Very little is known about cattle vocalizations. The few studies available in the literature have been conducted using animals under stress or very intensive husbandry conditions. Similarly, the individual consistency of behaviour in cattle has rarely been considered except in applied studies of constrained and isolated animals, and no previous research has attempted to address a possible association between vocal communication and temperament in cattle. The studies reported here address these gaps in our knowledge. I found that cattle contact calls have acoustic characteristics that give them individualized distinctiveness, in both adult cows and calves. These results were confirmed using playback experiments, where I found that there is bidirectional mother-offspring recognition, as has been recorded in other “weak hider” ungulates. Additionally, using visual and acoustic stimuli, I assessed individual cattle temperament. The results showed that there was no individual behavioural consistency in responses to a novel object presentations. However, calves behaved consistently more boldly than cows. Furthermore, there was significant individual consistency in responses to vocalisations of heterospecifics, when they were played back through a speaker in the field. Surprisingly, no correlations were found between the ability of cattle to identify their own mother/offspring and the acoustic features of their vocalisations, or behavioural responses in any other context. There were, however, significant correlations between one characteristic of vocalisations in adult cows (formant spacing) and the boldness of behavioural responses to both novel objects and auditory stimuli. Additionally, higher F0 in calf contact vocalizations correlated with boldness in the auditory stimuli experiment. These relationships imply that vocalisations may encode information about individual temperament, something which has rarely been documented. Surprisingly, no strong correlations were found between the behavioural responses to visual and acoustic stimuli, suggesting that individual consistency in behaviour across contexts was limited, and that behavioural plasticity could play an important role in determining responses in different environmental contexts. Overall, my results contribute to our knowledge of animal communication in mammals from a bioacoustic point of view, and they are also potentially relevant to studies of vocalizations as indicators of cattle welfare.

The American Veterinary Medical Association has stated the importance of minimizing pain associated with dehorning to limit the amount of distress and changes in the animals behavior and physiological states (AVMA, 2014b). The following studies aim to determine the effect of timing of lidocaine administration on physiological responses in calves after dehorning. The first study compared cortisol and substance P levels in calves dehorned immediately after administration of lidocaine and meloxicam, calves dehorned 10 minutes after the administration of lidocaine and meloxicam, and calves that were administered lidocaine and meloxicam and not dehorned. It was concluded waiting 10 minutes after administration of lidocaine and meloxicam to dehorn calves provided no benefits, as it did not reduce plasma cortisol and substance P compared to other treatment groups. The second follow up study compared cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) levels in calves dehorned immediately compared to calves dehorned 10 minutes after the administration of lidocaine alone, calves dehorned without lidocaine, and calves administered lidocaine but not dehorned. Waiting 10 minutes to dehorn calves after lidocaine administration may provide some benefits in reducing plasma ACTH and cortisol. Calves dehorned after a 10-minute waiting period had lower peak plasma ACTH levels and reached pretreatment levels for both plasma ACTH and cortisol quicker than the other treatment groups that were dehorned. However, differences observed in ACTH dissipate in 5 minutes and all calves reached baseline plasma cortisol levels within an hour of dehorning.

Memoria para optar al Titulo Profesional de Médico Veterinario / Los anfibios anuros utilizan extensamente las señales acústicas, siendo capaces de detectarlas, reconocerlas y localizarlas. La capacidad de localizar la fuente sonora permite a las hembras acercarse a los machos y aparearse. Además facilitaría a los machos responder a rivales. Sin embargo, en experimentos de campo, los machos de Pleurodema thaul responden indistintamente a estímulos provenientes de diferentes localizaciones. Exploramos la direccionalidad de las respuestas de neuronas auditivas mesencefálicas, para comparar la actividad neural con la ausencia de respuestas conductuales direccionales observada. Se registraron las respuestas de 62 neuronas auditivas mesencefálicas en 15 machos a estímulos provenientes de 7 ángulos en el plano horizontal, desde la posición 90° contralateral hasta 90° ipsilateral, respecto al hemisferio de registro, en intervalos de 30°. Un 45 % de las neuronas respondió direccionalmente a un estímulo de canto sintético con más descargas a la posición contralateral y 17 % respondió de manera no direccional. En respuesta a tonos puros, sólo 27 % de las neuronas respondió preferencialmente a la posición contralateral y un 41% en forma no direccional. La direccionalidad de las respuestas neuronales contrasta con la ausencia de direccionalidad en las respuestas conductuales. Estos resultados indican que los machos de P. thaul podrían localizar a potenciales rivales, pero responden similarmente a cantos provenientes de distintas posiciones, manteniendo una actividad vocal que facilitaría la atracción de hembras

