Animal Studies Commons^™

Human-Dog Interactions & Municipal Policy, Andrew N. Rowan

WellBeing News

In 2009, a nationwide survey in Bosnia asking people about the threats in their local communities found that some communities were concerned about roaming dogs (rather than mine fields, crime or some other social ill). More specifically, the complaints mentioned dog attacks on people and domestic livestock. A Humane Community Development project in seven municipalities in Bosnia in 2013 proved very successful. The project has been very successful with reports of not only a significant reduction in roaming dogs and related problems but also greater citizen engagement with one another leading to improved civic cooperation both within and between the …

Effects Of Perceived Audiences On Discrimination Learning In Pigeons ( Columbia Livia ), Peyton M. Mueller, Matthew Murphy

Honors Theses

The social facilitation effect is a phenomenon frequently discussed in the subfield of social psychology. Some studies have examined the social facilitation or inhibition effects in nonhuman animals, though few have examined the effect of perceived audiences on their cognitive functioning. In order to study this effect, three different video stimuli were presented to one subject while solving a memorization discrimination task. It was hypothesized that the pigeon would learn a task at different rates based on the type of perceived audience presented. No significant results were found due to the fact that the subject was unable to learn the …

A Fishy Problem: Effects Of Atlantic Salmon Farming In The Pacific Ocean, Madeleine A. Griffith

Student Theses 2015-Present

In this report, I explore the historical, climatological, economic, and ethical issues created by the contemporary industrial salmon farming practices off Pacific coast of the United States and Canada. Chapter 1 utilizes a variety of sources from Stephen Hume’s A Stain upon the Sea to Miller’s Living in the Environment, to examine the integral part salmon plays in both freshwater and marine ecosystems, the ecosystem services salmon contribute in wild and farmed settings, and the trends in salmon consumption around the world. Chapter 2 examines the historically relevant role salmon held among indigenous societies and how that role has changed …

Developing Sensory Behavioral Assays For Zebrafish Autism Model, Shannon Wagner

Honors College Theses

Individuals of all ages can suffer from a wide variety of symptoms and disabilities that could be diagnosed as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Due to new methods and technology, individuals are now being diagnosed in the first two years of their life, which is when the signs of ASD are initially exhibited. Individuals diagnosed with ASD share many similar disabilities and symptoms such as hyperactivity to social, visual, and auditory stimuli, as well as hyposensitivity to olfactory stimuli. Neural circuit-based alterations are widely considered as a cause for these behavioral aberrations. We have created behavioral assays using zebrafish larvae to …

Its Skin Is My Skin, Bryan Page

Graduate School of Art Theses

This text examines the complexity of attempting to empathize with bodies that are vastly othered from my own. This broad yet nuanced subject crosses epistemological boundaries and complicates the dualities between both the mind and body, and between the corporeal and the virtual. My desire to better understand the conditions of another’s experience originates from a painful traumatic loss which caused me to feel isolated and incomplete. In response to this suffering, I long to emotionally connect with other beings and create artwork that attempts to bridge the qualia of individual experience.

I am interested in the capacity (or lack …

Contagious Yawning In The Domestic Cat (Felis Catus), Ariel M. Lombardo Aghishian

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates contagious yawning in domestic cats towards their owners, looking at potential links with empathy. Results showed no significant difference in yawning between conditions. The solitary nature of wildcats and their shared ancestor, and the unique social behavior in domesticated cats may explain these findings.

Link Link Circus, Isabella Rossellini

Theses and Dissertations

Link Link Circus is a theatrical script that presents historical, philosophical and scientific perspectives on the evolutionary, cognitive, behavioral and communicative links between humans and other animals. On stage two actors and a trained dog address the core question “Can animals think and feel?“

Observation Of Visitors At A Chimpanzee (Pan Troglodytes Schweinfurthii) Ecotourism Site Reveals Opportunity For Multiple Modes Of Pathogen Transmission, Darcey Glasser

Theses and Dissertations

Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) tracking is a popular ecotourism activity across Sub-Saharan Africa, offering visitors a personal wildlife experience. However, chimpanzee ecotourism may increase the risk of disease transmission between chimpanzees and people. This study assessed how tourist behaviors might facilitate cross-species disease transmission in Kibale National Park, Uganda.

Assessing The Impacts Of Gold Mining Deforestation On The Giant Otter (Pteronura Brasiliensis) In Madre De Dios, Peru, Erica Carcelen

Sustainability and Social Justice

Gold mining activity is highly prevalent in the Madre de Dios region, Peru. This activity poses large environmental impacts including deforestation, sedimentation of rivers, and pollution from mercury used during extraction. Mining activity is a major threat to the endangered giant otter as it destroys its preferred riverine habitat. Moreover, mercury used during gold extraction bio-accumulates in fish, which constitutes the entirety of their diet. In order to conserve the giant otter, it is necessary to identify conservation priority areas. In a reactive conservation planning approach, the objective of this work was to prioritize areas suitable as giant otter habitat …

Attitudes Toward Animal Research And Experimentation: An Annotated Bibliography [2011-2019], Erich Yahner

Anthrozoology

No abstract provided.

