Basic level Pet Science Module B5

Dog and cat behaviour

Aims and objectives

To provide an understanding of how dogs and cats behave and why. i.e. what makes a cat a cat and a dog a dog?

Main areas to be covered: Domestication and breeds Communication Training and socialisation Other aspects of behaviour an owner may see

Domestication and breeds

Wild relatives
Dog domesticated from the wolf (Canis lupus) Cat domesticated from African wildcat (Felis sylvestris lybica)

Domestication
Domestication = to tame or bring under control Tameness/reduced fear of humans Increase in juvenile characteristics in adult (eg more playful)

Dogs are not just tame wolves; cats are not tame wild cats. There are many similarities but generations of selection by man has resulted in lots of differences

Exercise
On your learning log list as many different uses of dogs as you can think of (2 minutes)

Variety of dog breeds

Huge variety in appearance and behaviour among the various dog breeds Many different functions of breeds Different types of breeds and their uses
The domestic dog is the most varied single species on the planet

Exercise
Look at the breeds on your Learning Log and put them into the correct groupings on the following pages Remember that this list of groupings is not exclusive and certain breeds may not fit well into any of these groupings. Some breeds may fit into more than one grouping.

Hunting breeds (hounds)

Bred to hunt and catch prey using either sight or scent Sighthounds - greyhounds, salukis - very swift. May chase small animals Scent hounds - eg beagles very persistent, great stamina. Like to follow scents
Greyhounds can run up to 57km/hr

Retrievers
Bred to hunt and flush out game and/or retrieve shot game Playful, intelligent, easy to train Very common as family pets

Guarding breeds
Originally bred for guarding, hunting large dangerous game or fighting Make lots of noise when intruder approaches to scare it away Often less active

TerrierTerrier-type
Originally bred to go down holes to fight, drive out vermin, ratters Highly reactive/assertive Very active breeds Intelligent Often quite dominant

Herding breeds
Highly intelligent Need lots of stimulation to prevent them getting bored Many have a herding instinct (e.g. border collies)
(Also driving breeds, e.g. corgies, heelers - nip at heels of cattle to keep them moving)

Companion breeds
Bred as companions only Lots of variety but most are very small Big personality

The smallest breed is the chihuahua which can weigh just 1kg!

Cats
Cat - only animal domesticated from a solitary species Domestic cats do sometimes live in groups with complex social relationships NOT a typical domestic species Cats are usually seen as free agents, not dependant on man for survival

Exercise
We have learned that dogs are kept for many purposes. On your learning log list any purposes to keep a cat. (2 minutes) What breed are the majority of cats?

Cats
Few purposes - Mainly pets and ratters Probably originally tolerated by man due to their rodent killing behaviour

Cat breeds
Most cats are mixed breed (domestic shorthair) 2 most well known breeds - Persian and Siamese Other breeds also exist Much smaller size range than dog breeds (210kg) Less variety of breeds than dogs

Exercise
On your leaning log write down what characteristics an owner might see in their cat. (2 minutes)

Communication

Dog and cat senses: Smell

A cats sense of smell is approximately 10 times more sensitive than a humans A dogs sense of smell may be up to 1000 times more sensitive than a humans

Vision
Better adapted for low light conditions than human vision More sensitive to movement than human vision Less good at seeing fine detail than humans
It is not true that dogs can only see in black and white. Dogs are thought to have similar colour vision to humans who are redgreen colour blind

What a human sees

What a dog may see (red and green are similar)

Hearing
Cats Cats ears can move to locate source of sound Much higher frequencies than humans & dogs (3 times as high compared to humans) Pitches of mice and other small rodents Higher frequencies than humans Little difference between breeds (no effect of size)

Dogs

Cat & Dog communication

Vocalisations Body language
eye contact, tail, posture

Smell

Can be affected by breeding (eg floppy ears) or cosmetic changes (eg docked tail) Less easy for humans to understand cat communication - possibly because less social species than dogs

Dogs
Very social animals Effective communication is important in social species

Dog body language

Discuss with the person next to you what is happening in this picture

Dominant behaviour
stiff, tall stance, ears up or forward, tail up, staring

Subordinate behaviour
crouched posture, ears flat, tail low, averting gaze

Exercise
Look at the following slides and think about what the cats behaviour shows How are these cats feeling?

Fearful or aggressive
Ears flat Mouth open showing teeth

Relaxed Ears more relaxed Body more relaxed Tail away from body Feet tucked under body

Fearful/startled
Tail down Back arched Eyes and ears wide and alert Hackles up

Really relaxed
exposing vulnerable underparts

Training and socialisation

How animals learn

Animals learn the same way as we do If behaviour has a good result it will be repeated Need to find animals motivations But they may come to the wrong conclusions

Importance of positive training - punishment often leads to further problems and is less effective Reward good behaviour Any attention may be good attention to a dog Ignore bad behaviour

It is essential that good behaviour is frequently rewarded through the dogs life or it will start to forget!

Early socialisation
Puppy classes/parties Need to learn appropriate behaviour Need to experience anything they will experience in life Best time for socialisation: Puppies 3-10 weeks old (approx) Kittens 2-7 weeks old (approx) If introduced at the right age dogs and cats can become friends!

Owner influence on behaviour

Dogs and cats can understand a lot of human gestures and body language Dogs and cats can read very subtle signals that we may not even know we are giving

Other behaviours an owner will see

Exercise
On your Learning Log tick the boxes on the table for the species to which the statements apply
Dog
1) Need a quiet safe place to rest and sleep 2) Often prefer to sleep higher up where they feel safer 3) Encourage play with others using a distinctive play-bow posture 4) Hunting behaviour is often displayed by pets as play 5) Not truly nocturnal. They are very active at dusk but generally most of their sleep is at night 6) Hunt by stealth then chase 7) Hunt by stealth and ambush. Prey caught with claws, then teeth used to kill

Cat

Both

Exercise
Thinking back to what has been discussed what can an owner do to enrich the life of their pet? Fill in your answers for dogs and cats on your Learning Log

Enriching the environment

What can an owner do... Toys, play, companionship, games, training, exercise Dogs and cats are intelligent animals and needs things to stop them getting bored Especially important for animals left alone for long periods

Behaviour problems
May be normal behaviours that are socially unacceptable May occur as a result of poor socialisation, training or miscommunication

So what is normal behaviour?

Think about... the species the breed the individual lifestyle and environment
Owners need to understand the normal behaviour of their pet to tell it is happy and healthy

Extending your learning

Waltham intranet - Dog and Cat Behaviour section (www.waltham.mars) Turner, D. C. & Bateson, P. (2000) The Domestic Cat: the biology of its behaviour. Serpell J.A. (1995) The Domestic Dog: its evolution, behaviour and interactions with people.