Memoria para optar al Título Profesional de Médico Veterinario / El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar el efecto de la suplementación dietaria de Cu y Zn suministrados en forma de compuestos orgánicos e inorgánicos en yeguas durante sus tres últimos meses de gestación y en sus potrillos hasta los 30 días de edad. Se escogieron al azar 24 yeguas FSC en sus últimos 3 meses de gestación de un criadero de la región metropolitana, las cuales fueron divididas en 2 grupos, el primer grupo fue alimentado durante estos 3 meses con un suplemento vitamínico mineral en cuya formulación el Cu y el Zn eran aportados en forma orgánica, en cambio el segundo grupo fue alimentado con un suplemento vitamínico mineral en cuya formulación el Cu y el Zn eran aportados en forma inorgánica. Al comenzar este estudio se tomo una muestra de sangre a todas las yeguas que participaban de este estudio con el fin de ver el estatus mineral, principalmente de Cu y Zn. Luego de comenzada la suplementación, se extrajo una muestra de sangre a cada yegua cada 15 días hasta el termino de su gestación, recolectándose un total de 6 muestras por yegua, incluyendo la muestra tomada previo al inicio de la suplementación, para posteriormente tomar 2 muestras de sangre a sus potrillos a los 15 y 30 días de edad. Las concentraciones plasmáticas de Cu y Zn fueron determinadas por espectrofotometría de absorción atómica. Las yeguas que pertenecían al grupo I presentaron un promedio de Zn plasmático de 0,38 mg/dl y un promedio de Cu plasmático de 0,78 mg/dl antes del inicio del ensayo, al final del ensayo las concentraciones plasmáticas de Zn y Cu fueron 0,51 mg/dl y 0,82mg/dl respectivamente. Las yeguas que pertenecían al grupo II, presentaron un promedio de Zn plasmático de 0,35 mg/dl y un promedio de Cu plasmático de 0,75 mg/dl antes del inicio del ensayo, al final del ensayo las concentraciones plasmáticas de Zn y Cu fueron 0,48 mg/dl y 0,85 mg/dl respectivamente. Las yeguas de este estudio se encontraban en un bajo estatus nutricional de Cu y Zn al momento de comenzar este estudio. La suplementación con Cu y Zn suministrados tanto en forma orgánica como inorgánica aumentó signicativamente los niveles plasmáticos de ambos minerales (p<0,05). Las concentraciones plasmáticas de Cu y Zn en ambos grupos de potrillos a los 15 días de edad fueron inferiores a las aceptadas como normales según Puls, (1988), en el 2º muestreo a los 30 días de vida de los potrillos los niveles plasmáticos de Zn no llegaron al rango mínimo normal, y en el caso del Cu solo los potrillos cuyas madres fueron suplementadas con minerales orgánicos lograron tener un estatus de Cu normal. No existieron diferencias significativas (p<0,05) entre las concentraciones plasmáticas de Cu y Zn ni en las yeguas ni en sus potrillos al ser suplementados con fuentes orgánicas e inorgánicas. El suplemento vitamínico mineral entregado de forma orgánica cuesta más del doble que el suplemento inorgánico, sin un beneficio que lo justifique.

A series of experiments studied the possible role for prolactin in the spring-time recrudescence of ovarian activity in mares. The first experiment was based on cabergoline administration to seasonally anovulatory mares to prevent the seasonal rise in endogenous plasma prolactin to assess whether reduced prolactin altered onset of ovarian activity or first ovulation. Although prolactin concentrations were reduced, basal prolactin concentrations recovered from suppression by the time of the next injection (10 days later), even though low-dose sulpiride stimulation of prolactin was still suppressed by 85%. The subsequent experiment tested whether season affected the duration and degree of suppression produced by a standard dose of cabergoline. Mares were administered cabergoline at 1.5 mg/500 kg body weight in March, June, September, and December. Duration of suppression was affected little by month of assessment. Follow-up assessments with either low dose sulpiride (July) or thyrotropin releasing hormone (October) challenges after administration of 5 mg cabergoline indicated that basal prolactin concentrations always rebounded earlier than secretagogue-induced secretion. The third experiment studied possible physical and hormonal characteristics of seasonally anovulatory mares that might affect their response to a combined estradiol and sulpiride treatment for inducing ovulation in winter. All mares received 50 mg of estradiol cypionate (ECP) followed by 3 g of sulpiride. Factors that were commonly associated with early-induced ovulation were: adequate body condition, elevated plasma concentrations of leptin and insulin, and a greater LH response to secretagogue prior to the start of the experiment. The final experiment studied the hormonal production aspects of the first pre-ovulatory follicle of the breeding season in seasonally anovulatory mares treated with ECP followed by injections of sulpiride 5 and 12 days later, or ECP plus vehicle (controls), beginning in January. Date to first 35-mm follicle was advanced in sulpiride-treated mares. It was concluded that early-induced follicles are equally as competent in terms of steroid production and ability to respond to circulating LH as pre-ovulatory follicles occurring naturally in spring. These experiments support the model in which an increase in circulating prolactin during winter can hasten follicular growth and advance the date to first ovulation in most mares.

