Newsletter – January 2012 2012January2012011January/February 09

Learning About Animals was set up to provide information and promote interest in the welfare and behaviour of animals. The aim is to bridge the gap between professionals  & scientists working with animals and the public.

 

If you have any suggestions for future events or if you would like to be considered to be a speaker please contact me.

 

I am also a qualified equine behaviourist and run consultations in Surrey and the Home Counties.  For more details please visit the relevant section of the web site.

 

EVENTS LIST

HORSES:  Series of six evening classes in equine behaviour
Six evenings every Thursday from January 19th - 1st March 2012
Held at the Holistic Horse and Pony Centre in East Horsley, Surrey. 7.30-10pm. Details. Taking bookings now.

 

First Aid for Dogs: course with Claire Hemmings
Saturday 25th February 2012
£40 for the four-hour course. Details. Taking bookings now.

 

RABBITS: Rabbit behaviour day
Sunday 26th February 2012
A whole day dedicated to rabbits. Covering rabbit behaviour, body language and communication, how to have a happy rabbit, how rabbits learn and how behaviour problems can develop.
£20 for the day; £15 for members. Details. Taking bookings now.

 

DOGS: The Holistic Nature of Canine Behaviour Problems with David Ryan
Saturday 24th March 2012
This one-day seminar explores the nature of dogs, how they maintain emotional equilibrium, why they fall into problem behaviours and the principles behind some simple solutions. Includes case studies, anecdotes and the opportunity for audience discussion.
£45; £33.75 for members. Details Taking bookings now.

 

HORSES: Exploring the latest findings in equine cognition
31st March 2012
Morning lecture with equine scientist Leanne Proops; £15, £11.25 for members. Details) Taking bookings now.

 

Learning theory day
Sold out previously - new date coming soon
A day exploring the fascinating topic of how animals learn. The focus is on horses and dogs but other species will be featured. £30 for the day. Details.

 

 Amber Batson: one cat event and one dog event - dates coming soon.

 

Interesting links

 

1. Rats display empathy and help other rats in need LINK

 

2. Abrantes on ‘dominance’ in dogs LINK

 

3. Human behaviour change for equine welfare LINK

 

4. Elephant seal travels 18,000 miles LINK

 

5. Handling farm animals and stress LINK

 

6. New questions about animal empathy LINK

 

7. Article about the psychology of eating meat LINK

 

8. Video about horses and bits LINK

 

9. Article about making the vet surgery behaviourally aware LINK

 

10. Controversial head of Sea Sheppard gives a passionate talk about his work LINK

 

Household products and animal welfare

 

Animal welfare research is being done on how small animals we keep as pets are affected by odours. For example some perfumes, inks, paints and cleaning products contain solvents that are like the odour of cats - and as a result rats and mice avoid areas where they have been used. This highlights how being a small pet might involve stress and fear from the environment that has not previously been realised. The results will give us a better understanding of which products are safe to use around our pets and which should be avoided.

 

Rescue Review

This new website (www.rescuereview.co.uk) provides a directory (over 2500 entries and growing) of most of the animal rescue centres in the UK. It is a free to use, unbiased animal adoption comparison site and rescue directory providing up to date information for those considering adoption.

In the same way as TripAdvisor can help people make informed choices about various hotels etc, this website will do the same for rescue centres. This will also motivate those centres who receive negative comments to improve their standards.

The website was developed by welfare consultant Miranda Luck, who through  discussion with UK animal rehoming and welfare organisations, welfare lobbyists and veterinary professionals, recognised the need to collate and monitor the value and success of the rescue and rehoming efforts in the UK.

If you have adopted an animal from a shelter in the last two years you can submit a review. You will then be entered into a prize draw to win a year’s supply of James Wellbeloved pet food.

 

Thoughts about what we expect of our dogs

 

This Christmas we visited my in-laws and the house was pretty full. Eight adults, five children, two cats, three dogs, a million Christmas presents and food everywhere!

 

Two of the dogs were our two lurchers. Usually their lives consist of sleeping for much of the day with breaks for investigating the garden, walks, chews, visiting the horses and zooming around a field or two before more sleeping. Ours is a quiet house with nothing much going on and although they sometimes meet visitors it’s always very sedate....not like Christmas visits then....!

 

We launched them into noisy chaos. I was very proud of them - they didn’t growl at or bite the array of children of different ages despite being sat on numerous times. They didn’t eat the turkey, chew anything they shouldn’t, destroy any new kids toys, or have any ‘accidents’. I thought they were really good. They did, however, steal half a pavlova and some chocolate log and being the perfect height for ‘procuring’ things from work-tops came very close to stealing a lot more food had we not intervened. So not everyone appreciated the relative angelicness of our hounds...

 

But this led to discussions and thoughts about how much we expect of our dogs in such situations - they are often expected to know exactly what they can and can’t eat, when asking for food will work and when it won’t etc. And to cope with huge changes in the circumstances they are launched into. We need to take every opportunity to stick up for dogs, not be embarrassed by their behaviour when we have put them in that situation but to always see things from their perspective, even when it doesn’t fit with human etiquette.

 

This reminds me of a paragraph in Adam Miklosi’s book about dogs. He says “It is important to consider whether the dog has to be trained because of us or them. There are many dogs out there that enjoy a happy life in the human family without much ‘training’ in the strict sense. Formal dog training is only one way of interacting with the dog by which skills can be learned. Often our accelerated, city dwelling lifestyles necessitate our dogs to be formally trained. If provided with a natural environment [..] many (most?) dogs ‘became trained’ without much training.”

