Feline vocal communication.

Cat vocalizes to communicate with another and express their internal states. The vocal repertoire of the cat is wide and up to 21 different vocalizations have been described in the literatures. But it is more than probable that the repertoire contains more types of vocalizations. An ethogram was created in this paper describing the actual known vocalisations of the domestic cat based on an auditory classification. However, the audiogram allows also a visual classification which can increase the accuracy of vocalization differentiation. The classification can be risky as it is sometimes unclear if different types of vocalizations are produced in different environments or if a unique type of vocalization is used with variation in the acoustic parameters. As an example, isolation calls produced by kittens differ depending on the context. The environment has an important impact on the vocal behaviour and thus feral cats and pet cats vocalize differently. Pet cats are thus able to create an efficient communication with humans thanks to the flexibility of vocalisation behaviours. This review allowed us to create a simple model of the cat vocal repertory.

Pawing by standardbred racehorses: frequency and patterns.

The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of pawing behavior in a population of Standardbred racehorses and the relationship of pawing frequency to time of day. Standardbreds (n=41) were observed using instantaneous scan sampling twice daily, in the morning before training and in the afternoon after training. A majority of the horses, twenty-four (58.5%) of the 41 horses showed pawing behavior at least once (median=7, interquartile range=2-15). After training, there were a median of 4 (interquartile range 1-11) observations of pawing or 11.2% of total observations. In the morning, before training, there were 3 (0-3.25) pawing observations, or 9.1% of total observations. There was a significantly greater frequency of pawing in the afternoon (P=0.0005). They pawed less on Sunday afternoons when they had not trained. Pawing may be related to exercise and, possibly, discomfort.

Motivation for hay: effects of a pelleted diet on behavior and physiology of horses.

The natural diet of free-ranging horses is grass, which is typically high in fiber and calorically dilute, however diets for high performance domestic horses are often low in fiber and calorically dense. The aim of the study was to determine the motivation of horses for hay when fed a low roughage diet. Their motivation could be used to determine if low roughage diets compromise the welfare of horses. Eight mares were fed two different diets in counterbalanced order: ad libitum orchard grass hay; a complete pelleted feed (pellets). Each trial lasted three weeks, with a one-week transition period between diets. To determine the motivation of horses for fiber they were taught to press a panel to obtain a food reward. The fixed ratio (FR) was increased using a progressive ratio ((1,2,4,7,11…) technique. When fed pellets, the horses worked for a median FR of 1 (Range=1-497) to attain pellets, and when fed hay, they worked for a median FR of 25.5 (4-497) to attain pellets. When fed hay, the horses worked for a median FR of 0 (0-0) to attain hay, and when fed pellets, they worked for a FR of 13 (2-79) to attain hay. These results indicate a greater motivation for hay, a high fiber diet, when fed a low fiber diet. The horses spent 10 (5-19.4)% of their time during a 24-hour period eating pellets compared to 61.5 (29-76) % of their time eating hay. Horses spent 58% of their time standing when fed the pellets and only 37% of their time standing when fed hay. Searching behavior (i.e. sifting through wood shaving bedding for food particles) took up 11.5 (1.4-32) % of the horse's day when fed pellets, but only 1.2 (0-3.5) % of the daily time budget when fed hay. Horses chew more times when eating a hay diet (43,476chews/day) than when eating a pellet diet (10,036chews/day). Fecal pH was lower in horses fed the pelleted diet.

Comparative analysis of vocalizations of thoroughbred mares (Equus caballus) between estrus and diestrus.

We investigated the differences between vocalizations of mares in estrus and diestrus and determined the spectrographic parameters to discriminate estrus from diestrus. Thoroughbred brood mares (n=89) were exposed to a teasing procedure for 3 min, and we recorded all vocalizations emitted from them. Among the mares, 56.5% of estrus and 78.6% of diestrus mares emitted calls toward an approaching stallion, indicating that there was higher tendency in the occurrence rate of vocal responses in diestrus than estrus mares. We analyzed the spectrographic data of the mares (25 estrus and 22 diestrus mares) emitting calls in the form of a squeal toward an approaching stallion. Based on broad bandwidth spectrographic analysis, the duration and third formant of the call have a significant effect on discriminating estrus from diestrus.

Acoustic feature of barks of ovariohysterectomized and intact German Shepherd bitches.

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of ovariohysterectomy on vocalization during territorial aggression of German Shepherd dogs. Sixteen clinically healthy dogs of 5 to 10 months old were assigned randomly to one of two groups: ovariohysterectomy or control. Their behaviors and vocalizations induced by the approach of a strange with a strange dog were recorded using digital camcorder at four and five months after surgery and were analysed. When territorial aggression was induced, dogs in ovariohysterectomized group showed more offensive territorial aggression. The bark was the most frequent vocalization. In this study, the average number of barks was 45 times in ovariohysterectomized group, and 26 times in the control group. The pitch of vocalization was significantly lower in ovariohysterectomized group than control group. First formant, second formant, third formant, and fourth formant frequency in ovariohysterectomized group, which represent the degree of sound energy in specific frequency, were lower than those of control group. Ovariohysterectomy of bitches may influence the frequency of aggressive vocalization and affect the acoustic feature of dogs' vocalization. Analysis of vocalization could be a useful method of evaluating the dogs' intention.