Brucella is a genus of Gram negative, facultative intracellular pathogens which cause brucellosis, one of the most wide spread zoonotic diseases. Brucellosis causes a severe economic burden due to reproductive loss in animals and human infection. Vaccination of animals has proven to be the most effective means of controlling brucellosis; however the current live-attenuated vaccines are not considered ideal. The live-attenuated vaccines Brucella abortus Strain 19 and RB51 remain pathogenic to humans, and the former interferes with diagnostic tests due to induction of antibodies against the O-polysaccharide. DNA vaccination with single antigens has proven to be successful at protecting mice against B. abortus challenge, however this method is less effective in large animals. Immunization with a combination of antigens has been shown to provide more protection than single antigens. In an attempt to develop a better DNA vaccine, two multivalent multi-epitope plasmids were constructed using known protective antigens and bioinformatics technologies. Epitopes predicted to induce cell-mediated immunity were selected from Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase, outer membrane protein (Omp) 16, Omp19, ribosomal subunit L7/L12, BP26, ribosomal subunit L9, and Omp25. The plasmids were transfected into Chinese hamster ovary (CHO K1) cells, and PCR was used to confirm presence of the sequences in the genome. The transcription of the BabV1 and BabV2 genes to RNA was confirmed using RT-PCR. Finally, Western blots using sera from Strain 19 infected goats suggest the protein is not recognized by the humoral response of vaccinated animals. Further research is required to determine if the p425/BabV1 and p425/BabV2 vaccines are recognized by the cell-mediated immune response of infected or vaccinated animals.

Parasites cause considerable economic losses in all fields of agriculture. In the poultry industry, coccidia infections are of major significance costing billions of dollars every year. Research on condensed tannins (CT) has been shown to be effective against various parasites such as gastrointestinal nematodes and Eimeria spp. in small ruminants. This study tested the effects of the CT containing forage, sericea lespedeza (SL), on broiler chickens infected with live Eimeria spp. oocysts. In Study 1, 300 Ross 708 broiler chicks were divided into 6 groups (negative control, positive control w/BioCox, 0% SL, 5% SL, 10% SL, 15% SL). In Study 2, 250 Ross 708 broiler chicks were divided into 5 groups (negative control, positive control w/BioCox, positive control w/Corrid, 0% SL, 10% SL). Chicks were grown for 18 days in battery cages. All groups, except the negative control, were infected with a high dose (approximately 100,000 oocysts per chick) of oocysts at day 4 via gavage. SL was fed to the appropriate groups from day 0 to day 18. Data analysis included fecal oocyst count (FOC), weight, feed conversion, lesion scoring and histopathology. Results from Study 1 indicated that 10% and 15% SL, significantly decreased FOC. Reduced body weight (BW) and feed conversion for all SL fed chicks were also noted. Lesion scoring was not of value. Histopathology suggested a potential mechanism of action of CT, in that only the SL fed chicks had developing stages in the intestinal mucosa. Therefore, CT may act to slow development allowing the immune response to mature. In Study 2, FOC was not affected by the 10% SL treatment. Reduced BW and feed conversion were also observed as in Study 1. Feeding broiler chicks, a diet containing SL may be beneficial for controlling Eimeria spp. infection, but production was negatively affected. Therefore, feeding SL should not be recommended at this time pending further research to address the production issues.

