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News & Reports animal welfare
Why do pets misbehave and what can be done about it? Misbehaviour can be a problem in pets and leisure horses, but what causes it and what can be done about it? A symposium organised by CABI and the Royal Veterinary College on June 17 discussed the topic of ‘animals behaving badly’, considering the reasons behind such behaviour, and measures that might be taken to tackle it. Georgina Mills reports ‘The devil makes work for idle paws,’ said Charlotte Burn, lecturer in animal welfare and behaviour science at the Royal Veterinary College, who suggested that much of the bad behaviour seen in pets could be down to the fact that they were kept in captivity. Bad behaviour was an undesirable trait, she said, particularly for owners, but this behaviour could be split into two types: natural and abnormal. Many behaviours that were considered ‘bad’ by the owner were actually natural behaviours that the animal would perform in the wild. This could include scent marking or even some types of aggression. The problem with these behaviours was that they were not appropriate in the human environment. In contrast, abnormal behaviour was behaviour that the animals would not perform in the wild. This could be a normal behaviour but done to an abnormal degree; for example, barbering in caged rats, or highly repetitive stereotypic behaviour, for example crib biting in horses. So why did animals behave badly? There were certain motivations that might make an animal badly behaved, she said. These included fear, which might lead to an animal being aggressive when scared; pain, resulting in an animal biting its owner when they touched a painful part of its body; to gain reward, with an animal behaving badly to get attention; or simply just frustration and boredom. The difference between frustration and boredom was that frustration was the inability to satisfy one or more specific motivations, while boredom was the motivation to do something else. In the wild, animals had to hunt and forage, seek and build shelter, and so on; captive animals, however, were very well looked after and this could lead to idleness. Captive animals would therefore seek stimulation, novel experiences and diversity: ‘They have to do something with their time,’ she said. Frustration and boredom were highly unpleasant for people, Dr Burn commented. Boredom was a big problem for human prisoners, and it must be the same for captive animals. In the longer term, understimulation damaged the central nervous system, so it was a significant welfare issue.
Animals will retain their wild instincts even when kept in captivity, and failing to meet their needs can lead to misbehaviour
Problems in horses
It is not only companion animals that can be badly behaved, and Roly Owers, chief executive of World Horse Welfare, discussed some of the issues encountered among horses. He reported that research had shown that 82 per cent of leisure horses had stable-related and handling behavioural problems, as reported by their owners. The causes of bad behaviour were ‘many and varied’, he said, but people were very quick to judge a badly behaved horse. In addition, the rider or owner often misunderstood what the problem was. In many cases, the behaviour was not the root of the problem, but a symptom of something else. ‘We need to treat bad behaviour like any other presenting condition,’ said Mr Owers, and the first step was to take a complete history. He pointed out that horses were often purchased from sellers and not bred by owners and this created some problems. ‘You start on the back foot,’ he said, as the history of the animal was often unknown. Pain was a factor that could influence behaviour and it could be for a non-specific problem or for a very specific problem. Also, he noted, it was not just acute pain that could affect behaviour, but chronic pain too. However, in retaining their instincts as a prey animal, horses were known to hide their pain. Managing behavioural problems was hard and, like the history of an animal, the training techniques that had been used before purchase were often unknown.
Poor training techniques in the past could be the reason for a badly behaved horse, he said. Looking at research into tackling behavioural problems, he said that techniques such as including social contact with people from an early age, paddock weaning and making sure the training used was outcomes focused could all lead to a better behaved horse. With horse behaviour, said Mr Owers, ‘You’ll never know what is normal for a horse, until you know what is abnormal’. He concluded by saying that, although there was a wealth of science and research available, the most important tool was experience and common sense.