 

To be honest although I am very interested in learning theory etc. I have mostly let our dogs train themselves. Although maybe I’ll work on the training not to counter-surf before next Christmas - but I’ll do it in a way that appreciates that with long legs and noses they are adapted well to this activity and it is a big ‘ask’ to overcome!

 

New resources

 

1. Dima’s Dog School - newly published book about the holistic approach to training dogs.

http://dogschoolbook.co.uk/

 

2. New quarterly magazine for people interested in small furry pets - called Small Furry Pets! The first issue came out in ‘winter 2011’ and is available in many pet shops and newsagents or by subscription here.

 

The contents of the first issue were promising and included some useful tips for owners. There was even an interview with a lecturer about the welfare of rats. And much to my suprise you had to look hard to find pictures of cages that are too small for their intended purpose, which was refreshing. I didn’t particularly like the article on promotion of chinchillas as pets - chinchillas can live until they are 25, are really quite messy and destructive and difficult to keep ‘entertained’. I do not think that they are a suitable species to be kept as pets (having owned 3 in the past!). However, the article did cover their needs. Hopefully the more people can learn about their small furry friends the better as for too long they have been subjected to a life of neglect and misunderstanding.

 

3. Ben Hart’s shaping plans (available from the Books section at www.hartshorsemanship.com). These are step-by-step guides to training your horse. Often people understand that they need to take things slowly and ‘shape’ new behaviours they train but it can sometimes be difficult to think of all the steps needed - and when we go too far too fast we often end up slowing training down. These guides are fantastic at taking you through the processes needed for ethical, safe, horsemanship.

 

4. For a free poster and resources about the recent Frozen Planet series on TV visit the Open University link here.

 

Horse Behaviour Lessons

 

If you don’t have a particular problem with your horse, or don’t even own a horse, but just want to learn more about equine behaviour then I have started to run one-off or regular lessons for individuals and groups.

Individual sessions - £30 for 1 hour sessions; regular lessons only available in Surrey (other areas subject to possible travel charges). Discounts per person for up to ten people. You don’t necessarily need to own a horse for these lessons - lessons can be just theory or you can come to my horses. If you are local you could save money by attending the 6-week behaviour course in Ockham (details).

Can be tailored for adults, teenagers or children and experienced and less experienced people alike and focus on your main interests.

Examples of topics we could cover:

- What horses need, understanding their natural behaviour and how we can try to meet these needs for our domestic horses
- How horses learn and how we can apply this practically
- Solving problems
- Developing confidence hacking
- Different training methods, why they work and ethical considerations
- Clicker training
- Introduction to physiology of behaviour
- Learning theory in more detail
- Advice for those considering a career in equine behaviour
- Welfare issues surrounding horses in the UK today

Membership Scheme

Learning About Animals has set up a new scheme so that regular attendees to events can benefit from a discount. Many of you come to events regularly and it’s greatly appreciated. See this link for more details about how to join for 2012.

2nd Hand Books for Charity

 

If you would like any of these titles please send a cheque for just £2.50 (Payable to Learning About Animals) to 6, Fern Cottages, Dorking Road, Abinger Hammer, Dorking, Surrey, RH5 6SA or pay using the PayPal link below. The money (apart from the postage costs) goes to TAWS - helping working horses, and the owners who depend on them, worldwide. All in very good condition.

 

1. Dear John by Nicholas Sparks (Amazon link for more info)

2. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (Amazon link)
3. One Day by David Nicholls (Amazon link)

4. Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby (Amazon link)

5. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Amazon link)

6. A week in December by Sebastian Faulks (Amazon link)

7. The Other Hand by Chris Cleave (Amazon link)

8. Chloe by Freya North (Amazon link)

9. The Pursuit of Happiness by Douglas Kennedy (Amazon link)

10. Love etc. by Julian Barnes (Amazon link)

 

 

Barefoot trimming and management course

Ashen Equestrian Centre in Essex promotes ethical training and management of horses.

On 5th February 2012 they are hosting a lecture/dissection/demo on barefoot trimming and management. This one day course will include an explanation of the foot function and its biomechanics, the development of hoof structure, a lower limb/hoof dissection, trimming principles plus more. For more information follow this LINK.

 

Can animals dream?

We have all seen sleeping dogs twitch their paws, move their legs and sometimes vocalise in their sleep as if they are dreaming chasing rabbits. Is it scientifically likely that animals dream in the same way that humans do? Well, for humans we know that during REM (rapid eye movement) sleep there is electrical activity in the brain that is similar to that when we are awake. People woken up in this stage of sleep can usually report their dreams, which they do not if woken from other types of sleep. Animals also have REM sleep and it has been found that during this they also have electrical brain activity similar to that when they are awake. Therefore, most scientists agree that it is likely that animals do indeed dream, although we do not know what they dream about!

Dreaming dog video here and here

Dreaming cat video here

Dreaming horse video here

Did you know....

That the distance between sheep in a flock tends to be a characteristic of the breed? Breeds that tend to live on hills keep further apart than those living in lowland areas (even if the land is flat). The distance to the nearest sheep also varies according to quality of vegetation. Sheep form subgroups in the larger flock, each subgroup has its own home range within the overall flock home range. This is why flocks from different farms can be kept in the same area as they naturally keep in separate groups (or ‘hefts’). The lambs of a ewe occupy the same home range as their mother.