‘Hardy's Creatures' examines the human and nonhuman animals who walk and crawl and twine and fly and trot across and around the pages of Thomas Hardy's novels: figures on two feet and on four, some with hands, all with faces. Specifically, the thesis traces the appearances of the term ‘creature' in Hardy's works as a way of levelling the ground between humans and animals and of reconfiguring traditional boundaries between the two. Hardy firmly believed in a ‘shifted [...] centre of altruism' after Darwin that extended ethical consideration to include animals. In moments of encounter between humans and animals in his texts—encounters often highlighted by the word ‘creature'—Hardy seems to test the boundaries that were being debated by the Victorian scientific and philosophical communities: boundaries based on moral sense or moral agency (as discussed in chapter two), language and reason (chapter three), the possession of a face (chapter four), and the capacity to suffer and perceive pain (chapter five). His use of ‘creature', a word that can have both distinctly human and uniquely animal meanings, draws upon the multiple (and at times contradictory) connotations embedded in it, complicating attempts to delineate decisively between two realms and offering instead ambiguity and irony. Hardy's focus on the material world and on embodiment, complemented by his willingness to shift perspective and scale and to imagine the worlds of other creatures, gestures towards empathy and compassion while recognizing the unknowability of the individual. His approach seems a precursor to the kind of thinking about and with animals being done by animal studies today. Encountering Hardy's creatures offers a new way of wandering through Wessex, inviting readers to reconsider their own perspectives on what it means to be a creature.

Two experiments evaluated using an estrous-detection patch to identify animals that are in standing estrus at split-timed AI (STAI) and the necessity of a gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) injection at STAI on a 7-Day CO-Synch + CIDR protocol. In experiment 1 (n=216) and in experiment 2 (n=101), multiparous lactating crossbred beef cows were stratified by age, BW, BCS, and post-partum interval to 2 treatment groups: CTRL=timed-AI (TAI) at 72h post CIDR removal, or TRT=STAI at 72 or 84h post CIDR removal. All females received GnRH plus a CIDR on d0, prostaglandin-F2α, CIDR removal, and an Estrotect estrous-detector patch on d7. At 72h post-CIDR removal, a patch score was assigned (PS1 <50% removed; PS2 ≥ 50% removed) to all females. Cows in the CTRL group were administrated a second GnRH injection at 72h TAI. Cows in the TRT group with a PS2 were not administrated GnRH at TAI. At 84h, the remaining TRT cows were given a second PS and cows with a PS1 received a GnRH injection and cows with a PS2 did not. Blood samples for Progesterone concentration were collected on d-11 and 0 to determine percent of cows cycling. Data were analyzed using Proc Genmod with treatment and AI technician as fixed effects, sire as a random effect, and BW, BCS, age, and PPI as covariates. In experiment 1, TAI pregnancy rates were similar (P=0.81) between the CTRL (40.8%) and TRT (43.4%) groups. Pregnancy rates tended to be greater (P=0.07) for cows with a PS2 (50.3%) compared with a PS1 (29.4%). However, by extending TAI to 84h in unresponsive cows, 82.0% of the TRT cows did not receive a second injection of GnRH at TAI. In experiment 2, TAI pregnancy rates were similar (P=0.80) between the CTRL (32.3%) and TRT (38.6%) groups. Pregnancy rates were greater (P=0.04) for cows with a PS2 (70.6%) compared with a PS1 (19.4%). By extending TAI to 84h in unresponsive cows, 37.1% of the TRT cows did not receive GnRH at TAI. Using a heat-detector can reduce the percentage of cows that require GnRH at TAI without compromising pregnancy rates.

Memoria para optar al Título Profesional de Médico Veterinario / El objetivo de la presente investigación fue identificar los problemas de bienestar animal que afectan a las vacas lecheras de la zona central de Chile mediante la información obtenida utilizando el protocolo de Welfare Quality®. También se evalúo el efecto del sistema de alojamiento (cubículo o californiano) sobre el bienestar de las vacas. Se seleccionaron diecinueve granjas lecheras (10 con sistema californiano y 9 con sistema de cubículos). Las causas principales de un bajo nivel de bienestar fueron condiciones que afectan a la salud del animal, principalmente las alteraciones en la piel (zonas de alopecia) y problemas de cojera, y condiciones que se relacionan con el alojamiento de los animales, como la limpieza de ubres, flancos y piernas. Los sistemas tipo cubículo presentaron una mayor prevalencia de vacas con descarga nasal y ocular y de “peleas por hora”, probablemente por la mayor densidad de animales que presentan estos sistemas, mientras que los sistemas californianos presentaron una mayor prevalencia de vacas caídas y vacas con descarga vulvar sin encontrarse una causa significativa que explique la situación