Social interaction
‘The more you understand about the behaviour of the animal, the physiology and function, and indeed its clinical condition, the more likely it is that you are going to be able get it to do what you want,’ said Donald Broom, emeritus professor of animal welfare at the University of Cambridge, in the final talk of the day. Bad behaviour was mostly a consequence of people failing to provide for an animal’s needs or not providing the right context for the instruction that was being given, he said. Among other factors that could affect the behaviour of animals, and also their welfare, was a lack of companions. By their very name, he said, companion animals were social, and they needed interactions, whether this was from conspecifics or people. Dogs and horses in particular, he said, benefited significantly when living with others. Professor Broom concluded by discussing guilt. There had been a lot of research into whether dogs could feel guilt and the conclusion was that they could. However, whether this was true guilt, or just knowing that there would be repercussions, would never be understood. If dogs did indeed feel guilt, that meant that they knew what bad behaviour was. Could this be the animals’ sign that their welfare needs were not being met? asked Professor Broom. If bad behaviour was a signal of poor welfare, this could prompt the owner to take action. doi: 10.1136/vr.h3671 July 18, 2015 | Veterinary Record | 63
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on July 16, 2015 - Published by group.bmj.com
Why do pets misbehave and what can be done about it? Veterinary Record 2015 177: 63
doi: 10.1136/vr.h3671 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/177/3/63
These include:
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To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
News & Reports animal welfare
Why do pets misbehave and what can be done about it? Misbehaviour can be a problem in pets and leisure horses, but what causes it and what can be done about it? A symposium organised by CABI and the Royal Veterinary College on June 17 discussed the topic of ‘animals behaving badly’, considering the reasons behind such behaviour, and measures that might be taken to tackle it. Georgina Mills reports ‘The devil makes work for idle paws,’ said Charlotte Burn, lecturer in animal welfare and behaviour science at the Royal Veterinary College, who suggested that much of the bad behaviour seen in pets could be down to the fact that they were kept in captivity. Bad behaviour was an undesirable trait, she said, particularly for owners, but this behaviour could be split into two types: natural and abnormal. Many behaviours that were considered ‘bad’ by the owner were actually natural behaviours that the animal would perform in the wild. This could include scent marking or even some types of aggression. The problem with these behaviours was that they were not appropriate in the human environment. In contrast, abnormal behaviour was behaviour that the animals would not perform in the wild. This could be a normal behaviour but done to an abnormal degree; for example, barbering in caged rats, or highly repetitive stereotypic behaviour, for example crib biting in horses. So why did animals behave badly? There were certain motivations that might make an animal badly behaved, she said. These included fear, which might lead to an animal being aggressive when scared; pain, resulting in an animal biting its owner when they touched a painful part of its body; to gain reward, with an animal behaving badly to get attention; or simply just frustration and boredom. The difference between frustration and boredom was that frustration was the inability to satisfy one or more specific motivations, while boredom was the motivation to do something else. In the wild, animals had to hunt and forage, seek and build shelter, and so on; captive animals, however, were very well looked after and this could lead to idleness. Captive animals would therefore seek stimulation, novel experiences and diversity: ‘They have to do something with their time,’ she said. Frustration and boredom were highly unpleasant for people, Dr Burn commented. Boredom was a big problem for human prisoners, and it must be the same for captive animals. In the longer term, understimulation damaged the central nervous system, so it was a significant welfare issue.
Animals will retain their wild instincts even when kept in captivity, and failing to meet their needs can lead to misbehaviour
Problems in horses
It is not only companion animals that can be badly behaved, and Roly Owers, chief executive of World Horse Welfare, discussed some of the issues encountered among horses. He reported that research had shown that 82 per cent of leisure horses had stable-related and handling behavioural problems, as reported by their owners. The causes of bad behaviour were ‘many and varied’, he said, but people were very quick to judge a badly behaved horse. In addition, the rider or owner often misunderstood what the problem was. In many cases, the behaviour was not the root of the problem, but a symptom of something else. ‘We need to treat bad behaviour like any other presenting condition,’ said Mr Owers, and the first step was to take a complete history. He pointed out that horses were often purchased from sellers and not bred by owners and this created some problems. ‘You start on the back foot,’ he said, as the history of the animal was often unknown. Pain was a factor that could influence behaviour and it could be for a non-specific problem or for a very specific problem. Also, he noted, it was not just acute pain that could affect behaviour, but chronic pain too. However, in retaining their instincts as a prey animal, horses were known to hide their pain. Managing behavioural problems was hard and, like the history of an animal, the training techniques that had been used before purchase were often unknown.
Poor training techniques in the past could be the reason for a badly behaved horse, he said. Looking at research into tackling behavioural problems, he said that techniques such as including social contact with people from an early age, paddock weaning and making sure the training used was outcomes focused could all lead to a better behaved horse. With horse behaviour, said Mr Owers, ‘You’ll never know what is normal for a horse, until you know what is abnormal’. He concluded by saying that, although there was a wealth of science and research available, the most important tool was experience and common sense.
Social interaction
‘The more you understand about the behaviour of the animal, the physiology and function, and indeed its clinical condition, the more likely it is that you are going to be able get it to do what you want,’ said Donald Broom, emeritus professor of animal welfare at the University of Cambridge, in the final talk of the day. Bad behaviour was mostly a consequence of people failing to provide for an animal’s needs or not providing the right context for the instruction that was being given, he said. Among other factors that could affect the behaviour of animals, and also their welfare, was a lack of companions. By their very name, he said, companion animals were social, and they needed interactions, whether this was from conspecifics or people. Dogs and horses in particular, he said, benefited significantly when living with others. Professor Broom concluded by discussing guilt. There had been a lot of research into whether dogs could feel guilt and the conclusion was that they could. However, whether this was true guilt, or just knowing that there would be repercussions, would never be understood. If dogs did indeed feel guilt, that meant that they knew what bad behaviour was. Could this be the animals’ sign that their welfare needs were not being met? asked Professor Broom. If bad behaviour was a signal of poor welfare, this could prompt the owner to take action. doi: 10.1136/vr.h3671 July 18, 2015 | Veterinary Record | 63
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on July 16, 2015 - Published by group.bmj.com
Why do pets misbehave and what can be done about it? Veterinary Record 2015 177: 63
doi: 10.1136/vr.h3671 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/177/3/63
These include:
Email alerting service
Receive free email alerts when new articles cite this article. Sign up in the box at the top right corner of the online article.
Notes
To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