Attitudes Toward Animal Research And Experimentation: An Annotated Bibliography [1991-2000], Erich Yahner

Anthrozoology

No abstract provided.

Attitudes Toward Animal Research And Experimentation: An Annotated Bibliography [2001-2010], Erich Yahner

Anthrozoology

No abstract provided.

Attitudes Toward Animal Research And Experimentation: An Annotated Bibliography [1981-1990], Erich Yahner

Anthrozoology

No abstract provided.

The Abundance, Geographical Distribution And Habitat Use Of An Introduced Patas Monkey (Erythrocebus Patas) Population In Southwest Puerto Rico, Magaly Massanet

Graduate Theses

The southwest portion of Puerto Rico is home to introduced free-ranging populations of patas (Erythrocebus patas) and rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) monkeys. The rhesus macaque population originated from a colony established in 1961 on the islands of Guayacán and Cuevas off the southwest coast of Puerto Rico as part of the La Parguera Primate Research Center, which was administered by the Caribbean Primate Research Center. The descendants of these escapees have established free-ranging introduced monkey populations in mainland southwest Puerto Rico and the only previous study done on their ecology was conducted from 1990 to 1993 by González- Martínez (1995). …

Validating The Kubinyi Et Al. Personality Scale In Shelter Dogs, Gianna Zavota

Senior Honors Projects

The aim of this study was to apply the dog personality scale used in the study, Dog and owner demographic characteristics and dog personality trait associations, (Kubinyi et al. 2009) to resident shelter dogs. The personality was originally developed and adapted for dog personality based on a 48 item Human Personality Inventory available from The Big Five. In the study, owners were asked to characterize their dogs using this scale, and in this study a researcher used the scale to characterize dogs at various animal shelters. The four main personality traits measured were calmness, boldness, trainability, and dog …

A Study Of Beluga (Delphinapterus Leucas) Vocal Ontogeny, Audra Elizabeth Ames

Dissertations

There is a shortage of literature regarding beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) vocal ontogeny, as presently, there has only been one published study on the vocal development of beluga calves, despite the value of ontogenetic studies for our understanding of sound-centered species. Here I offer the second longitudinal study of beluga vocal development. Using a calibrated digital hydrophone with a sampling rate of 256 kHz, I studied the vocal progression of a male beluga calf in early life. From his first day, the calf produced broadband pulse trains with upper frequency limits extending past the study’s Nyquist frequency (128 kHz); …

First Thirty Days Of Life: Examining Calf Behavioral Development In Beluga Whales (Delphinapterus Leucas) And Pacific White-Sided Dolphins (Lagenorhyncus Obliquidens) At One Zoological Facility, Kendal Smith

Master's Theses

Cetacean development is important for general comparative understanding and the implementation of informed husbandry policies. Due to the inaccessibility of many of these species in the wild, researchers can study managed care populations to better understand basic developmental patterns of cetaceans, as well as to improve husbandry policies for facility animals. However, no previous studies have attempted to observe the behavioral development of Pacific white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhyncus obliquidens). Eight beluga whale calves and four Pacific white-sided dolphin calves were observed for the first 30 days of life to determine the developmental trajectory of several typically monitored behaviors. The …

Stabilizing Forces In Acoustic Cultural Evolution: Comparing Humans And Birds, Daniel C. Mann

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Learned acoustic communication systems, like birdsong and spoken human language, can be described from two seemingly contradictory perspectives. On one hand, learned acoustic communication systems can be remarkably consistent. Substantive and descriptive generalizations can be made which hold for a majority of populations within a species. On the other hand, learned acoustic communication systems are often highly variable. The degree of variation is often so great that few, if any, substantive generalizations hold for all populations in a species.

Within my dissertation, I explore the interplay of variation and uniformity in three vocal learning species: budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulatus), …

Optimization Of The Light Environment For Broiler Chickens, Douglas J. Aldridge

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of artificial light sources has been necessitated by the use of fully enclosed rearing facilities for improved environmental control. Light Emitting Diodes (LED) have been developed as a light source that reduce the utilities required to provide equal light to that of incandescent sources. The following reports were carried out to investigate the effects of two light color temperatures, light intensity and light intensity gradients on broiler chicken production and behavior. The first investigation consisting of two consecutive trials investigated the effect of two light color temperatures (2700 K and 5000 K) in addition to the preference for …

The Development Of Socio-Sexual Behavior In Beluga Whales (Delphinapterus Leucas), Malin K. Lilley

Dissertations

The reproductive success of the beluga whale is critical for a species facing extinction in its endangered Cook Inlet, Alaska population. To date, little is known about the mating behavior of these whales in wild populations. On the other hand, observations of beluga whales in human care allow researchers to better understand many aspects of their daily lives and life histories that are difficult to assess in wild populations. Thus far, a catalog of socio-sexual behavior has been established based on observations of belugas; however, the developmental trajectory of socio-sexual behavior is not well-understood. The present study explored how socio-sexual …

Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops Truncatus) Vocal Responses To Sonar And Spectrally Pink Background Noise, Maria Zapetis

Dissertations

As human populations rise, the level of man-made noise increases globally. Naval sonar and boat traffic are underwater sound sources of particular concern to marine mammal welfare. To better understand the impact of these noise increases on cetaceans, studies can explore animals’ behavioral changes in response to noise. Studies have investigated the ‘dose-response’ relationship between the received sound pressure level of sonar signals and the behavior of cetaceans in the wild, but exposure studies in controlled environments are limited. The studies in this dissertation examined bottlenose dolphin vocal modifications during various experimental noise treatments. Acoustic recordings previously obtained for bottlenose …

Preparation And Evaluation Of Single-Stranded Dna Aptamer-Based Immunological Adjuvant In Broiler Chickens, Adil Sabr Al-Ogaili

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Mineral oils and metal salts are commonly used as adjuvants to enhance acquired immunity. Recently, monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and recombinant peptides agonist CD40 receptor have shown remarkable promise for induction of rapid and robust immune responses. Limitations of this approach MAb production costs and multiple administrations due to anti-MAb immune responses. Here we demonstrate the development of a unique and sophisticated DNA aptamer-based alternative for CD40-directed delivery of universal antigens as an alternative in chickens, and potentially other vertebrate species. This receptor, expressed by antigen-presenting cells, acts as a costimulatory molecule for activated T helper lymphocytes. After initially selecting for …

Broiler Breeder Amino Acid Levels And Progeny Nutritional Status, Leasea Butler

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Crude protein needs of chickens have changed due to genetic line differences and selection of those lines for differing broiler traits. Standard commercial broiler strains have been selected to be used to meet multiple processing categories typically at live body weights less than 3.5 kg. In the last two decades high-yielding broiler strains were introduced into the commercial market. These breeds are known as the Cobb 700 and Ross 708. The works included within are focused on the Cobb 700 high-yielding broiler strain, and its response to crude protein, with emphasis on digestible lysine.

Hormone Signaling, Gene Expression, And Mitochondrial Hormone Receptor Expression In Avian Muscle (Cells), Kentu Rushadd Lassiter

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Mitochondria are vital to the proper growth and function of muscle cells since they’re responsible for the majority of ATP production used for cellular energy. Previous studies have investigated how differences in mitochondrial function affects feed efficiency (FE) in broilers phenotyped for High and Low FE. Low FE broilers have been shown to have increased levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), thus contributing to higher levels of oxidative stress and damage seen in these birds. Global gene and protein expression studies conducted on breast muscle of the High FE and Low FE phenotypes have suggested that differences in mitochondrial function …

Determining The Relationship Among Cattle Genotype, Hair Coat Score, And Productivity Through The Investigation Of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms Within Prolactin, Dopamine Receptor D2, And Melatonin Receptor 1a, Erin Davis

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Prolactin (PRL), melatonin (MTN), and dopamine (DA) are all hormones that are believed to play a role in the regulation and growth of hair in beef cattle. There are also single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with each of these hormones or their receptors, indicating that the investigation of these polymorphisms could allow them to serve as genetic markers for the future productivity of an animal. The objective of this study was to determine the relationships among cattle genotype, hair coat score, and productivity through the investigation of single nucleotide polymorphisms within prolactin, dopamine receptor D2, and melatonin receptor 1A. Body weights, …

Evaluation Of Herd Size Management Strategies, Colson A. Tester

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is comprised of two studies examining the effects of price signal based herd size management strategies on profitability of cow-calf operations. Herd size management strategies were evaluated across the previous two cattle cycles, 1990-2014, using a fixed land resource and included a variety of production scenarios. These scenarios varied in terms of stocking rates, fertilizer applications rates, and calving season. Each scenario was also analyzed both with and without weather effects on forage production. Weather effects were simulated using a production index derived from satellite imagery across the observed 25-year period. Three herd size management strategies: i) constant …

Animal Experimentation: Working Towards A Paradigm Change, Kathrin Herrmann (Ed.), Kimberley Jayne (Ed.)

eBooks

Animal experimentation has been one of the most controversial areas of animal use, mainly due to the intentional harms inflicted upon animals for the sake of hoped-for benefits in humans. Despite this rationale for continued animal experimentation, shortcomings of this practice have become increasingly more apparent and well-documented. However, these limitations are not yet widely known or appreciated, and there is a danger that they may simply be ignored. The 51 experts who have contributed to Animal Experimentation: Working Towards a Paradigm Change critically review current animal use in science, present new and innovative non-animal approaches to address urgent scientific …

Is Animal-Based Biomedical Research Being Used In Its Original Context?, Constança Carvalho, Daniel Alves, Andrew Knight, Luís Vicente

Validation of Animal Experimentation Collection

No abstract provided.

Critically Evaluating Animal Research, Andrew Knight

Validation of Animal Experimentation Collection

No abstract provided.

Genetic Modification Of Animals: Scientific And Ethical Issues, Jarrod Bailey

Genetic Engineering and Cloning Collection

No abstract provided.