density (area available for stock divided by number of animals housed).
Measure body temperature of affected animals to check for fever.
Make thorough clinical examination to identify disease (for example respiratory or cardiac problem that may cause panting) or focus of pain.
Explore possible reasons for fear.

21. 3. Huddling or shivering Cold Fear
Does not usually affect most animals except in extreme environments
Often affects very young animals
More likely where animals are wet and chilled by wind
More likely if young animals have not been fed
Fear
Both cold and fear may cause animals to shiver.
Mammals and birds are able to regulate their own body temperature very effectively. They do this using a mixture of internal mechanisms (such as sweating when too hot, shivering and fluffing out feathers/fur when cold) and external methods (moving into the shade, wallowing in mud or swimming when too hot, moving into shelter when cold).
Different species are adapted to different environments (for example, a polar bear with a thick fur coat and layer of subcutaneous fat would overheat in the desert, and a desert fox would suffer from cold in the Antarctic).
The ‘thermo-neutral’ zone (range of ambient temperature where animals can maintain their normal body temperature without having to actively regulate it) is quite wide (approximately between 10oC - 30oC) in adult ruminants, but much narrower (approximately 20oC - 25oC) in animals such as pigs and chickens.
Animals kept in intensive farming systems are unable to move about (for example, to wallow or shelter) to find a more comfortable environment.
Young animals are much less efficient at regulating body temperature. Hypothermia is a very common cause of death in lambs in the UK. It occurs when lambs fail to suckle and become chilled.

22. 4. Depression
Depression can be a clinical sign of disease due to fever, pain, toxaemia or starvation. It demonstrates the following:
Drooping ears
Head down
Standing in hunched posture or collapsed
Listless, not interested in surroundings
Separate from others in group
Does not feed
These generalised clinical signs do not allow the veterinarian to identify the cause of disease.
It is not difficult to recognise that animals showing these signs are suffering.
The donkey in the picture is very thin, its coat is in poor condition (perhaps a sign of tick infestation or other disease) and it appears to be lame (right foreleg). It may also be exhausted.
It shows no interest in the group of people behind it, nor in other donkeys (in the background of the picture).
The ears are not pricked up, nor are they actively following sounds (signs of an alert animal). The eyes are dull. It shows many signs consistent with depression.

23. 5. Abnormal fear or aggression towards humans
‘Normal’ depends upon species, breed and previous contact with humans
Animals learn from experience: abnormal fear or aggression may indicate previous cruelty
It is quite normal for animals that have experienced little contact with humans to show signs of fear. Aggression may be displayed if the animal feels that it is cornered.
Certain individuals or breeds may be particularly prone to show aggression.
However, domestic animals and pets that have plenty of contact with humans should not show fear or aggression in normal circumstances. Animal welfare scientists have found that animals quickly learn to mistrust humans if they are treated badly. The next two slides give examples.

24. Negative tactile interactions
Negative interactions for seconds daily cause pigs to be less willing to approach stationary humans
Positive interactions cause pigs to be more willing to approach stationary humans
This was an experiment done on pigs, carried out under controlled conditions.
Negative interactions in the experiment included slaps or brief shocks with electrical prodders.
Positive interactions included calm handling with stroking.
Every day we can see examples of the same effect among farm animals, working horses and pets.

25. Pig interaction with stockman50
100
150
Time to interact (s)
-ve
none
In this study the time taken (in seconds) for a pig to interact with a human was measured. The red bar indicates the time taken to interact for pigs that had been slapped and hit by the stockmen. The yellow bar shows the time taken for pigs to react to stockmen when they have not been subjected to either positive or negative experiences. The green bar indicates the time until interaction of pigs that were stroked in a positive manner.
The diagram above shows that those pigs that were hit (negative reactions – red bars) took much longer to come forward and interact with the stockman than those pigs which had had no interaction with stockmen (yellow bars) and those that had been stroked in a positive way (green bars).
+ve
(Gonyou et al., 1986)

26. 5. Abnormal fear or aggression towards humans
‘Normal’ depends upon species, breed and previous contact with humans. Dairy cows who are frequently handled should not be afraid of people
It is important to emphasise that there is a great range in the ‘normal’ behaviour that we can expect animals to display. These cows are alert, friendly and curious.

27. 6. Stereotypies and other behavioural abnormalities
Stereotypic behaviour was briefly explored in module 6 (Behavioural indicators 1). Stereotypies are repeated patterns of behaviour that have no apparent purpose. Other behavioural abnormalities include self-mutilation in pets, feather-pecking (chickens) and tail-biting (pigs).
These are complex behaviours whose causes are not fully understood. Tail-biting in pigs, for example, may occur even in rich outdoor environments. Self-mutilation in pets may begin as a response to a genuine irritation, but continues once the irritation is removed (or heals).
Horses display a variety of stereotypies including weaving, crib-biting, and wind-sucking. These are often associated with loss of body condition and greatly reduce the economic value of affected horses. Many methods have been tried to control these behaviours – most not completely effective. Some consider that affected horses derive some satisfaction from these behaviours so should not be stopped from performing them.
As well as being, at least in part, a sign of frustration or boredom, some are associated directly with suffering (e.g. victims of tail-biting and feather-pecking, self-mutilated pets).
Even young animals may develop stereotypic behaviour if kept in a barren environment. The behaviour may persist even when the animals are moved to an enriched environment (for example, zoo elephants may continue to rock even when offered access to plenty of space and a stimulating environment).

28. Conclusions/Summary
The behaviour of animals can tell us a great deal about their welfare
If animal behaviour indicates poor welfare, we need to investigate its causes and then identify potential solutions